One Last Taste of Summer

I can hardly believe that summer is almost gone. We've had a relatively mild summer here in Texas, which has been pretty enjoyable, but i'm just wondering where my blistering summer was? Without it my summer feels incomplete. It really feels like August never even happened. 

Still, now that school has started and Starbucks got it's pumpkin spice latte back its time to say goodbye to another warm season. Personally, I'm ready for those leaves to change and the crisp air to make it's way back. The scents and flavors of fall are pretty hard to beat.  That being said I'm pretty annoyed that Starbucks already has it's Pumpkin Spice Latte back. It is one of the most wonderful of treats (even though facebook likes to tell me how gross it is). I do not care, I will drink them frequently this season. But, to me, it really takes the fun out of the season and the PSL excitement when it comes early. If we had a pumpkin spice latte all year it wouldn't make the fall so special. It's not fall yet so Put. It. Away.

 It is still summer until September 22nd people. And since I've really enjoyed the little citrus kick I've been on the past few months. So I thought I'd share one last recipe for summer for you to enjoy. These lemon Raspberry Whoopie Pies are delightful. They are a wonderful treat to end your day...or start it if you're anything like me ;).

I'm fascinated by the whoopie pie. It's basically like a cake sandwich. And you don't need a fork, so that's always nice. It makes them a great food for a party. You just have to be careful not to let the icing get too runny, which was my problem. To do that just make sure you add more powdered sugar to get a thicker consistency.

This recipe can be adjusted for a number of flavors (and seasons if you insist on switching to fall). Just switch the cake recipe to whatever you want, and adjust the icing to match it. Some good combos would be red velvet with cream cheese frosting or pumpkin with maple buttercream. And you can always stick with the basics like white cake/white icing, yellow cake/chocolate icing, etc.

**Note: to make this recipe you ideally need a whoopie pie pan, but it's not a necessity. You can buy one on amazon or bed bath and beyond if you desire.

Lemon Raspberry Whoopie Pies

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 1 C. Unsalted Butter
• 1 1/2 C. Flour
• 1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. Lemon Zest
• 2 C. Sugar
• 2 Eggs + 3 Egg Yolks
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 C. Buttermilk

For the filling:

• 6 Tbsp. Butter, room temp.
• 2+ C. Powdered Sugar
• 1/8 tsp. Salt
•  1 Jar of Marshmallow Creme
• 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• 1 C. Fresh Raspberries

How To: 

Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lemon zest in a medium bowl and set aside. 

Step 2: Beat the butter and 1 1/2 cups of your sugar together until light and fluffy. 

Step 3: Beat in your eggs and yolk one at a time just until combined. Add the lemon juice and beat until combined. For a stronger taste add a bit more lemon.

Step 4: You are going to alternate adding the flour mixture and buttermilk, starting and ending with flour (so the pattern should be 1/3 flour, 1/2 buttermilk, 1/3 flour, 1/2 buttermilk, 1/3 flour). Don't over beat you just want these to be combined in with your batter.

Step 5: Pour the batter into your pans (I would grease them with melted butter first). Or if you do not have a Whoopie Pie Pan. Use a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper. Scoop the batter onto the cookie sheet. Don't make your circles too too big though! Bake for 10-12 minutes or until golden yellow and the edges slightly browning.

Step 6: After they come out of the oven let them cool to room temperature before you start filling them.

Step 7: While your pies are baking. Beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and salt and mix well.

Step 8: Add the marshmallow creme and vanilla and beat until well blended. Then add the raspberries. Beat until your icing turns pink and there are no longer chunks of raspberries left. Your filling should be thick. If it's not add some more powdered sugar until you get the consistency you ant.

Step 9: Refrigerate your icing until the pies are ready to be filled.

Step 10: When ready to ice (I used an icing bag you can use a knife if you want) begin icing the pie from the center. You don't want to go to far to the edge because when you sandwich the sides together it will over flow. After you stick the second side on you're good to go!!

No harder than making a cake or cupcakes just handheld! And having the icing in the center is a real game changer.

Hope you like them!

Happy Eating! xoxo

Tan

Key Lime Pie

There are a couple of foods and flavors that scream for their season. Winter you have cranberries, peppermint, soups and roasts. Spring brings florals, rosemary, thyme, lavender, deviled eggs. And Fall smells of cinnamon, corny dogs (You texans know what I mean), and buffalo wings for those college football watching Saturdays. Typically, I'd tell you the fall is my favorite season of the year. BUT my favorite cooking season would have to be the summer. Summer flavors like citrus, grilled steaks and fish, salads with fresh berries...the list goes on. I just love it.

Today I'm going to focus on the citrus, I can't remember the last time I let a summer go by without making a batch of lemon bars and a key lime pie....usually several. It's just so light and refreshing yet tangy and delicious! It's also a pretty easy flavor to work with and goes well with just about everything. I highly recommend the meyer lemon olive oil that O Olive Oil Company  makes. I use lemon on chicken, when i bake shrimp, in my butter that goes with crab legs, in cupcakes, in buttercream. Everywhere! And the same can be said with limes. Limes also go great with jalapenos. The multitude of combinations you can do with these two fruits is ridonkulous. Which is why I enjoy cooking in the summer so much!

Unfortunately there are a lot of reasons I have slowed down my cooking this season, but this weekend I said enough is enough and set out to make my pie.

Key Lime Pie is one of the easiest pies you can make. People pretty consistently tell me that what I think is easy is not easy for everyone else. That may be true from time to time.  But I try to share recipes that the average cook can make. Otherwise what fun is it to share them?

Pies are tricky and what is tricky about them is typically the crust. Especially when making one from scratch. With this recipe it is extremely hard to mess up the crust! And there is no crust on top which makes it even easier to deal with.

This is a recipe I found on Sweet Pea's Kitchen, but I have changed the proportions and added some vanilla. I prefer a thick layers of each level: the crust, filling, and topping. I think I'd even go larger than what I did this weekend. But it's up to you! I also used actual key limes from the grocery store where as Sweet Pea used limes. The first time I used it i used regular limes and it worked just fine. You have to use A LOT of key limes to get the required juice amount, so it just depends on how hard you want to work ;)

Key Lime Pie

Ingredients:

•   8 tsp. Lime Zest
•   1 C. Lime juice*
•   8 Large egg yolks**
•   2 (14 oz.) cans of Sweetened Condensed Milk
•   18 Honey Graham Crackers
•   4 Tbsp. Sugar
•   10 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter, melted
•   1 1/2 C. Heavy Whipping Cream
•   1/2 C. Confectioner's Sugar
•   2 tsp. Vanilla Extract
•   1/2 lime thinly sliced + sugar for garnish (optional)

* 6-7 Large Limes OR a whole bag of key limes
**If you don't know how to separate the eggs and yolks send me a message! But I save the whites for egg white omelets the next morning :)

How to do it:

Step 1: Whisk together your zest and egg yolks. The mixture will turn a little green and that's ok! Add the sweetened milk and whisk until combined. Then do the same with the lime juice. Put the bowl to the side and let your mixture sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes. This will allow your mixture to thicken. You don't need to touch it! It will do it all by itself.

Step 2: Start on your crust! Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Most pies cook best if you move your rack to the center of your oven. Use a food processor to grind the graham crackers into find pieces. Add your 4 TBSP of sugar and pulsate just until combined. Then pour your crumbs into a small bowl. Add your melted butter and mix until combined. I use my hands to make sure everything gets really evenly spread out. 

Step 3: Move your crumbs to the pie plate. Using your hands press the crumbs into the plate until evenly distributed. And don't forget to go up the sides! The crumbs tend to group together in the middle of your plate, so be sure to really work them out to the sides. 

Step 4: Bake the crust for about 20 minutes. Your oven should smell fantastic and the crust should be browning just a little. (this is hard to tell because the graham crackers are already brown!) I do it mostly based on smell. This doesn't matter too too much as the crust will continue to cook when you put it back in with the filling. That being said don't skip it!

Step 5: Pour your newly thickened filing into the crust and bake for 22-25 minutes. Gently jiggle the pie. You want the filling to be firm but still have a little bit of jiggle. If it's moving around too much it's not set enough and you need to leave it in a little longer. 

Step 6: Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes and then chill in your refrigerator for 3 hours. DO NOT put the cream on until it is cooled, or else it will just melt.

Step 7: While your pie is chilling you can start the whipped cream. Pour your heavy whipping cream into a bowl with your mixer. Beat on a HIGH speed until soft peaks form. (It will look like nothing is happening for a little while and then like magic it starts thickening. Quickly stick your finger in and pull it out. You should see a little tiny peak appear). Once you have soft peaks add your confectioner's sugar just a little at a time and your vanilla. Beat until you get stiff peaks! (Ones that keep their peak shape after you pull your finger out). 

Step 8: Use a spatula or icing knife to spread your whipped cream over the cake. If you want to use the garnish. take your thinly sliced lime and coat it in your sugar. You can cut a small slit and twist them, put whole slices on your cake, or do halves like I did. 

Happy Eating! 

xoxo
Tanner 

Peanut Butter and Nutella Cookies

Guys, I've been sick for like a month. It's starting to get ridiculous. I am nauseous CONSTANTLY (don't worry I'm not pregnant). The good news though is that while it has curbed my appetite I can still eat a variety of things that aren't chicken soup, ginger ale, or saltines. In fact I probably ate about 14 of these little gems, and I will argue until I'm blue in the face that they made me feel better (even if that feeling was 100% mental).

Truthfully though, these cookies are amazing. I rarely eat the stuff that I bake. I'm not sure why because I like sweets and I LOVE baking them. Perhaps I just get sick of it because I am tasting everything as I go along, or I don't want to ruin it if they turned out bad. Regardless of the reason, I hardly ever eat my own treats. So the fact that I ate so many of them should speak volumes about their deliciousness.

But the #1 factor about these cookies is how EASY they are to make (this factor also makes them kid friendly parents). Which is partly why I am posting them just in time for the long weekend. For those of us not going anywhere (or for those of you having people over) these are a great treat to make to ensure you enjoy this much needed long weekend.

I grabbed this recipe from One Hundred Dollars a Month or more precisely...Pintrest. No matter how I got there it is a really really great recipe, but i do make one change and that is adding more Nutella. I couldn't taste it enough in my first batch and I think it will be great with just a little bit extra.

Peanut Butter & Nutella Cookies

 Ingredients
1/2 C Unsalted Butter, softened
3/4 C CREAMY Peanut Butter (Jif is the natural choice)
1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C Brown Sugar, packed
1 Egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 3/4 C Flour
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
1/4 tsp. Kosher Salt
1/2 C. Nutella (at least!)




Instructions:

 Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper**

Step 2: Using a bowl or your fancy Kitchenaid mixing bowl add the butter, peanut butter, both white and light brown sugars, beat until smooth.

Step 3: Add the egg, and your vanilla extract and beat until combined. 

Step 4: Add the flour, baking soda and salt and continue beating until all of the ingredients are combined. make sure to get all that flour that inevitably sticks to the bottom of the bowl mixed in!
 
Step 5: Melt your Nutella in a microwave safe bowl. Gently pour it onto your dough. I think a zig zag pattern works best. Use your spatula (I used my hands because it was easier) to fold the Nutella into your dough. 
 
Step 6: Refrigerate your dough for about 15 minutes (it makes it easier to roll into balls. 

Step 7: Roll the dough into balls however big or small you want but I'd stay on the smaller side. Spread them out on your tray about an inch apart from each other. Use a fork to push the cookies down a little bit

Step 8: Bake them in the oven for 8-10 minutes. When you pull them out let them cool on a wire rack until room temperature (unless you want them gooey of course!)
 
**If you have never baked cookies on parchment paper you are MISSING OUT! Try it it helps them not stick to the pan making it really easy to get off the tray for cooling, and better yet...less cleanup for you!
 

I recommend storing them in an airtight bag or container with a piece of bread. Someone once told me that the bread helps keep the cookies moist. I'm not really sure why that is or if it really works, but I did try that this time and it worked for me!!! 

Happy Eating!

xoxo Tanner

Grilled Pizzas

You know that time I said I would be better about posting and then wasn't? Yeahhhh...sorry about that. BUT my little weather app tells me this weekend in Dallas is going to be warm and GORGEOUS! Which is hilarious since it was freezing last night. Anyway, this grilled pizza receip is to die for and is a perfect way to kick off the warm (or excruciatingly hot?) season.

When it comes to pizza I will literally eat it all. Lunchable mini pizzas? Duh. Domino's? Check. That new (but i guess really not so new) garlic crust is the bomb. Lover's pizza? Check. Campisi's? Check. Grimaldi's? Double check. There are so many other great pizza places around this city and I'm sure plenty I've never heard of. Union Bear in west village is one of my new favorites and I highly recommend it to anyone.

But with all of these options it's easy to throw away home cooking and my favorite motto of fresh is best.  I know it's pretty hard to get motivated, especially when you have to make some sort of dough. It's time consuming for sure! But it tastes amazing, it's healthier, and it's a good way to get kids, other family members or friends involved in the kitchen.

These little pizzas are also a great idea for a small party or get together. Every time I have made these I've set up a pizza bar and invited friends and family over to dig in. You just need to make a bunch of dough discs and chop up your favorite toppings like pepperoni, sausage, bell pepper, olives, jalapeno's, onions, etc. and let your guests make their own creations. It's great because it can be hard to cater to and please everyone at a party. This way you most definitely don't have to.

Without further ado your recipe! The dough recipe is courtesy of Ina Garten but i changed it up a tad and grilled it instead of putting it in the oven :)

Tan Tan's Grilled Pizzas
 **The dough makes about 4-5 pizzas
 

Dough essentials:
1 1/4 cups warm water
2 packages dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey 

Olive oil*
4+ cups all-purpose flour

Kosher salt
4 cloves garlic, sliced
5 sprigs fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

Toppings

My Homemade Pasta Sauce

Whatever you want!

4 C. Mozzarella

Mushrooms

Bell Pepper

Pepperoni (I buy from butcher)

Sausage

Jalapeno

Olives

Onions

Pinapple

Ham

 

 

 

*I recommend  O Olive Oil's Roasted Garlic You'll have to order it, but it (and all of the flavors) is amazing!

 

Instructions:

Step 1: Combine the water, yeast, honey and 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a bowl (I use my hands, but if you want use an electric mixer with a dough hook). Allow the yeast to dissolve.

 

Step 2: Add 3 cups of your flour a teaspoon or two of salt and begin mixing. I start with a spoon and as it begins forming into a dough I add 1 more cup of flour and also cover my hands in flour (it helps with the stickyness). Work the dough until it becomes smooth. You can add flour if kneaded (haha get it?)

Step 3: Continue kneading until the dough is elasticy. Then coat your bowl and the dough lightly in olive oil, cover it with a towel, and all the dough to rise for about 30 minutes. No need for a warm location it will be just fine at room temperature.

Step 4: While that is rising you can make your garlic oil that coats your pizzas. Using a small sauce pan add 1/2 C. of olive oil, the garlic, thyme, and red pepper flakes together. Simmer over medium low heat so all of the flavor blends together. Just be sure nothing is burning. Let it sit for roughly 10 minutes.

Step 5: Divide the dough into equal pieces. Cover them with a damp towel and let them for 10 minutes. Then take each piece and stretch it, knead it, flatten it, whatever you need to do to get the dough in the size and shape you want. (this is a great time for kids to get involved).

Step 6: At this point you should do 2 things. Turn on your grill and heat up a fry pan on your stove with a little olive oil. You are about to cook the dough just a tad on the grill and while that is happening you can cook the sausage or soften your vegetables like bell peppers, mushrooms and jalapenos if desired.

Step 7: When your grill is ready to go. Brush ONE side of your pizza with the garlic oil you made earlier. Put that side down on the grill. (the olive oil will help it not stick to the grill). Try not to put it directly over flames if it can be avoided. You only want to let it cook for 5 minutes max. You want the bottom to appear lightly cooked. Then bring the pizzas back inside. Have everyone put their sauce and toppings on the cooked sides of their pizzas. I recommend toppings first then cheese on top. (as it melts the cheese traps the toppings so they don't fall off). Then bring them back out to the grill and cook through! You can gauge it based on the cheese. Once it is done melting start checking the bottoms of your pizza. I typically move mine to the little rack in my grill so it's further away from the heat to allow the dough to cook all the way through.

Then you can enjoy it!

I hope you don't let the fear of dough or the time consumption deter you from trying this recipe, because seriously you won't be disappointed! As always let me know if you have suggestions or if you try it another way! I'm always looking for new variations of my favorite recipes! Have a beautiful weekend!


xoxo & Happy Eating!

Tanner

Irish Oatmeal Bread

So I've told y'all i'm really on this bread kick...I can verify that with the 6 loaves I just ate at Spaghetti Warehouse.  So with that combined with St. Patrick's day and a weekend it's the perfect time for you to try this Irish Oatmeal Bread.

When it comes to everyday bread I'm pretty picky. For example I hate wheat bread....back in the day I hate to admit that I would dread going to my Aunt's house near lunch time because she ONLY had wheat bread. Disgusting...I wish I had done what she said though because now I am a bread addict and I like the ones that are the most worst for you. Mostly, I liked my all american Mrs. Bairds white bread plain and simple. OR sourdough, gotta love that.

But now that I'm a wee bit older and I understand that I can't eat bread all of the time and I should try to branch out to at least the slightly better for you multigrain breads I've faced a moral dilemma: Find new breads or quit eating bread regularly. that's such a silly question I could never give up bread. My whole immediate family should be considered grainavours. When we go to restaurants its disgusting how much bread we eat.

Anyway, this dilemma pushed me to find better for you recipes and I love this one I found from Cooking Light via MyRecipes.com (credit also to pintrest). This meets me half way. It uses half white bread, half wheat bread, and also uses oats. It's a better for you bread without giving up white bread entirely. This recipe is GREAT for every day bread and it works well as toast too.

Words of warning: Bread without a bread machine can be a little tricky and you need to be patient. If you are having problems please feel free to contact me or leave a message in the comments so I can help you figure it out!
  
Irish Oatmeal Bread
    
          Ingredients: 

•   2 1/4 C. Boiling Water
•   1 3/4 C. Quaker Oats
•   1 Tbsp. Salt
•   3 Tbsp. Butter
•   3 Tbsp. Light Brown Sugar, Packed
•   2 Packages of active dry yeast
•   1/2 C. lukewarm water
•   3 1/4 C. All-Purpose Flour, Divided
•   3 C. Whole Wheat Flour
•   1 Large Egg, gently beaten

Step 1: Combine the boiling water, oats, salt, butter and light brown sugar in a large bowl. Set aside for about 25 minutes.

Step 2: Towards the end of that time dissolve the yeast in warm water and let stand until it's foamy. (Pour the packets into the water and use a fork to gently whisk it. a couple of minutes later whisk again and you should be good to go). Add the yeast to the oats mixture.

Step 3: Slowly begin adding 2 3/4 C. of the white flour and the 3 cups of the wheat flour to the mixture, stirring as you add each cup. (Once it becomes dough like I find it's easiest to begin gently kneading with your hands.)

Step 4: Bring the dough onto a lightly floured flat surface and continue kneading the bread until it is smooth and stretchy. (Be patient this part can take some time). Keep adding the rest of your white flour a tiny bit at a time. You may not need it all, so stop once your dough is no longer sticky. Put the dough back into the bowl, cover and let rise in a warm location for about an hour. (during this time the dough should grow in size).

Step 5: Use your fingers to "deflate" the dough and let it sit for a couple of minutes. Then divide your dough in half and shape the dough as you please. You can put it in loaf pans, or cook them on baking sheets as I did. As you work with the dough and knead it into your desired shape try to eliminate airpockets and ensure the dough is "sealed" all the way around.

Step 6: Again let your dough rise. This time for about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees during this time.

Step 7: Brush your beaten egg over the tops of your loaves, and bake for 50 minutes or until the loaves are browned and "sound hollow when tapped".


And your done!  It's a little time consuming, but I promise it's worth it and you can do it while watching TV on a Sunday afternoon.

Happy Eating!

Tanner