strawberry basil cupcakes

we have a great vegan bakery and coffee shop within walking distance of our home, so sometimes when we feel like taking a walk around the neighborhood, we walk there and get a toddy and occasionally something sweet. the last time we went there, they had strawberry basil mini cupcakes. they were amazing!! As soon as we got back home I went searching for a recipe. The ones that i made are not vegan, but i promise you that they are tasty.




what you'll need:

cupcakes:
2 C flour
1 1/3 C sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
6 tbsp butter, at room temperature
1 C milk
2 eggs
2 C chopped strawberries
a large bunch of basil

frosting:
4 C powdered sugar
12 tbsp butter
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 2/3  tbsp milk
sliced strawberries and basil leaves to decorate

here's how you make 'em:

pour the 1/2  milk in a saucepan with the basil, roughly torn. bring to the boil then remove from the heat and leave for an hour or two to infuse, then remove the basil.

pre-heat the oven to 350.

mix the flour, sugar, baking powder and butter with an electric whisk until just combined. pour in the basil-infused milk and the egg and beat until just incorporated, then mix for another couple of minutes until smooth. fold in the chopped strawberries.

spoon the mixture into 12 muffin cases so they are two-thirds full. bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown and the sponge springs back when touched. Let cool.

for the icing, beat together the icing sugar, vanilla and butter with an electric mixer until well combined. add the milk and beat for 5-10 minutes until light and fluffy. spread frosting on cupcake.

decorate with basil leaves and fresh strawberries!

(makes 12 cupcakes)

Another 'what's in the fridge' recipe: grilled eggplant and zucchini sandwich with asiago and garlic mayo

This turned out to be quite a surprisingly flavorful sandwich and is now one of our favs! It is pretty quick and simple...just how I like my recipes. Here's how you make it:

What you'll need..

1 eggplant sliced lengthwise
1 zucchini also sliced into strips lengthwise
1/3 C shredded asiago cheese
1-3 garlic cloves chopped depending on how much of a garlic lover you are
4 Tbs mayo
Any type of artisan bread you prefer (we made ours with a bread called como that we got at our local grocery but I think sourdough would be nice as well)
Olive oil

Directions:
Saute eggplant and zucchini in olive oil until lightly brown. Meanwhile, shred cheese and chop garlic. Mix garlic with mayo. Toast bread and add garlic mayo to both sides. Layer on cheese and the veggies!

sage and asiago mushroom tart

we have had a busy week entertaining different friends for the evenings at our home. most of them we hadn't seen for a while and it was so lovely to catch up with them. it also meant that i had to get creative in the kitchen. a few nights, i pulled from recipes that i had made before and knew were solid, but by saturday i felt like trying something new on our friend, nelson. i found this recipe and decided to give it a go, and luckily (for my husband and our good company) it was delicious and is now in our rotation. if you are a fan of mushrooms, you should probably try this.

ingredients:

2 LBS mixed mushroom, cleaned
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 yellow onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
12 fresh sage leafs
salt and pepper
1 sheet puff pastry
plain flour
1/2 cup shredded asiago

Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 400F. Cut the larger mushrooms in half. Heat the oil in a large pan and saute mushrooms, onion and garlic until the mushroom is golden. Add sage and season with salt and pepper.
Roll out the puff pastry in a little flour and place it on a baking tray covered with parchment paper. Add the mushrooms and sprinkle with cheese. Bake until fluffy and golden, about 12 minutes.
Slice and serve hot or cold.

i think it was meant to be an appetizer, but i just made the proportions larger and served the tarts with a light salad. it worked just as well. happy monday!

a different take on mac and cheese

orecchiette pasta with brie and asparagus

i was roaming through my fridge the other day trying to decide what to make for dinner. i came across a wedge of brie and a bundle of asparagus, and thought, 'i should just throw this on some pasta.' so i did (with some garlic) and it turned out to be mighty tasty and super quick and easy. here's what you need:



wedge of brie
bundle of asparagus (washed and cut)
2-3 garlic cloves diced
orecchiete pasta (or any shell pasta...i bought mine at trader joe's)
3 tbl olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

directions: boil water and add pasta. while pasta is cooking, heat oil in a separate pan then add garlic and asparagus (mixing it around to coat with the oil). Let simmer in oil until garlic and asparagus becomes lightly brown and crispy. when pasta is cooked, chop brie into pieces and slowly add in the brie, mixing it as you add so it melts. then add asparagus and garlic. salt and pepper to taste and pair with your favorite red!

pumpkin bisque

another yummy soup to warm up those bones!








ingredients:
3 cans organic pumpkin
2 T. olive oil
1 lg. onion, diced
1 lg. carrot, diced
1 T. fresh ginger peeled and minced
1-2 t. fresh rosemary leaves, chopped (or more to taste)
2 t. salt
2 1/2 c. light vegetable stock mixed with 2 c. water
2 t. sugar
3/4 c. heavy cream
¼-½ c. chopped fresh chives
Sprinkle of nutmeg (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste


Heat the olive oil in heavy pot. When the oil is warmed, add onions, carrot, a dash of salt, and ginger. Sauté until the onions are translucent, and the carrots begin to soften, about 10 minutes. Add the pumpkin, rosemary and salt, then stir to combine and continue to sauté the vegetable mixture for about 5 minutes. Add the stock/water and bring the soup to a low boil and simmer for about 15 minutes. Remove soup from heat and stir in the sugar.

When the soup has cooled a bit, place in blender bowl and begin processing. You will probably need to do this in a few batches. While blending, slowly add the cream a little at a time.

When the soup is whipped and creamy, return it to the pot and stir in the chives, reserving a little for
garnish. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve warm

because it should be cold outside

it's fall darn it! and though it may be just barely under 100 degrees i am in the mood for soups, and sweaters, and warm drinks. so with that in mind, here's a recipe for a delicious vegetarian corn chowder. so turn the temp down on your ac, turn the fireplace on your t.v, and put something warm on your table!


                                                                                     ingredients:

2 T olive oil

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 large onion, chopped

1/2 t cayenne pepper

2 c diced red potatoes

5 c vegetable broth

1/2 c sour cream

1/2 t salt

kernels from 5 ears fresh corn

1 c grated cheddar cheese

pepper, to taste

2 scallions, chopped

In a large sauce, pan heat olive oil over medium heat. Add garlic and onions, and cook 10 minutes, until beginning to brown. Stir in cayenne and potatoes, and cook 3 minutes, stirring often. Add vegetable broth, sour cream and salt, stirring well. Cook 20 minutes. With a potato masher, lightly mash about half the potatoes, to create a thicker broth. Cook an additional 10 minutes, until potatoes are tender. Stir in corn and cheddar, and cook 5 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with scallions and additional sour cream, if desired (i recommend this step)





mushroom ragu with polenta

found this recipe and wanted to try it out. we both love polenta but i honestly think i have cooked with it once (i made polenta croutons and i don't remember it going so well as i am never very good at frying things). but i think what sold me on it the most was that it gave a suggestion of wine to pair with it, and it just so happens that we had that exact wine! good enough reason as any right? anyway it turned out great and the husband approved--always a good thing.

below is the original recipe. i adjusted it to make the meal a vegetarian one. so i will note that as needed.

Ingredients
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil,
divided 8 ounces hot turkey Italian sausage  **i used tofurky italian sausage from TJ's
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 pound cremini mushrooms,
sliced 2 large garlic cloves,
minced 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 (14.5-ounce) can no-salt-added diced tomatoes, undrained
2 1/2 cups fat-free, lower-sodium chicken broth **here i just omitted the broth altogether, although a friend of mine recently brought it to my attention that fry's now carries 'no-chicken broth' (uh-mazing)
1 1/2 cups water 1 cup uncooked polenta
4 ounces 1/3-less-fat cream cheese **i also omitted the cream cheese to keep it somewhat healthier
1 tablespoon butter

Preparation
1. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons oil to pan; swirl to coat. Remove sausage from casings. Add sausage to pan; sauté 3 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Remove sausage from pan.

2. Add 1 tablespoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion; sauté 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add mushrooms; sauté 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add garlic; sauté 1 minute, stirring constantly. Stir in sausage, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and tomatoes; bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium; simmer gently for 15 minutes.

3. Bring broth and 1 1/2 cups water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add polenta, stirring well. Reduce heat to medium, and simmer 20 minutes or until thick, stirring occasionally. Stir in remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, cheese, and butter. Serve with sausage mixture.

***the wine is a tempranillo called La Granja and is $3.99. don't be fooled by the price, embrace it. it is actually one of our go-to wines. it is really good!

the betty crocker in me.

we had our home group this week and we usually all sign up to contribute to the meal. this time i chose to bring dessert. i have more dessert recipes piling up on my pinterest than i do actual main courses so i thought i would give two of them a try. the first; nutella cookies and the second; sopapilla cheesecake. they were both delicious and both easy to make so i thought i'd share.


nutella cookies

ingredients:
1 cup Nutella
½ cups Sugar
1 cup All-purpose Flour*
1 whole Egg

*to accomodate our host, i chose to make them gluten-free so i went with with red mill instead of flour.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Blend all ingedients together well.

Form into 1″ balls. Place on a cookie sheet. Press down firmly with the bottom of a glass. Bake 7-8 minutes or until set. Cool.

sopapilla cheesecake

Ingredients:
3 cans pillsbury butter crescent rolls
2 (8oz) packages cream cheese (softened)
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup butter (melted)
Cinnamon & sugar

Instructions:
Unrolled and spread 1 & 1/2 can crescent rolls on bottom of un-greased pan. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla.

Spread mixture over crescent rolls.

Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes.

i had to make enough for around 20 people so i made them on 2 separate cookie sheets and then after they had cooled for a bit, cut them up into more bite size pieces. and from what i heard, they went over well!

hope you enjoy! happy baking!!

p.s. this is what happens in my kitchen after making 2 desserts...

a taste of the good life.

came up on another amazing recipe the other day and wanted to share it.
Panini with pears, brie, carmelized walnuts, and arugula pesto mayo. let me just say, if you want to 'wow' whomever you're cooking for, this may be your next go-to. here is your map to being crowned 'best chef!' :

arugula pesto mayo:
3 cups of packed arugula
1/4 cup of toasted pine nuts
1/4 cup of grated parmesan
1/2 cup olive oil
3 1/2 tbs mayo
sea salt and black pepper to taste

directions: combine arugula, pine nuts, and parmesan in food processor until smooth. slowly add olive oil and mix until well blended. season with sea salt and black pepper. add mayo and blend well. (you'll have some left over after making the sandwich) carmelized walnuts:

1 cup walnuts

2 tbs sugar*

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

*the recipe i had called for 2 tbs light corn syrup and 1 tbs sugar. im not a fan of using corn syrup with anything so i doubled the sugar and just added a tiny bit of water so the sugar would coat the walnuts. they still turned out fine.

directions: preheat oven to 325. combine ingredients in bowl and toss well. spread mixture on non-stick baking sheet and bake until deep golen brown and sugar is bubbling. remove from oven and cool. (i also had a bit of extra walnuts after sandwich)now to make the sandwich:

4 slices of sourdough bread

1 pear, thinly sliced

4 thick slices of brie

panini: spread arugula pesto may on both sides of bread. on one side layer pears, then cheese, then walnuts. add top slice of bread and toast in pan lightly coated with olive oil. make sure to keep pressure on panini as you toast bpth sides evenly.

serve warm and let those tastebuds enjoy every bite.

summer food.

lemon garlic spaghetti paired with white wine aptly named 'Relax' (which you can get at target and is the best white wine i have had). i tried this recipe and it is now our favorite pasta dish.
its light and delicious and i can't wait to make it again. hope you feel the same!
ingredients:
4oz dried spaghetti (i used whole wheat)
1/4 cup grated parmesan
2 tsp olive oil
1 clove garlic
1/2 lemon
2 tbsp pine nuts
5-6 basil leaves, chiffonaded

to make:
First, start your garlic oil. Pour in olive oil and chopped up garlic into a small frying pan and let it cook over low, until the garlic starts to brown on edges. Immediately remove from heat and reserve.While that’s starting up, boil up some spaghetti.
Chiffonade some basil leaves. Then take cheese, pine nuts and dump it into a large bowl, with the garlic oil, garlic chunks and all. Squeeze in lemon juice. Throw in the spaghetti and toss until well combined. Platecrack some black pepper on it, and enjoy. (recipe courtesy of www.inomthings.com)

recipe serves 2