Recipes!

So I suck at updating..

I made a goal to make at least one recipe a weekend.. here is what I have been up to for the past few weekends. Enjoy the food porn oops I meant culinary delicacies!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Layered Cupcakes:




Review: These are AMAZING! I added more peanut butter and sugar because I am addicted. I also put chocolate and peanut butter chips in the batter so that they were scattered throughout the cupcake. They were gone in less than a day because my family devoured them.

Recipe:

This recipe was adapted from jif.com. If peanut butter is your crack, then this website is totally enabling and a major trigger. You've been warned!

Here we go:

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 cups All Purpose Flour
• 1/2 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa (depending on how chocolaty you want it, I made mine extra chocolaty!)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 EGGLAND'S BEST egg
• 1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/4 cup Creamy Peanut Butter 
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar 
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup Peanut Butter Chips
• 1 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Place paper baking cup in each of 18 regular-size muffin cups.
   
2.  In large bowl, mix flour, cocoa, brown sugar, baking soda and salt. Add oil, water, vinegar and vanilla to flour mixture, stirring just until smooth (do not overmix).
   
3.  In another large bowl, beat egg, cream cheese, peanut butter and granulated sugar with electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add powdered sugar; beat until creamy.
   
4. Sprinkle chocolate and peanut butter chips into both chocolate mixture and peanut butter mixture 
5.  Spoon 1 level tablespoon chocolate batter into each cup; evenly spread 1 level tablespoon peanut butter filling on top. Repeat layers. Sprinkle tops with peanut butter chips and chocolate chips.
   
6. Bake 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean (do not overbake). Cool in pan 15 minutes. Remove from pan to cooling rack; cool 15 minutes. Serve warm or cool. 18 cupcakes.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie with Pretzel Crust





Review: This recipe was adapted from Evilchefmom. As with the other recipe, I added more peanut butter and sugar and could definitely taste it.  If you like sweet things, this is for you.

Recipe:

http://www.evilchefmom.com/2010/06/chocolate-peanut-butter-pie.html

Pretzel crust:
2 1/4 c. finely crushed pretzels
1/2 c. & 1 tbsp. sugar
1 c. & 2 tbsp. melted butter (or butter)

Combine all ingredients, mixing well. Press firmly on bottom and sides of 9 inch pie pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 minutes. Cool.

Orange Biscuit Bundt Cake



Review: I have to say I was a little bit disappointed by this recipe. It tasted... kind of dull. Can something taste dull? I need to brush up on my top chef episodes to come up with a more EXTENSIVE vocabulary ;P It would have been much better with homemade biscuits.  At least the cake looked pretty!

Recipe:

Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

 

Ingredients:

 

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 tablespoon shredded orange peel

1/3 cup orange juice

1/4 cup melted butter

2 10 oz packages refrigerated biscuits

Directions:

1. Grease a 10-inch fluted tube pan. Set aside

2. In a small mixing bowl, combine sugar and orange peel (be sure to break up any orange peel clumps). In another small mixing bowl, combine orange juice and melted butter.
3. Separate biscuits. Dip each into the orange juice-butter mixture. Then roll in the sugar-orange peel mixture.
4. In the prepared pan, arrange the biscuits upright with flat sides together. Pour any remaining orange juice-butter mixture over biscuits. Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 30 minutes. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 1 minute. Turn pan upside down on a serving plate. Remove the pan. Cool for 30 to 45 minutes. Serve warm. Garnish center of ring with orange peel strips and fresh herbs, if you like. Makes 10 servings (20 biscuits).

Flatbread with bacon, onions, creme fraiche, and scallion pesto.



Review: Pretty good, but I would recommend adding WAY more bacon and less parsley.  I didn't even know that creme fraiche existed before but now I highly recommend it.

Recipe:
4 thick strips bacon, thinly sliced
1 large white onion, thinly sliced
dash of sugar
salt and white pepper
6 scallions (also called green onions, I never knew!), thinly sliced
1 tablespoon capers
1/4 cup fresh parsley
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup creme fraiche or sour cream
1 pound frozen pizza dough, thawed
All-purpose flour, for dusting

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. 

Roll the pizza dough into an 8-by-14-inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough around the rolling pin and unroll it onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the center of the oven and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown.  Do this before you get the other ingrediants ready.  It will need to be completely cool before you can add anything or else it will melt the creme fraiche.

Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring from time to time, until browned and crispy. Transfer to paper towels to drain; keep warm. Add the onion slices to the drippings in the skillet; sprinkle with the sugar and season with salt and pepper. Cook until light brown and tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Taste for seasoning.

Combine the scallions, capers and parsley in a food processor. Add salt and pepper to taste and half of the lemon zest; pulse gently to chop and blend. Turn the processor on and add the olive oil through the top in a steady stream. Transfer the scallion pesto to a bowl; set aside.

In a small bowl, whisk the creme fraiche and the remaining lemon zest until smooth. Season with salt and pepper; set aside.

Spread the creme fraeche mixture on the crust. Dot with the onions and some of the bacon drippings from the pan; sprinkle with the bacon. Slice into pieces and drizzle with scallion pesto.


Most of these recipes are stored in my personal tastebook.  Tastebook condenses the recipes from practically every food site in existence. Also, if you get 10 new people to join, you get to create your own FREE tastebook!

Next weekend:

Hazlenut truffles and red lobster inspired cheddar biscuits!

In the near/far future:

Scrapbooking! I have MOST of the materials for it after a binge buy at Joannes Fabrics, but I don't even know where to start!