Slumming It with Cupcakes from a Box

As if making cupcakes from a box isn't unappetizing enough on its own, my sister and I had fun with some unique cupcake decorating for my birthday this year.

Cupcakes from a box - 

Not a bit of nutrition!

Good for the spirit.

Biting into a lemon cupcake that says "pink eye" without being grossed out reminds me a bit of the Stroop Task used by psychologists to test directed attention. As weird as it seemed, we had no problem enjoying them.

Thank you Pillsbury and Betty Crocker!

Angel Hair Pasta with Morels and Asparagus

This was a delicious seasonal meal that was very satisfying and everyone enjoyed - it was a lot of fun to cook too! I did NOT find the morels myself.

What to eat in spring?
Morels and asparagus
Followed by some pie.

• 1 lb fresh angel hair pasta
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• ½ cup chopped shallots
• 2 cups diagonally sliced fresh asparagus ( 2-inch pieces)
• 1 ½ quarts fresh morel mushrooms, halved and cleaned
• 6 Tbsp cold butter, cut into pieces
• 2 Tbsp finely chopped fresh chives
• ½ tsp black pepper
• kosher salt to taste

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and place in a large serving bowl and keep warm.
2. In a large skillet on medium high heat, add olive oil and shallots; sauté for 30 seconds. Add asparagus and sauté for 1 minute. Stir in morels and cook 1-2 minutes or until softened.
3. Drain asparagus-mushroom mixture, reserving juices.
4. Add the mixture to the pasta and return the juices to the skillet. Cook to reduce by ¾. Add butter, stirring constantly, until melted.
5. Remove from heat; stir into pasta mixture with the chives, pepper and salt.
6. Garnish with chives and serve.

I used a tad less butter and added just a wee bit of white wine. I also sprinkled parmesan cheese on top with the chive garnish. Don’t look at how much I used. You’d prefer less. I’m addicted.

Recipe found at culinarycafe.com.

Caribbean Coconut Rice

This side dish was subtle and flavorful and I can see myself making this often to accompany many a meal!

Any time of year

When in a tropical mood

Stay in - cook - pretend.

• 2 tsp unsalted butter
• 2 tsp minced fresh ginger
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 3- inch cinnamon stick
• 1 cup jasmine rice, rinsed and drained
• ¾ cup light coconut milk
• 1 tsp sugar
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ¼ tsp grated lime zest
• 1/8 tsp white pepper
• ¼ cup shredded, unsweetened coconut, optional

1. Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add ginger, garlic, and cinnamon stick and sauté 1 minute, or until fragrant.
2. Stir in rice, and sauté 2 minutes, or until rice grains are opaque.
3. Add coconut milk, sugar, salt, lime zest, white pepper, and 2/3 cup water, and bring to a simmer.
4. Stir once, cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer 15 minutes. Fluff rice with fork, cover, and let rest 5 minutes. Garnish with toasted coconut, if using.

Of course, when is rice sufficient for an entire meal? While cooking up the rice, I whipped up a mango lassi with mint to sip. Using the remaining coconut milk from the can, as well as some garlic and ginger, I baked a tilapia fillet and some snow peas to go with the rice. The entire meal was fabulous with a grape and saffron beer and was followed by some caramelized bananas.

Recipe from Vegetarian Magazine, April 2009.

Wild Rice and Quinoa Muffins with Cranberries

It is probably quite obvious that I am a fan of mini-muffins. Here is my most recent batch – a muffin that is packed with protein and flavor and great for a little pick-me-up.

Sweet and healthy treats
Festive and aromatic
Perfect on-the-go

• Nonstick spray
• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 2 – 3 Tbsp granulated sugar (optional)
• 1 ¼ cups cooked wild rice (cooked a day or so in advance)
• 1 ¼ cups cooked quinoa (cooked a day or so in advance)
• 2/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Lightly spray 10 standard (I used mini, of course) muffin cups with nonstick spray.
2. Place the flour, salt, baking powder, and brown sugar in a medium to large bowl. Break up any little clumps of sugar with your fingers, and then stir the mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in the granulated sugar, if you like your muffins on the sweet side.
3. Add the cooked grains, using a fork or your fingers to separate and distribute them throughout. Stir in the dried cranberries.
4. Measure the 1 cup of milk into a 2-cup liquid measure. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat gently with a fork or a small whisk until smooth.
5. Slowly pour this mixture into the dry ingredients, adding the melted butter at the same time. Using a spoon or a rubber spatula, stir from the bottom of the bowl until the dry ingredients are all moistened. Don’t overmix; a few lumps are okay.
6. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
7. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven, place on wire rack to cool, and wait 30 minutes before serving.

I used a little bit of almond flour to replace some of the unbleached all-purpose flour and then replaced ½ tsp of the vanilla extract with almond extract. It gave the muffins a very hearty and delicious smell and made them feel like a holiday treat. Enjoy!

Recipe (again) from Molly Katzen's Sunlight Kitchen.

Ye'abesha gomen

I am a big fan of Ethiopian food, and love ways of using entire bunches of greens in one fell swoop.

Aside from red lentils, collard greens are my favorites at an Ethiopian restaurant (I would love to be able to imitate any of the dishes at Ethiopian Diamond or Ras Dashen) and I found this easy recipe for them and made them tonight. Though it is never very pretty, it certainly is tasty and quite as good as any of the above mentioned restaurants!

One more produce box

Too many oranges to eat

Glad for collard greens!

• 1 lb collard greens
• 2 cups water
• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup chopped red onion
• 1/2 tsp fresh minced garlic
• 1/4 tsp fresh minced ginger
• Salt, to taste
• 3 medium Anaheim chilies, cut into thin strips

1. Wash the greens thoroughly. Place in a heavy saucepan with 1 cup of the water. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes or until greens are tender.
2. Drain the greens, reserving the liquid, and chop into small pieces.
3. In a heavy skillet, heat the oil and cook the onions until they are browned.
4. Add the greens, the reserved and remaining water, the garlic and ginger and cook uncovered until almost dry.
5. Add the chilies and cook another 5 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Recipe taken from The Africa Cookbook by Jessica Harris. Found online.

Overnight Roasted Fruit

This recipe was fun.  I felt like I was conducting a science experiment, but what I was really trying to do was find another way to eat some of the fruit that is accumulating on my kitchen counter!

Wrinkled, juicy fruit

Fabulous in the morning

Right when you wake up.

If you have an abundance of:  apples, pears, underripe bananas, papayas, pineapples, peaches, plums, apricots, cherries or grapes, you can throw them all together and roast them.  They're great with oatmeal, cereal, cheese and crackers, and just as a quick snack!

1. In the evening, preheat the oven to 375.  Line a ceramic baking dish with foil and spray it generously with nonstick spray.
2. Cut the fruit into large chunks.  Peel bananas, papayas, and pineapple.  Leave other fruit unpeeled.  Arrange the pieces peel side down or on their sides in the prepared dish, and place the dish in the oven.
3. After 30 minutes, open the oven, pull out the dish, and use a small metal spatula to loosen any pieces that might have stuck.  After the pieces are loosened, just leave them in place.  Return the baking dish to the oven, turn the oven off, and leave the baking dish in there overnight.
4. In the morning, you will have a wonderful result:  beautiful, small pieces of fruit that are tender, chewy, and sweet - about halfway dried, but still moist.

I wasn't extremely fond of the bananas.  The pears and apples were fabulous though!  What I loved though was waking up in the morning and running to the oven to see how they turned out.  A gourmet breakfast without having to take the time in the morning to prepare it!

Recipe taken from Molly Katzen's Sunlight Cafe.  I swear I use other sources.  Hers just turn out to be so good!

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Polenta-Pine Nut Cookies

These delicious little cookies make a great energy-delivering snack and can be adjusted for the sweet tooth in you. They were very easy to make and introduced me to crystallized ginger, which I'm going to start using all over the place!

I'm still eating these
Pine nut cookies - who'd have thought?
Packed with energy

Ingredients:

• Nonstick Spray
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
• 1 1/3 c unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2/3 c polenta
• 3/4 c pine nuts
• 1 Tbsp chopped lemon zest
• 1/2 c minced crystallized ginger (optional)
• Sugar to sprinkle on top.

Preparation time is only 15 minutes, with 15 minutes for baking (more for the two batches that this yields).

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking tray with foil, and spray it generously with nonstick spray.
2. Break the eggs into a medium-sized bowl, and beat until smooth. Stir in the salt, maple syrup, oil, and optional vanilla.
3. Sprinkle in the flour, polenta, pine nuts, lemon zest, and optional ginger. Mix with a wooden spoon until completely blended.
4. Wet your hands, and pick up a small piece of dough, about 2 teaspoons' worth. Roll it into a ball about 1 inch in diameter, then flatten it into a small circle. Place on the prepared baking tray, patting it down to about 1/8 of an inch thick.
5. Bake in the center of the oven for 15 minutes, or until the cookies turn golden brown around the edges and on the bottoms. If you like the cookies sweeter, sprinkle them with additional sugar as soon as they come out of the oven. It will melt into the tops of the cookies to form a sweet crust.
6. Cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes before eating. (I didn't. I ate one ONE minute after it came out!)

Recipe from Mollie Katzen's Sunlight Cafe.

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