Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins!

As its obvious all over my blog, I am a BIG fan of the lovely blog known as Annie's Eats. Annie has recipes for every genre of food, and seasonal cooking always features heavily. As the year marches towards the end (how on earth is it October already?!), I am getting more and more into the spirit of fall cooking. Fall is my favorite season, and probably the only time during the year that I will lament living in sunny South Florida. Leaves changing! Pumpkin patches! Apple picking! These activities are not a part of my life down here, but a girl can dream.

Let's starting dreaming with the most glorious pumpkin spice muffin recipe EVER. Pumpkin muffins flavored with traditional fall spices such as nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves, topped with a crackly cinnamon-sugar topping, and cream cheese-sugar filling inside! Are you drooling yet? I was so intrigued by this recipe - the filling is not piped in at the end, but instead frozen, and then sliced and placed halfway through the batter! This muffin-making was a two-day process. I whipped cream cheese and confectioner's sugar yesterday, and rolled it into a log, wrapping it carefully in plastic wrap and aluminum foil, to hold its shape. Today I made the muffin batter, and filled the bottom of the baking cups with a bit of the batter, then sliced the log into rounds, and placed a round (or ball - it is sticky to work with!), and then filled the cup the rest of the way with batter.

Next step was making the topping. Flour, white sugar, cinnamon, and unsalted butter gets mixed together until crumbly, and sprinkled over the top of the muffins.

I HIGHLY recommend that you put these on your "To-Bake" list! They are perfectly flavored with spices and pumpkin, and the slight crunch of the cinnamon sugar on top, along with the oozy, sweet, creamy center, makes it truly the best muffin. They are a bit more work then your average muffin (more similar to cupcakes with the frosting inside maybe?), but they are so worth it! :) Happy Baking! Here's the recipe link!

Fish Dinner!

I usually grocery shop at Publix, and the other day they had something that really caught my eye. Crab meat stuffed tilapia fillets! Granted, this is something that can easily be done at home, but the idea hadn't occurred to me, so I picked up two for our Saturday night supper at home. Even though they looked seasoned, I made sure to add more salt, pepper, and Old Bay seasoning before sticking them in the oven, making sure to keep them on the bed of spinach they came ready with. To accompany the fish, I oven-roasted yellow squash and zucchini rounds with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Yum! I also couldn't resist and bought two miniature pumpkins (I've never seen them in white before!) to add a little fall decor to our kitchen.

Roasted Asparagus Salad!

Working full time and taking night classes for my master's, coupled with my boyfriend's busy work schedule, means that some nights, dinner needs to be fast! As is evident in many of my posts from this past summer, I am a big fan of compiling various ingredients and assembling them all together in one big festive platter. A few nights ago, I roasted asparagus in the oven with olive oil, sea salt, and black pepper. I made some couscous with garlic and dried herbs to accompany the asparagus, along with red kidney beans, and sweet corn. I love the presentation of colors, and the contrasting sweet and salty flavors, along with crunchy and soft textures was very pleasing. This is a great vegetarian meal as well!

Orange Creme Cupcakes!

One of my favorite reasons to bake is for birthdays. It is so fun to personalize flavors, colors, and garnishes depending on a person's specific preferences. I always bake for family, friends, and co-workers, and I can't think of a more fun way to celebrate someone's special day then by sharing delicious cupcakes. This week I baked orange vanilla creme for a special member of my team at work. I made my basic vanilla cake base, with my extra-special Madasgar Bourbon Vanilla Bean paste (yum!), and topped it with an orange butter cream frosting, with an orange-chocolate covered almond as garnish. They were a big hit at work! :)

Foodie Penpals: September Edition!

Last month I was browsing the net, trying to find a good recipe for coconut cream pie per the man's request (this ended up being a total kitchen fail), when I stumbled upon the lovely blog of The Lean Green Bean. A bit more searching and I discovered the awesomeness that is Foodie Penpals! I immediately signed up for the month of September, and if you have never heard of it, you should totally check it out! It was wonderful, and I look forward to participating again this month. The fantastic blogger who I got to send a package to was Katie, over at From Ice Cream to Marathon! It was so nice to connect with her, and I had so much fun picking out all the various components for her package, including my homemade pumpkin butterscotch cookies, mentioned at the end of my last post. She is such a sweetheart, and I love her blog and how positive her message is! You go girl!

The person who sent me a package is Ruthie over at The Tasty Truth, yet another lovely lady blogger. She was recently an intern at Food Network magazine in New York (hello fabulous!) and the package she sent me was so incredible. In our exchange of emails, I had mentioned how my favorite NY bakery is Ladurée, and she sent me some macarons! I was thrilled. The other components were a beautiful note card, ligonberry juice, almond butter, her homemade Pumpkin Pie Granola (which was devoured over a very few amount of days at work!) and a lovely tea. Ruthie - thank you so much! I truly appreciate the effort you went to, and your package was fantastic!

Baking with Fall Flavors!

Fall is my favorite season - a sentiment that is very much trending across the blogosphere, at the moment. The rich smell of spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, the crisp bite of apples, the smooth taste of pumpkin, and the lovely browns, oranges, and reds that bedazzle many a fall-themed table setting. In spite of all my fall lovin', the reality check is this: I live in South Florida, land of perpetual sunshine and heat and humidity. Of course, one can love fall without the changing of the leaves, cooler temperatures, and apple picking, but it sure is lovely when those traditions are in play. And since yesterday marks the official beginning to the fall season, I would like to share some of my recent recipes inspired by the warm flavors of autumn.

Apple Cinnamon Cookies, recipe from Joy the Baker!

Strawberry lemonade cupcakes with strawberry cream cheese icing, recipe from Annie's Eats! I made these for a friend's pool party last weekend and they were a big hit! My serving suggestion? A bottle of the world's best Pinot Grigio - Santa Margherita! ;)

When I was in college in Lugano, Switzerland, one of my favorite things to eat was pizza. Pizza made in Italy and "Switaly", as we called small Italian-speaking region of Switzerland where we lived, is nothing like pizza made here in the U.S. The size is smaller, generally one pizza for one to two people, the list of possible toppings are endless and all fresh, and the crust tends to be thinner. In short, pizza in Europe is fabulous. My favorite pizza was called the "Bismarck" and I recently found two great Italian places here in South Florida that serve a version of it. One is my favorite local Italian cafe/bakery, Cosi Duci, and the other, a relatively new find for me, Panaretto Pizzeria, both locations run by true Italian owners/servers/etc.

Next is a simple dinner meal I made last week. Instead of the traditional egg wash and then flour/breadcrumb mixture dredging for fish - I chose to make something different. I took several different types of nuts, pulverized them in my Magic Bullet, and then dipped tilapia filets in beaten egg, before covering them in the nut mixture. I put the filets to bake with a bit of olive oil and they came out great! Yummy nutty flavor and nice texture. The nuts I used were a combination of: almonds, pistachios, walnuts, and pine nuts! I served roasted veggies alongside the fish, a mix of butternut squash, yellow squash, and zucchini.

Another night, I made a simple rice salad with shrimp, avocado, small pieces of fresh mozzarella and cannellini beans (they are my go-to beans!). This is a delicious, simple meal that could be lunch or dinner.

Last but not least, my final dinner meal made last week was chicken cutlets marinated in freshly minced garlic, dried oregano, and pomegranate-infused balsamic vinegar! It was tart, flavorful, and delicious! I highly recommend investing in different fruit flavored balsamics! I served the chicken with roasted broccoli florets.

Another favorite fall cookie flavor is pumpkin! You can't go wrong with this tasty classic orange ingredient. I used a recipe from My Baking Addiction, and added butterscotch chips and walnuts to the delicious scents of spices such as nutmeg, cinnamon, and cloves. These cookies were the perfect size, about two bites, and a wonderful chewy texture. They were a big hit at work!

Labor Day Fixin's!

My boyfriend and I spent a lovely long weekend exploring Key West, and after spending our days eating fresh seafood and other typical trip fare, I couldn't wait to get back in the kitchen and get to cooking. As much as I love to eat out, after so many meals you just want a home-cooked meal at the end of the day.  In honor of the first days of September and the coming days of fall (I am blatantly ignoring steady 95 degree temperatures and a raging hurricane season), I baked mini apple pie tarts today. My boyfriend had actually requested that I make him a whole apple pie a few weeks ago and I finally got around to making this fall staple this afternoon. My love for baking everything in miniature or individualized portions has not gone away, and I truly resisted getting out my mom's old Pyrex pie pan. Instead I put my individualized tart tins (with removable bottoms) to work! I found the perfect recipe from Eat Live Run and modified it accordingly. For the pie crust, I used Joy the Baker's awesome "How to" post and worked my way through it. Success! The pies were topped with, of course, a generous scoop of Häagen-Daz vanilla bean ice cream.

The best apple to use for apple pie or apple crumble are green Granny Smith apples. They are perfectly tart and firm, and are great at absorbing whatever flavor you add to them.

I flavored the apple slices with fresh-squeezed lemon juice, copious amounts of cinnamon, and a healthy dose of white sugar. Keeping it simple here is key! You don't want to crowd the flavors. Apple pie is classic and it's ingredient list classically simple!

Apple pie always wants to be dotted with little pats of butter!

For dinner, I used a recipe from Claire Robinson, who has a show on Food Network called "Five Ingredient Fix". I am intrigued by the premise of her show, not so much for it's time-saving qualities, but more so because I believe good food should contain few, but key and delicious ingredients. I caught one of her shows recently featuring a recipe called Turkey Robinson whose ingredients include ground turkey, fresh spinach, cannellini beans, and garlic-infused oil. The garlic-infused oil piqued my interest here - I could easily just add olive oil and minced garlic or even pop on over to a gourmet food store and pick up a bottle of fancypants garlic oil ... but I wanted to make it! One of my favorite magazines, Bon Appetit, recently featured an article about cooking garlic cloves in vegetable and olive oil until they turn black, thus making garlic oil. I tried my hand at it today and was impressed by the flavor of the oil when I used it to cook the turkey in later.

The meal overall pulled together well. I paired the turkey dish with yellow rice (my boyfriend always prefers rice to pasta, so I am invariably on a mission to make rice side dishes new and exciting) flavored with saffron and found the complements to be very pleasing. I was worried about seasoning the turkey, and I was continuously adding sea salt, black pepper, paprika, and garlic powder to it, as well as tasting it throughout the cooking process - I must've seasoned it at least four times before I was satisfied! I don't particularly care for cooking with ground turkey - I would make this dish again using ground sirloin maybe. To top it off with apple pie a la mode was the perfect finish!

A Lovely Blog Recommendation!

I am very happy to announce that my lovely best friend Sarah has started her very own food blog! I have known her for six fantastic years, and since I've known her, I have been blown away by not only her insane cooking and baking skills, but also by her beautiful photography. I credit her as my main motivation for getting into the kitchen two years ago. I call her my baking muse or baking goddess, because her creations are divine! Her fantastic new blog is called Whisk Me Away and I really hope you hop on over and check it out, as her recipes, posts, and photographs are to die for! I am so proud of my busy bee best friend because everyone has been telling her to blog for some time now, and the finished product looks perfect. Congrats Sarah!

Beat the Heat!

I never let the weather dictate what I make in my kitchen. I've made chili in 90 degree weather after spending the day at the beach (yum!), and I make chilly desserts in the fall. I let my cravings and daily inspirations from Pinterest, food magazines, and food blogs motivate me to get cooking and baking. I tend to make a random combination of dishes in one sitting because I try to make the most of it when I have a couple of hours to spend in the kitchen.

A few nights ago I decided to try my hand at casserole-making with a meatless eggplant dish. I loosely based the recipe from Everyday Maven, but instead of using polenta, I used garlicky risotto as the base. First I sliced the eggplant into thick slices and sprinkled kosher salt over them, leaving them to release some of their water in a colander. Next I prepared the risotto with plenty of garlic. I then began to assemble the casserole, drizzling olive oil on the bottom, and then adding the risotto as the first layer. Then I began to layer the eggplant slices. I added some tomato-cabernet sauce, more eggplant, spread some mascarpone cheese, topped with fresh basil leaves, Italian breadcrumbs, and grated Parmesan. I finally topped the casserole with slices of munester cheese and set it to broil, giving it a delicious crispy cheesy topping.

After the casserole, I made Joy the Baker's amazing-sounding dark chocolate, pistachio, and smoked salt cookies (seen here). The only substitution I made was to use sea salt instead of smoked salt. Yum! These cookies were a great balance of sweet and salty and were a big hit at the office.

Now: Birthday Cake Remix! Today is my lovely mummy's birthday and when I asked her last week what type of cake/dessert she wanted, she surprised me by saying she wanted a vanilla and coconut cake. I found a recipe from Annie's Eats (whom I still love, even if she is too vanilla to read "Fifty Shades" ;) that I made, but with a different frosting. The cake itself took well over two hours! First, I made cake flour by sifting all-purpose flour along with cornstarch twice, and then adding salt and baking powder and sifting again (so the flour has a very airy and light quality). I got the measurements from the ever-helpful Joy The Baker. For the frosting, I made a chocolate whipped cream frosting, recipe from Joy of Baking, and added a healthy dose of Godiva White Chocolate Liqueur for a special little kick. For garnish, I toasted coconut flakes in the oven until nicely browned and crispy, and covered the top of the cake with it.

Happy Birthday Mommy! :)

Summer Salad Lovin'!

My desire to cook a bunch of fabulous, well-seasoned ingredients and then artfully display them in a serving dish has not abated! I came up with tonight's dinner also on the fly in the supermarket - all I knew for sure that I wanted, was to be able to pile all the ingredients onto my boyfriend's lovely colorful platter and serve. I decided to keep some ingredients from my previous family-style salads, such as white cannellini beans and bite-size balls of fresh mozzarella (bocconcini!). I decided to make rice pilaf as the base, so I boiled long-grain rice in a mix of water, olive oil, and white wine (Santa Margherita - the only white anyone should cook with!). I added garlic seasoning, chicken bouilon, and dried parsley for flavor. I diced thin chicken cutlets into one inch pieces and seasoned them with sea salt, black pepper, paprika, garlic powder, and a splash of extra-virgin olive oil to tie it all together. Then I filled a baking sheet with diced zucchini, yellow squash, and cherry tomatoes, doused in a healthy amount of olive oil, salt, and pepper. I roasted the tray of veggies for just under an hour, until the tomato skins had just popped and the zucchini and yellow rounds looked thoroughly roasted. Once everything cooled, I assembled the salad, layer by layer. First a drizzle of olive oil, and then I spread the garlicky rice pilaf onto the platter. Next I spread out the cannellini beans, topped with the bocconcini (mozzarella). I then filled the chicken in the center and topped with a spoonful of roasted veggies. The remainder of the roasted veggies I tucked onto the sides of the salad. I love the colors and contrasting textures!

Beautiful pops of color combined with the delicious flavor of slow-roasted vegetables. No "30 minute meals" here! Flavor takes time to seep into ingredients, to be absorbed by plain canvases such as rice or chicken.

Yesterday I went to brunch with some fabulous ladies and in honor of that occasion, I baked banana espresso chocolate chip muffins, recipe courtesy of Annie's Eats. I added a swirl of peanut butter and a handful of walnuts (are they not the perfect pairing to bananas whilst baking?) and they were a hit! A doubled the espresso powder and added a bit more mascarpone to compensate, and they were a great accompaniment to our mimosas (involving Prosecco of the Cupcake Wines variety, of course!)

Overall, lovely times spent in the kitchen this weekend! Next up is a very intriguing Joy The Baker cookie recipe I've had my eye on.... Stay Tuned!

Good Eats!

I can't believe it's already August! This summer has truly flown by. Between my new job and summer class, I haven't had as much time as I'd like to spend in the kitchen. In the past two weeks I did manage to get in there and cook a bit. One night for dinner, I made chimichurri sauce to go along with skirt steak I picked up at WholeFoods.

Chimichurri sauce is a very versatile marinade and sauce, made with lots of fresh parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, olive oil, and a hint of red pepper flakes. It is simple but flavorful, with a lovely vibrant green color. I used a recipe from Gimme Some Oven and it came out great. To accompany, I sauteed some diced butternut squash, yellow squash, and zucchini rounds in a pan with lots of olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and white wine. I added some garlic bread and a healthy serving of a Merlot-Sangiovese blend of red wine to finish off the meal.

A few nights later I had some time for dinner, and picked up some gorgeous tilapia filets on my way home from work. I seasoned them simply, with salt and pepper, before dipping them in eggwash (two beaten eggs) and tossing in a bowl of Italian breadcrumbs. I baked them on an olive oil-greased baking sheet until the fish flaked when poked with a fork. I served it with rice pilaf and green beans tossed with sliced almonds and balsamic vinegar (sides not pictured).

This past week was the last day of one of my co-workers, who LOVES Spiderman so naturally, I tried my hand at Spidey-themed cupcakes! The cake part was chocolate with milk and white chocolate chips, and the frosting was a vanilla buttercream mixed with a little cheese cream to cut down on the sweetness.

And last but not least, we are throwing a birthday party today for one of our very good family friends, so I made two savory appetizers - mini corn cakes with sour cream frosting and pea garnish, and brie and jam filled phyllo cups (blackberry, raspberry, and apricot jam).

Mini Corn Cakes!

Brie Jam Phyllo Cups!

French Style!

This past weekend was the perfect combination of activity and rest; it was a gorgeous day Saturday so it made for a lovely beach day, then it rained like a demented hurricane Sunday, which translated to quality cooking time. I ended up making three French dishes without realizing the theme beforehand. Since making a pasta salad last week, I have been intrigued by family style meals served in a large platter - it is easy for one, often requiring little to no preparation/actual cooking, and looks aesthetically appealing in both color and layout. I made a traditional, French rustic Niçoise salad, with hard boiled eggs, diced cherry tomatoes, green beans, diced tri-colored fingerling potatoes, and tuna. The presentation was spectacular and the salad also held up to a great lunch at the office the next day.

A Niçoise salad is traditionally served with olives as well, however, I tend to only enjoy olives in form of oil or occasionally, as a tapenade. A tapenade is a Provençal (south of France) spread made of black olives, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, and olive oil blended together. I used a basic recipe from Food.com and then sliced up a small French baguette. I rubbed the slices with the cut side of a garlic clove and toasted them up in a 400 degree oven until nice and browned and crisp. Spreading the salty, garlicky tapenade on toasts - this was a meal in and of itself. Two platefuls of tapenade little toasts, and two healthy glasses of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo made for my dinner tonight! Sometimes the simplest foods are all you need for the ultimate satisfaction.

Continuing with the creamy European dessert trend, per my boyfriend's request, I made vanilla mousse over the weekend, using egg yolks and whites, heavy cream, sugar, vanilla bean paste, and a touch of Godiva white chocolate liqueur and Frangelico (hazelnut liqueur). I found a simplistic recipe at Nature's Kitchen, and added to it with touches of booze and by including white chocolate covered blueberries. I have been on a berries and yogurt kick lately (they make the perfect mid-morning work snack!) so the idea of covering blueberries in chocolate seemed heavenly. White chocolate is not easy to work with, and my first batch of melting white chocolate chips in the microwave seized up, but I was able to achieve the desired consistency on my second try. I put the blueberries to set by laying them on a wax paper-covered tray in the fridge. As usual, I served up the mousse in different sized glasses for maximum effect.

Fluffy, sweet, and creamy - this is a lovely dessert for when it is horribly humid, wet, and otherwise boiling hot outside. I also high recommend dipping (or covering completely) all fruits in chocolate to top your desserts with. Minimal effort, for a fantastic looking (and tasty) garnish! Perfect for celebrating, as this is my 100th post, yay! :)

Fresh Orzo Salad!

I rarely come up with my own recipe, at best I come up with interesting takes or little tweaks on recipes I pull from other foodie blogs or Food Network chefs. Last night's dinner came completely out of nowhere. I had just finished work (8 hrs) and calculus class (3 hours) and was in no mood to pick up takeout or make a sandwich. I still had the urge to make dinner, but I was too tired to go through the motions of seasoning and baking a protein. I decided to make a simple but fresh and colorful pasta salad using orzo. Orzo is a lovely rice-shaped type of pasta, typically found in soups or casseroles.

I cooked up a small bag of orzo in boiling water and chicken stock, and then drained and seasoned it with olive oil, freshly squeezed lemon juice, dried parsley, sea salt, and black pepper. To accompany it, I added diced avocado, diced cherry tomatoes, mozzarella pearls, sweet corn, and white cannellini beans, and tossed it all together. This orzo salad took fifteen minutes to make, as most of the ingredients were already prepared (I used canned corn and beans, and chopped the veggies). This is a great vegetarian and vegan option, and both filling and satisfying. I made a big batch and served it Italian family-style in a lovely rustic ceramic platter. This is the perfect summertime dish, light yet hearty, colorful and fresh.

While at the store, I picked up some mini treats to enjoy with the Chianti I had picked up at the farmer's market over the weekend. PS: I never get tired of that gorgeous Italian granite as my background ;)

New Marketplaces!

I have been on a hunt for fresh new stores to expand my grocery shopping beyond our local chain, Publix. Last week I started going to The Fresh Market, which I would describe as a mini, more organized version of Whole Foods. I've only been to Whole Foods a handful of times and my impression is always the same - too big, too expensive, and too chaotic. Quite frankly, one doesn't need ten different types of quinoa. The Fresh Market seems to be in it's own category. Although relatively small, the selection of fresh produce, proteins, wine, and imported products is spectacular. I spent about an hour last week browsing all the aisles, and I was pleasantly surprised to find many Italian or Swiss food products common to my college years.

I ended up buying two pieces of bourbon glazed salmon, chicken breast wrapped around ricotta and spinach and covered in breadcrumbs, haricots verts, and baby bella mushrooms for dinner. I can't take too much credit with this picture - my boyfriend took over once I unpacked my groceries! Yum :)

I also baked some basic chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting (topped with rainbow sprinkles) for my attorney's little girl's birthday - but I made sure to use my favorite chocolate cake recipe which always includes a healthy serving of sour cream, the key ingredient to keeping any chocolate cake rich and moist :)

This past weekend, I made my way to two well-known, New York-style farmer's markets, one called The Boys and the other, aptly named The Girls. The Boys is small but fully stocked with a lovely bakery, cheese, wine, fruit, veggie, protein, and ready-prepared food sections. I had every intention of coming home with a bag bursting with freshly ripe berries, broccoli florets, and whatever else my little veggie/fruit loving heart desired ... however I made a beeline for the wine selection and came home staggering with bottles of Chianti, Merlot, and Marsala. (Fairly typical.) I also bought some lovely linzer cookies with apricot in the middle, but I got a little too excited and forgot to snap a pic. Here is just one section of the bakery side.

Vino!

The Girls was a smaller, more country-type store, with various knicknacks, every flavor of fresh ice cream imaginable, and mile-long shelves of every jam and jelly in existence. I'm not kidding - there was even a homemade fig-jalapeno jelly on stock.

I also had the best strawberry milkshake of my life at The Girls, which is locally known for offering people to pick their own strawberries (sadly not in season on my visit), so their main menu features strawberry milkshakes, strawberry shortcakes, and strawberry ice cream - all homemade with natural ingredients and a comforting lack of preservatives or artificial ingredients, something that seems to be all too prevalent in everyday groceries.

I was in a Mexican mood for dinner over the weekend, so I purchased the usual suspects;  ground beef, sour cream, corn, refried beans, shredded cheese (Mexican 4-cheese blend) corn tortillas, and fresh limes to make one of my favorite recipes - tostadas. I have made them before (here) and my basic recipe comes from Gimme Some Oven, but I generally tweak it each time, depending on the ingredients at hand. In the case of this past weekend, the avocados I had bought were not ripe in time, so I substituted corn to add a sweet element amidst the salt and crunch of the other components.

Delicious! I love how crunchy the tortillas get when baked in the oven, both sides doused with a healthy serving of extra-virgin olive oil. Topping it with enchilada sauce-soaked ground beef, sweet corn kernels, dollops of creamy sour cream, melty cheese, and smooth refried beans - yum! These are filling and so quick to put together whenever you have a Mexican craving.