"Saying Goodbye to Friends" Recipes

Last week, I decided to go all out and bake a chocolate cake. Two of my very good friends moved to Arizona today, so the whole weekend was full of goodbye parties. And how do I best contribute to events? By baking, of course. Please take note that is cake is not healthy, not endorsed by all things DASH diet, or any diet for that matter. But the beautiful kick of the raspberries and the simple blueberries make up for it. I will miss my friends dearly, but I'm glad their departure prompted me to bake my first chocolate cake from scratch.

In addition to cake, I whipped up this little dish to take to the party. It was dreamed up in my head while I was at work, and I'm so pleased that it turned out-- and was a hit! Enjoy!

Chocolate Cake with Butter Cream Frosting and Fruit

Multiple Servings/Family Size (includes 1 servings of fruit)

(inspired by the Pioneer Woman)

Cake:

2 cups Flour

2 cups Sugar

4 Tbsp Baking Cocoa

4-6 oz Semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

2 sticks Butter

1 cup Boiling Water

½ cup Buttermilk 

2 large Eggs, beaten

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 tsp Vanilla

In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt.

Melt butter in a saucepan and add cocoa. Stir together. Add boiling water, allow mixture to boil for 30 seconds, then turn off heat. Pour over flour mixture, and stir lightly to cool.

In a measuring cup, pour the buttermilk and add beaten eggs, baking soda, and vanilla. Stir buttermilk mixture into butter/chocolate mixture.

Pour into a floured 13 x 18″ sheet cake pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Frosting:

1 cup Unsalted Butter (softened at room temperature)

2 cups Powdered Sugar

1 Tbsp Vanilla

6-8 Tbsp Heavy cream

With a power mixer, beat butter at medium speed until nice and smooth.  Add powdered sugar and vanilla and continue to mix until sugar is fully incorporated.  Add cream and mix for 3 minutes.  Check the consistency, if it is too loose, add more sugar. If it is stiff, add more cream. 

Raspberry filling:

Frozen raspberries

Water

White Sugar

Corn Starch

Defrost berries by boiling with water in a medium pot. Strain out seeds with a mesh steamer or colander. Pour back into pot, add water and bring to a boil. Mix corn starch and a little bit of cold water in a small bowl. Add corn starch mixture and sugar to boiling berries. Stir well.  Boil until it reaches desired consistency. Cool.

Cut cake in half. Flip one piece upside down on desired presentation surface. Spread frosting on first piece. Add cooled raspberries, in an even coat. Allow to set for a few minutes. Place second piece on top. Spread frosting on top. Embellish with Blueberries and Raspberry filling.

Note: If you don’t have fun frosting tips, use a small zip-lock baggie with the corner cut off.

Chickpea, Green Bean, and Sweet Potato Couscous

1 Serving (includes 3 servings of vegetables)

Olive Oil

Onion

Green Beans (frozen or fresh)

Sweet Potato, peeled and cubed

Pearl Couscous

Garbanzo Beans

Water

Paprika

Black Pepper

Parsley

Garlic Powder

Balsamic Vinegar

Lemon Juice

In a large frying pan or stick-less soup pot, sauté onions, green beans and sweet potatoes in small amount of olive oil. Add couscous and garbanzo beans. Cook until couscous is browned, stirring often. Add spices and enough water to cover all. Bring to boil and then simmer until couscous is done and water is mostly evaporated. Add balsamic vinegar and lemon juice.

Serve either warm or cooled.

Hidden Talents of Zucchini and Beets

Did you ever watch Sesame Street when you were little? Remember how at the end of each show they would announce what letter and number "sponsored" that episode? I remember being so proud that I could figure it out by the end. Anyway, this week's dessert recipe's are brought to you by hidden vegetables, namely zucchini and beets. 

The banana-zucchini bread/muffins are always a hit, but somehow they hadn't made it onto my blog. I made the muffins last week for myself and the bread this afternoon for my friend's baby shower. Delicious both times. For Valentine's Day, I decided to try making Red Velvet brownies from "scratch," i.e. made with beets. It was quite an experiment, and they did turn out pretty well. 

I've gotta say, this Italian soup is pretty amazing--one of the best I've made in a long time. I'm sure it's the sage. My new favorite herb. And I wanted to share another version of my favorite Indian dish. Enjoy!

Italian Orzo Soup

Multiple Servings/Family Size (includes 3 servings of vegetables)

Olive Oil

Garlic

Onion, diced

Zucchini, chopped

1 can of low sodium diced Tomatoes

1 cup chopped Spinach

1 can low sodium Garbanzo beans

1/4 cup Orzo Pasta

1/2 carton of low sodium Chicken broth

Thyme

Ground Sage

Oregano

Basil

Black Pepper

Paprika

1 Tbsp White Vinegar

1 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar

Parmesan Cheese

Sauté onions, garlic, and zucchini with small amount of olive oil. Add diced tomatoes, chopped spinach, garbanzo beans, pasta and chicken broth. Bring to a boil for about 10 minutes and then reduce to a simmer. Add herbs, spices and vinegar.

Serve with Parmesan cheese.

Butter Chicken

1 Serving (includes 3 servings of vegetables)

Olive Oil

2 Chicken tenderloins

Onions, chopped

Zucchini, chopped

Garlic

2 Tbsp. Butter

½ tsp. Black Pepper

½ tsp.  Chili Powder

¼ tsp. Ground Coriander

¼ tsp.  Cumin

½ tsp. Paprika

¼ tsp. Cinnamon

1 tsp.  Lemon juice

1 Tbsp. Tomato paste

1 Tbsp. water

1/2 Tomato, diced

3 Tbsp. Milk

Diced Cilantro

1/4 cup Couscous

Sauté chicken, onions, zucchini and garlic in small amount of olive oil. Add butter, spices, tomato paste, water, tomato, milk and cilantro. Simmer until liquid begins to evaporate.  Cook couscous according to instructions.

Banana Zucchini Muffins/ Banana Zucchini Chocolate Bread

Multiple Servings/Family Size (includes 2 servings of fruits and vegetables)

1 ½ Bananas, smashed

1/2 cup shredded Zucchini

1/2 cup Oil

1 Egg

1/4 cup Milk

1 tsp. Vanilla

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

1/2 tsp. Baking Soda

1 cup Flour

(2 Tbsp. Cocoa powder or 4 oz. Chocolate Chips)

Mix wet ingredients, add dry ingredients. Stir until just blended.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, or 20 minutes for Muffins.

Valentine's Day Red Velvet Beet Brownies with Cheesecake topping

Multiple Servings/Family Size (includes 1 servings of vegetables)

 

4 beets, pureed

1/2 cup (1 stick) Butter

1 cup Sugar

2 eggs

1 Tbsp. vanilla

1 tsp. White Vinegar

1/3 cup Cocoa powder

1/2 cup Flour

1/4 tsp. Baking powder

4 oz. Chocolate Chips, melted

1 package Cream Cheese, softened

1/4 cup Sugar

1 egg

1 Tbsp. flour

1/2 tsp. vanilla

Hot fudge or Hershey’s chocolate syrup

Peel and cube beets. Boil in small sauce pan until very soft. Puree in blender.

Mix brownie wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients.

In separate bowl, mix cheesecake ingredients.

Pour brownie batter into a greased baking dish. Spoon cheesecake batter on top. Swirl with knife.

Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until knife comes out clean.

Top with hot fudge or chocolate syrup.

Disclaimer: I decided to make these into real chocolate brownies. As a result, the red color wasn’t as prominent. If you want really red brownies, only add one type of chocolate.

Historical Drama and Inventive Recipes

If you're anything like me, you've jumped on the Downton Abbey bandwagon. Being a history nerd, I love seeing history come to life, even if it is in the form of a fictional story. Two Sunday afternoons a month, I work at the Evanston History Center, manning the front desk and leading tours through the historic Dawes House. The house is by no means as grand as Highclere Castle, but encases the same sense of social prominence and historical importance. I couldn't help but draw similarities between the family's stories, imagining what life must have been like at the beginning of the 20th Century. The pictures above are from the Dawes House kitchen. It's a marvelous place to take pictures. What an experience it would have been to cook in such a place, for such a grand audience!

This apple pie recipe came to me as I was dreaming up something fun to take to Shabbat a couple weeks ago. It turned out so well. I don't think I'll ever make a normal apple pie again. The Samosas were inspired by some catered samosas I had a few weeks ago. They were so good, I just had to try it myself. In an attempt to be healthier, I baked them instead of deep-frying. And finally, another winter stew. There's nothing like throwing a bunch of stuff in a pot and making it work. In this case, I took the more lazy route and crock-potted it over night. Enjoy!

Gingerbread Apple Pie

1 cup Flour

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

1 tsp. Ginger

1 tsp. Cinnamon

1/4 tsp. Allspice

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1/2 cup Softened Butter

1 Tbsp. Molasses

2 Tbsp. cold water

5-6 Medium Apples (I used Braeburn)

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/4 tsp. cloves

2-3 Tbsp. flour

3 Tbsp. water

Oats

Pecans

Molasses

Oil

Cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Make crust. Roll out and pat into large pie pan. Bake while you prepare apples.

Cut apples. Mix together with spices and flour. Pour into pie crust. Pour in a bit of water.

Combine oil, molasses and cinnamon in a small sauce pan. Heat to boiling. Add oats and pecans. Mix well. Spread over apples. 

Cover with tin foil and bake for 20 minutes. Then remove foil and bake another 30 minutes, or until the top begins to brown.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

Roasted Vegetable Samosas

1 cup all purpose flour (Maida)

1 tsp. Allspice
Water to Knead dough
2tbsp oil

3-4 small red Potatoes (boiled and mashed)
2 Tbsp. Curry Powder (or you can make your own Garam Masala)

Garlic Powder

Red Pepper

Tomatoes

Onions

Outside:

Mix flour, allspice and oil. Add a little water at a time. Pat and knead well for several times into a soft pliable dough. Cover it with cloth and keep aside for 15 minutes.

Inside:

Chop and roast vegetables on an oiled cooking sheet at 350 degrees. When they begin to brown, set aside.

In a bowl add mashed potatoes and spices. Mix well.

Make small rolls of dough and roll it into a 4"-5" diameter circle.

Cut it into two parts like semi-circle.

Now take one semi circle and fold it like a cone. Use water while doing so.

Place a spoon of filling, and some roasted vegetables in the cone and seal the third side using a drop of water.

Place on a well-oiled cooking sheet, turning each samosa so all sides are oiled. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Half way through, flip each samosa over.

Serve with chutney or spicy mustard.

Throw-Everything-in-the-Crockpot Beef Stew

Beef (I used a half of a brisket I had in the freezer)

4-6 small red Potatoes, cubed

Yellow Squash, cubed

Zucchini, cubed

1 red Onion, chopped

1 can low sodium Diced Tomatoes

1 small can green chilies

Sage

Thyme

Paprika

Black Pepper

Garlic Powder

1/2-3/4 a carton of low sodium broth (I used Chicken), or as much will fit in the crockpot with everything else.

Chop everything up and throw it into a crockpot/slowcooker. Cook on high for 8-10 hours, or as long as it will take to cook your meat.

I was going to try adding cilantro but forgot. Give it a try and let me know what you think.