Wine Poached Pears

Wine poached pears are really delicious, and I don't even like pears all that much. They are extremely easy to make. You can also save the extra cooked-down sauce, and it's like wine jam. So yummy.

Today in the World of Unnecessary, Overpriced Kitchen Gadgetry That I Really Want

A sculptural cutter that both slices and serves. Awesome.

No Butter! Vegan sloppy joes and chocolate brownie cupcakes.

So, this is the opposite of a crepe off. My roommate (Amanda) is a vegan, so we decided to make some vegan recipes this weekend while we were snowed in (I am from Florida so I refuse to drive in the snow- I am pretty sure I would drive right into a tree).



The first recipe we made was Sloppy Joes from a vegan cookbook: Skinny Bitch in the Kitch (appropriate because that is kind of my nickname). I was excited about this recipe because I really like the flavor of sloppy joes but I don't really like meat that much. I thought they were good, but they were too watery which may have to do with the fact that we didn't use soy protein (I don't even really know what that is) but vegan Boca burgers instead. If you make this (which I'm sure you guys are going to go out and make them tonight :) I would cut the water.

2 tbsp coconut oil (I used olive oil)
1 green bell pepper cut into 1/4 inch dice
1 stalk celery diced
2 large onions diced
4 oz thinly sliced mushrooms (about 2 cups)
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups water
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
8 tsp soy sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 1/2 cups textured soy protein (I used Boca burgers)
4-6 vegan whole wheat buns
2-3 tbsp vegan Parmesan cheese (optional)

Heat oil in 10-12 inch skillet over med-high heat. Add pepper, celery and cook for 2 mins. Add onion and cook 4 mins. Add mushroom, chili powder, salt, and pepper cook 2 mins. Stir in water, tomato sauce, soy sauce, and ketchup. Stir in soy protein increase heat to hight and bring to boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook stirring occasionally for 20 mins.

For the green beans (not in the cookbook) I put some olive oil in a pan and heated it on med-high for a while. Then I put in sliced garlic and took it off the heat for a bit and let it cook in the hot oil. Then I added the fresh green beans and garlic salt let them cook for a while while I finished the sloppy joes. I really like the crunchy garlic in them.



The vegan cupcakes (from cookbook vegan cupcakes take over the world) were actually pretty tasty. Meli, the foreword is by Tegan and Sara- don't you like them? There was a lot of chocolate in them so I don't really know how you can go wrong with that :) Although my whole dinner was vegan, I was not able to eat a chocolate cupcake without a glass of milk. Oh well, I was impressed with my one vegan meal :)

Ingredients
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup soy yogurt
1/2 cup black cherry preserves
1/2 cup soy milk
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract (I didn't have this so I omitted it)
2 tbsp bourbon or whiskey (despite my impressive liquor cabinet- I didn't have any of that so I used cherry brandy- which is a weird liquor to have)
1 cup and 2 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
chopped walnuts for garnish (yuck- I omitted)

For frosting:
2 tbsp melted margarine
1/4 cup cocoa powder
3 tbsp soy milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin pan with cupcake liner and spray with nonstick cooking spray (whoops I just realized I forgot this which explains why they stuck).

Melt chocolate in double boiler (I miss that Meli!).

Mix yogurt, preserves, soy milk, sugar, oil, vanilla, almond extract, and bourbon in bowl. Preserves should be mixed in very well and there should be no large clumps.

Sift flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix thoroughly- if using handheld mixer for 3 mins on med speed. Incorporate melted chocolate.

Fill liners and bake for 24 to 26 mins. Tops may come out shiny soft and undone but that is OK, they should look that way. Transfer to cooling rack and let cool before frosting.

For frosting:

Beat together margarine, cocoa, soy milk, and vanilla. Add sugar in cupfuls until incorporated.

50 Chocolate Desserts

Chocolate Creme Filled Cake
Chocolate Chip Pie

Some people say they are more into savory, others more into sweet. I am an equal opportunity food lover, and today I am focused on chocolate.
I plan to focus on my chocolate craving this weekend. I found this dangerous link with 50 chocolate desserts to satisfy the chocolate lover.

Check out the recipes here!


Here are some pics of the recipes I am choosing from.
Which do you think I should make?




Chocolate Banana Cream Pie

Oscar Wilde Guinness Cupcakes

To encourage myself to keep up my reading for fun & to give myself ideas of things to cook, I've decided to cook food that is thematically tied to whatever I'm reading. The next book on my list is about the daughter of migrant workers from Mexico. That one's pretty easy. Of course, I decided to start this when I'm in the middle of reading about the Stonewall riots. It took a little more thinking to figure out what to cook. First, I thought about just going with bar food. (Depending on how long it takes me to read the book, I might end up going with that as well.) Second, I thought about Greek food, for Sappho and the island of Lesbos. That was a bit of a stretch, since the vast majority of the Stonewall's patrons were men. Oscar Wilde crossed my mind a couple of times, but I couldn't think of anything Irish except for beer. Sarah Green helpfully suggested Guinness cupcakes. I wanted to go for rainbow sprinkles, but all they had was pink. Behold the culinary gayness: Oscar Wilde Guinness Cupcakes with Pink Sprinkles



Alright, so my decorating & food photography skills could use some serious help. Perhaps my baking skills too? I wasn't in love with this recipe. I think maybe it's just that I don't care for Guinness and am not much of a dessert person. They're good enough that I'm going to take them to work and try to make other people eat them. Hopefully this won't lead everyone to conclude that I am unable to cook. [EDIT: upon further reflection, I have decided they are quite tasty as long as they have icing on them--the icing-less ones are not as appetizing.] Here's the recipe (from Chow.com).

INGREDIENTS

• 1 (12-ounce) bottle Guinness stout
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup sour cream
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa, plus more for garnish
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

For the frosting:

*I used store bought cream cheese frosting. Some commenters on Chow suggested substituting some or all of the heavy cream with Bailey's.

• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 pound confectioners’ sugar
• Cocoa powder, for dusting

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the Guinness, milk, vegetable oil, and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time. Mix in the sour cream.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, and baking soda. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet Guinness mixture.
4. Butter 24 muffin tins and divide the batter among the muffin tins.
5. Bake 25 minutes, until risen and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out of the tins.

Make the frosting:

1. Beat the cream cheese in a bowl until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the heavy cream. Slowly mix in the confectioners’ sugar.
2. Top each cupcake with a heap of frosting and dust with cocoa.

Chocolate Cocaine Cookies (aka double chocolate chip cookies)

So I named these cookies chocolate cocaine because (1) they are addictive and (2) I sprinkled powder sugar on them to look like cocaine. I know you are impressed with my originality.

Story for the roomies:
After dreaming of chocolate for the past 3 days, I decided to make cookies this morning. As usual, I had everything but 1 little ingredient. While weighing my options of remaining on the couch in my comfy clothes or venturing out to the store in search of brown sugar, my desire for chocolate won out. As I got off the couch to start my trip to the store, I realized I was in Brandon's sweatpants and t-shirt. I could have changed into more respectable clothing, but Brandon was sick in bed and I didn't want to wake the sick boy up. To be a good wife, I went to the store in Brandon's clothes. To make my trip even more remarkable, I was wearing no bra, I hadn't brushed my hair, and the only shoes I could find were the dress shoes I wore to last night's girls night out.

Was it worth it you may ask? Yes, the cookies are delightful...and who knows maybe my trip to the store got me one step closer to appearing on What Not To Wear. Five thousand dollar shopping spree here I come!

Well I am off to enjoy these cookies in my sweatpants and dress shoes while watching some football.
love,
Melissa
This recipe is from Nestle Toll House with a few additions.

2 c all-purpose flour
3/4 c baking cocoa
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 c butter or margarine, softened (I used 1/2 c crisco and 1/2 unsalted butter so the cookies would be less cakey and more gooey)
2/3 c sugar
2/3 c packed brown sugar
1 t vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 3/4 c semi-sweet chocolate chunks or chips
powder sugar to sprinkle on top

1. PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees F.
2. COMBINE flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Beat butter, sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in a large mixing bowl until creamy. Beat in eggs. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chunks. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.
3. BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until cookies are puffed and centers are set but still soft. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.