Chocolate Merlot Truffle Cupcakes with Mascarpone Cream Cheese Frosting

These cupcakes are amazing. Totally perfect for Valentines Day, whether you love Valentines Day or think its just another hallmark holiday, marketing ploy, in that case they are any day perfect.

They might as well be a love potion, these cupcakes. You will love yourself more for making these on this fine upcoming hallmark holiday of love. Believe me.

Truffles are stuffed inside of each one for a little chocolate surprise. Who wouldn't love that? I sure don't know of anyone who wouldn't like it. I'd convert them with these cupcakes though. I'm sure of it.

A lot of recipes call for a little coffee when there is chocolate involved. Coffee and chocolate are a natural pair, but wine and chocolate are too. They both enhance the chocolate factor by 10.

It is quite possible that wine and chocolate are a better pair than chocolate and coffee...particularly if it is afternoon because it is more acceptable to drink after noon. Don't judge me. I'm still a college student for a few more months.

The truffle stuffed inside makes a little semi-molten extra rich chocolate center. These cupcakes are super moist (I'm sorry if you hate that word, but it is true AND have you ever looked at "moist" synonymous; way worse than moist when talking about food. Gross.) all on their own with no truffle but why you wouldn't want the chocolate center, I don't know.

Red wine makes these seem like a red velvet cake. Someone asked me if they were red velvet, which they might as well be.  Red wine velvet cupcakes.

Use any sort of somewhat fruity, well-rounded, smooth red wine that you would normally drink. I used a Merlot.

The wine complements the chocolate by bringing out the fruitiness found in chocolate. It is amazing. These cupcakes are the best cupcakes I've ever made. Maybe the best I've ever consumed. I wouldn't lie to you. Pinky swear.

The frosting in this recipe is probably my favorite frosting of all time. The combination of butter, cream cheese and mascarpone cheese are perfect. I'm always looking to get my boyfriend to say whatever I've cooked for him is the best he has ever had the pleasure of consuming.

This frosting did it. Best he ever had. It isn't too sweet either, which I like. It is honestly the only frosting I ever make. It is just the best. You must try it. Promise me.

Adding a little wine to the frosting is optional. I felt like it made it curdle a little bit, but gave it a lightly pink-red-wine color that I liked. I'd suggest not adding it if you are serving this to children.

These may be adult only cupcakes all together, between a glass of wine and a few cupcakes, I'm not entirely sure if the alcohol cooks off or not. I will let you make the call on serving these to children or not.

The cupcakes come together in around an hour, not counting cooling time. That is okay though. Just think of the time it takes for the cupcakes to cool as the perfect excuse for a glass of wine.

You should probably be drinking a glass while making these. Hell, you should probably just buy two bottles of wine.

Maybe save the second bottle of wine for after the cupcakes are out of the oven, you don't want it going to your head. Dry, overcooked cupcakes are bad, but not as bad as a fire.Either situation is no good though.

I bet you can find time to make these this week. Maybe this weekend, more time to enjoy some wine on a weekend. Treat yourself either way on this lovely hallmark holiday weekend.

I know I'll be treating myself to a to be determined home cooked meal, with white Russians and the Big Lebowski for dessert. I want to know what your plans are! How are you treating yourself this Valentine's day?

xo
April 

Makes about 24 cupcakes
Ingredients:
 for the cupcakes:
24 cupcake liners
24 truffles, such as Lindt Irresistibly Smooth Dark Chocolate Truffles
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup Merlot wine (or other red wine)

for the frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup (8 ounces) cream cheese at room temperature
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3-4 tablespoons Merlot wine (or other red wine)
Pinch of kosher salt
1 cup (8 ounces) mascarpone (Italian cream cheese, available at most grocery stores)

1/4 cup cocoa powder, for dusting

Instructions:
for the cupcakes:
Heat the oven to 350°F. Line a cupcake pan with 24 cupcake liners, placing a chocolate truffle (I used Lindt truffles) in each cupcake liner. Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl, sifting the 3/4 cup cocoa over the top of the flour mixture.

Cream the butter and sugar in an electric mixer, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one by one, and then the vanilla, and continue beating 1 to 2 minutes. With the mixer on low, mix in a third of the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and then pour in a third of the Merlot. Mix ingredients together until just combined. Continue this process two more times, alternating between the flour mixture and the wine into the cake batter. (be sure to not over mix the batter, in between each addition it is okay if they are not fully combined until the end.)

Fill each cupcake liner 3/4 of the way full, baking for 15 to 20 minutes; a metal skewer inserted in the cupcake (slightly off to the edge because of the truffle) should come out clean. Let the cupcakes cool 10 minutes in the pans, then place them on a rack to cool completely. While the cupcakes cool, make the frosting.

for the frosting:
In the large bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, cream cheese, and powdered sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Scrape down the edges of the bowl and add the vanilla, mixing on low to combine. Then with the mixer going, stream in the 3-4 tablespoons of wine, until combined.

Beat in the mascarpone on very low speed until just combined. (Be careful; once you've added the mascarpone, excessive beating can make the frosting curdle.)

Frost the top of each muffin with the icing.

To finish the cupcakes, sift a little cocoa powder over the top of each one and then top with a truffle (optional).

Frosting slightly adapted from The Pastry Queen Christmas

Mixed Greens with Roasted Beets, Pomegranate Dressing and Goat Cheese

Oh my word. This might be my favorite salad of all time. Prepare yourself.

The colors are beautiful. Are they not? You can't deny it. All those reds and oranges. Possibly the perfect Valentines day salad? I might be getting ahead of myself here.

It might be because this salad was supposed to be posted before Christmas, again due to its beautiful reds and some green; therefore, I don't care if its too soon to think about Valentines day.

It is just too pretty, but too tasty not to eat.

Valentines day is a total hallmark holiday scam, but it is just another holiday excuse to eat lots of chocolate and make something extra fancy special for dinner.

I actually do that most weeks anyways, but its good excuse to have. It makes me feel more normal.

In all reality, I will probably be ordering a extra large pizza with my main man, watching The Big Lebowski, drinking white Russians.

Pizza is my favorite and white Russians are his. His and hers. Too cute.

I digress, but this is all connected to the salad. Trust me.

It is truly maybe my favorite salad I've ever made at home. Ever. It borders right on unhealthy and healthy, depending on your veggie to cheese ratio. My cheese ratio is usually, always high.

Don't let the beets scare you. They are tender, like butter and almost sweet, with a hint of earthiness.

The dressing is just the right amount of thick, creamy, a little sweet and tart. It is dreamy. I'm not one to eat salad for dinner or enjoy salad very much.

 I try very hard. I would just rather a big bowl of carbs and cheese. This salad I ate for a whole week straight. All the ingredients, dressing included keep for for at least a week.

Pomegranate molasses might be hard to find. I hear Whole Foods sells it, but you can always make it too. I used this recipe.

The salad toppings are also very customizable. I bet raspberries or strawberries would make great substitution for the pomegranate seeds.

A nice blue cheese would work well here too, in place of the goat cheese. Walnuts or sunflower seeds would be tasty too, depending on what you have in your pantry.

xo,
April

Mixed Greens with Roasted Beets, Pomegranate Dressing and Goat Cheese
Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients:
for dressing:
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon red cooking wine
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
Salt
Pepper

for salad:
Spring mix
6 to 8 small beets, roasted, peeled and cut into bite sized pieces
Goat cheese, crumbled
Pumpkin seeds
Pomegranate seeds

Instructions:
roasted beets:
Preheat the oven to 400F. Wrap beets in tin foil, in a single layer (you may need to make two tin foil packages). Roast the beets for 40 to 60 minutes or until fork tender. Let the beets cool until able to handle and then peel.
for dressing:
Combine all the ingredients in a medium mason jar and shake to combine. Dressing will keep for up to a week in the refrigerator
for the salad:
In a large bowl, combine the greens, beets and desired amount of dressing, tossing to coat.
Divide among plates, topping each with a sprinkle of pumpkin seeds, goat cheese and pomegranate seeds.

How to Create an Epic Cheese Board

Happy new year friends! I hope everyone had as wonderful of a holiday with family and friends as I did. I'm in charge of Christmas Eve every year.

I spent about a month yabbering about how excited I was for this day. How epic it is. The copious amounts of cheese to be consumed. It is my favorite.

This was the most epic of cheese boards ever. A cheese board the size of my kitchen table to feed 9 hungry beasts! There were no sad bellies on this day. Not a single one. Happy Santa bellies for all!

I'm surprised it took me this long to dedicate a whole post to cheese, being Cheese Club president and all. Not to mention I could eat this for dinner every day all day. Who doesn't love a cheese, meat and crackers for dinner? Crazy people. Today is the day people!

I break pretty much every "rule" there is to making a cheese board because I get too excited. I want ALL of the cheese. Plus, there aren't really any hard and fast rules for a cheeseboard - except to have fun!

If you are not as big of a nut about cheese or it is your first time, here are some general guidelines. You'll want a firm cheese, like a firm aged cheddar (always a crowd pleaser) or gouda; a hard cheese like a parmesan or asiago, that is a little salty and flaky when you cut into it; a soft goats cheese (my favorite!); a mild, creamy, not too salty blue cheese; finally, a triple cream brie or camabert, warmed slightly.

I usually go overboard an have a few cheeses from each of these categories, which is good and bad. Choices, variety, and options are never bad. On the other hand, with too many choices you get a bit lost in the land of cheese, everything blending together with no clear favorite.

This year I even included two cheese balls! A cheddar one and a goat cheese one. No recipe to share unfortunately, but excellent contribution to any cheese board. I will be experimenting with them in the near future.

The perfect cheese board doesn't end with cheese. Accoutrements are a must, such as your favorite local jams and jellies. I always include fig jam.

Honey is a must too and if you can find a honey comb, buy it. It is amazing. It is sweet, semi-soft, crystalized, crunchy magic in your mouth. Honey goes great with things like goat cheese or blue cheese.

Pickled, briny things are a must too. Lots of olives if you are me. Love me some olives! I usually go to Whole Foods or the Co-op and pick from the olive bar: garlic-stuffed, Herbes de Provence, kalamata etc.

This year I found some pickled ramps and fermented brussel sprouts from Underground Butcher to change things up a little.

I always include a few types of meat as well. The men in my life love themselves some meat. Prosciutto is a must. A lot of prosciutto, which I get from Fraboni's. Then I usually go to Underground Butcher and pick out a two cured meats to thinly slice along side the prosciutto.

If you have never been to Underground Butcher, check it out. They have a lot of fun and creative sausages, in addition to a lovely meat case.

There also needs to be a variety of crackers and bread like vessels for your cheese, honey and jam. Finally, some grapes are always a delicious and beautiful addition to round out the cheese board. A variety of nuts are also a welcome addition, for those snackers out there who need a break from the cheese.

Below I've included all the information I just discussed, with fewer words and random thoughts, along with specific cheeses I love. Remember to have fun with it, these are just guidelines, make it your own.

Before we get to that might I suggest if you have not made plans for NYE, to invite all your friends over, with the small task of bringing their favorite meat or cheese over and ring in the new year with a belly full of cheese! You provide the accoutrements and maybe a bottle or two of bubbly and no regrets.

Cheers,
April

Cheese Board Guidelines:

Aged cheese: aged cheddar or gouda; two of my favorites are Hook's 10 year cheddar or Marieke's aged gouda
Firm cheese: Asiago, Parmesan or Satori Bellavitano Merlot, Raspberry or Cognac or any other wine washed Parmesan
Blue cheese: Any creamy, mild blue cheese or Gorgonzola, or my favorite Hook's Little Boy Blue
Chevre or goat cheese: Cypress Grove Humbolt Fog or a truffled soft goat.
Semi-soft cheese: brie, camabert or St. Andre

Breads: baguette, crostini, water crackers, hard breadsticks, whole wheat crackers, fruit and nut crackers, and little toasts

Charcuterie: thinly sliced prosciutto, hard salami, cured meats, pepperoni

Jams and jellies: bacon jam, fig jam, fruit jams/jellies/perseveres (Quince and Apple, my favorite from WI), honeycomb or honey

Fruit and nuts: marcona almonds, black pepper almonds, corn nuts, dried apricots, fresh or dried figs, grapes, strawberries, raspberries, fresh or dried pears

Salty and briny snacks: olive medley, pickled vegetables, cornichons, mustard

Baked Blintz

Just one more week until Thanksgiving is here!  Are you excited for the holiday season to officially be in full swing or what?!  While lunch or dinner are always the star of the show on Turkey Day, you can't let the family starve in the morning either.  Sweet Potato Hash with Caramelized Onions, Chorizo and Eggs or a French Toast Bake are great options to serve, as is this Baked Blintz!

Baked blintz is actually part of my family's Christmas Day tradition.  Every year on Christmas morning we would always go to my grandparent's house for brunch after opening our presents from Santa.  Baked blintz was always sure to be part of the spread on the table along with all other sorts of brunchy goodies.

Now, you may have never heard of blintz and have no idea what it is.  Traditionally, it is a type of thin pancake that you put a filling in and roll up, similar to a crepe.

To simplify the recipe for serving to a crowd it can also be easily converted to a dish bake.  A layer of the batter is spread on the bottom of a baking dish, coated with a cottage cheese mixture for the filling, and then topped of with another layer of that batter.  It ends up as a sort of egg souffle.  Serve with a side of sour cream and fruit preserves to lather on top as you please.

There's actually only three eggs in the dish so it's neither super eggy nor super cheesy since cottage cheese doesn't have an overwhelming amount of flavor.  The sour cream and fruit preserve toppings can really direct the flavor of the dish.  It's not bland in and of itself, I've enjoyed it plain plenty of times, the toppings just give it a flavor boost.  It's very similar to pancakes where they can still taste great plain, but when you load them up with chocolate chips and berries it just takes them to a new level!

If you've never had baked blintz before and you're looking for something new to try, I definitely suggest you give it a shot.  It's pretty simple and straightforward to prepare and can easily be doubled to make a larger batch.  Just a warning that if you aren't able to spread the top layer of batter all the way to the edges, it may lift up and curl a bit (as you can see it did in my pictures) but don't worry, it still tastes just as good!

Enjoy!
Kelsey

Ingredients:

Batter

• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cup milk (skim or 2%)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 cup flour

Filling

• 1 lb (16 oz) cottage cheese, creamed
• 2 tablespoons softened butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon sour cream
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Fruit preserves or fresh berries and sour cream for topping.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9x9 (or similar sized) baking dish.
2. To prepare batter, in a medium bowl mix butter and sugar.  Beat in eggs.  Blend in milk.  Add baking powder and flour and mix until combined.  Set aside.
3. To prepare filling, in a medium bowl mix creamed cottage cheese and butter.  Beat in egg.  Mix in sour cream and salt.
4. Spread half of batter in prepared baking dish.  Add all the filling.  Cover with other half of the batter.
5. Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until golden brown.
6. Serve with fruit preserves or fresh berries and sour cream.

Jalapeño Beer Brat Macaroni and Cheese

To wrap up out football theme, I have some macaroni and cheese with all the quintessential Wisconsin fixings mixed into it. 

I made this at my boyfriend’s house. Big mistake. The most useful thing he had was a grill. Real bachelor kitchen. I should have known. It works for him apparently but it almost caused me a nervous breakdown. Now by no means do I have a ton of fancy pots and pans or equipment, but I do have some. Most of it is hand me downs. I might have overreacted to not having the things I’m used to cooking with. That should not be a surprise to anyone though. Cooking in a new place is stressful, but totally doable and you don’t need anything fancy to make macaroni and cheese from scratch.

The stuff in the blue box or Annie’s macaroni and cheese is wonderful, but you just can’t beat homemade macaroni and cheese. I think it is intimidating for most people, but even a sparsely equipped bachelor pad kitchen has the equipment to make it: medium sized saucepan, large pot to boil noodles and a baking dish.

I grilled the brats, but you could totally throw them in the oven or on the stove top, in a pan. If you grill the brats, don’t be like me and spend 6 minutes futzing around trying to take pictures.  The charcoal grill will get to hot with all that air and then everything will go up in flames and your brats will be split open and be flame cooked in 4 minutes.  Lesson learned.

It is all pretty straightforward. If you have never made a roux (butter and flour), don’t be scared. Keep and eye on it and stir constantly. This is what will thicken your cheese sauce. Once it is a light nutty brown, pour in your beer slowly and then the milk. This avoids clumps. Bring this mixture almost to a boil, which means for me where there are tons of tiny bubbles all around the edge of the pan. Add the cheese. Add the brats and peppers.

You’re going to probably look at this sauce and freak out like I did, thinking it is way to runny and that there is way too much of it. I know there can never be too much cheese, but proportions and balance are key to a solid mac. I know I freaked out, but it came out of the oven perfectly, with just the right amount of spice, which will depend on the heat of your jalapeños. 

It was even better the next day for lunch! I didn’t try it but I bet this would work great to make the day before, refrigerate and reheat in the oven at your friend’s house or before your own football party. Make it for any party really, it is delicious and oh-so very Wisconsin. I promise. 

cheers,

April

 

Ingredients:
for topping:
2 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup cheddar cheese, grated
1/4 cup gruyere or fontina cheese, grated
1 jalapeno, grilled, seeded and chopped

for macaroni & cheese:
1 lb. sharp cheddar cheese, grated
5 ounce Gruyere cheese, grated

1 jalapenos, grilled, seeded, chopped
1 poblano pepper, grilled, seeded, sliced into quarter inch pieces
4 brats, grilled (I used D&G Sausage Shop bacon and jalapeno brats)
1 lb pasta (such as cavatapi, fusulli or macaroni) cooked to al dente
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 cup amber or pilsner beer
1 cup heavy cream
2 1/2 cups whole milk

Instructions:
grilling:
Start by heating your grill to medium heat. Place brats, two jalapenos and poblano pepper on the grill. Cook the peppers for 2 to 5 minutes, or until lightly charred. Cook the brats, turning, for 6 to 8 minutes. 

Topping:
Preheat oven to 400F, with rack in middle. Combine the butter, panko bread crumbs, cheddar, Gruyere and one jalapeno pepper, in a bowl, until well combined. Set aside for later.

Macaroni and Sauce

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Once butter has melted whisk in the flour, continue whisking for 3 minutes, until the mixture is a light golden color and thick, then slowly whisk in the beer and milk.

Increase the heat to medium and bring sauce to a low boil, whisking constantly (this takes about 8 minutes). Reduce heat and simmer for 4 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Stir in cheeses, until smooth. Add in the remaining jalapeno, poblano and brats. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook the pasta in boiling water until al dente, 8 to 10 minutes (a few minutes shy of done). Drain pasta in a colander. Combine the noodles and cheese sauce, until evenly coated. Transfer to a 9 x 12 baking dish, sprinkling topping over the pasta evenly.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, until topping is golden.

BLT Grilled Cheese Sandwich

After April's Warm Tomato, Arugula and Bacon Panzanella Salad and Brittany's Caprese Pasta, Tomato Month continues with my take on the theme, a BLT Grilled Cheese Sandwich!

I'm going to start out by being straightforward with everyone, I know I'm calling this a BLT sandwich but I' didn't put any lettuce on it.  Leafy green lettuce and a hot skillet just don't go together too well so I chose to replace it with a different green food and that's where the avocado steps in.  Because the BLT was ultimately the inspiration for this sandwich I chose to keep it in the name, and because BAT just doesn't have the same ring to it.

The tomatoes I used in these sandwiches are fresh picked from my garden this past weekend.  It just feels so rewarding to be able to eat something that you have been taking care of and growing.  The tomatoes add a nice, fresh juiciness, and the avocado a gentle softness that helps balance out the crunch of the bacon and grilled bread.  We were really happy with how this sandwich turned out and I'm already thinking about how I'll be making it again accompanied by tomato soup once the weather cools off.

Enjoy!
Kelsey

Makes 2 sandwiches.

Ingredients:

• 4 slices of sourdough bread
• 6 pieces of turkey bacon, cooked
• 4 slices sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 large tomato, cut in 4 slices
• 1 avocado, mashed
• Butter

Directions:

1. Butter the outsides of two slices of bread.
2. Begin layering ingredients evenly on each slice, starting with one slice of cheese, then spread mashed avocado, place bacon strips and tomato slices, finally topping with another slice of cheese.
3. Butter the outside of last two slices of bread and top the sandwiches.
4. In a skillet preheated over medium heat, grill sandwiches for about 5 minutes on each side, or until cheese is melted.  If bread begins to burn before cheese is melted, lower heat.

Two Years Ago: Peach Almond Galette

Baked Brie with Strawberries, Almonds and Balsamic Vinegar

Strawberry month continues! I have not been able to keep my mind off of strawberries. Its been all strawberry this strawberry that all up in my noggin lately.

I'm working on a frozen treat involving strawberries, but it needs a bit more work. Joy the Baker is having a "Baking Boot Camp" and I made this triple berry cinnamon swirl bread. Hopefully I can tweak some of the things I've been working on and share them with you all!

I want to roast all the strawberries there ever were and devour them. If you've never tried roasting fruit, you should. No pressure, but really you should. I also just ordered a ice cream maker. I'm giddy about it. Maybe there will be a roasted strawberry ice cream situation in the future. At the very least there will be buckets of ice cream in my future.

Now for the real strawberry situation at hand, strawberries and cheese. This is a pretty simple, easy and straightforward gooey, salty, tangy and cheesy situation. My first go around at making this resulted in spilled cheese, which is better than spilled milk. Promise. You can still eat spilled cheese.

I tweaked a few things to prevent a spilled cheese situation from happening again. I went for less liquid for the strawberries and created a balsamic glaze instead.

As I tend to do, there is not much added sugar to the strawberries. I like the tartness. The exposed top makes this almost a cross between a gallette and traditional baked brie. Leaving the opening at the top allows the strawberries to become sort of like roasted strawberries - jammy, melty and tart.

The balsamic adds a nice sharp tang on top, while the toasted almonds add a crunch. The pepper is not at the forefront here, but I do think it adds a little something. You could always add more pepper, if you wanted a real peppery kick.

You won't want to drizzle all of the balsamic glaze over the baked brie all at once, but reserve some for you and your friends to drizzle on as much or little as they want. I won't judge though if you just eat this all by yourself. I begrudgingly shared with my father because well he is my father.

Cheers,
April 

Ingredients:
For the brie: 
8oz strawberries, sliced into quarters
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted

For the balsamic glaze:
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons honey
Freshly ground black pepper

Egg wash:
1 large egg, beaten in a small bowl, with a splash of water

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set it aside.
2. Combine strawberries, balsamic vinegar, honey, flour and black pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
3. Slice the rind off of the top of the brie and set aside.
4. Lightly flour your surface with flour and roll out the thawed puff pastry to a 12" by 12" (being a little shy of 12" is better than being to wide/thin). Trim off the corners to make a circle/oval (using a 10" plate is a useful guide, but you want your circle to be slightly larger than 10").
5. Place the brie in the center of the dough. Drain the strawberries, reserving the juice for later. Add the strawberries on top of the brie (it may seem like they won't all fit and if a few fall along the sides of the brie, that is okay).
6. Fold the edges of the dough over in small sections, overlapping as you go. Brush it all over with egg wash.
7. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown. Allow the baked brie to cool for 10 minutes. Place slivered almonds on tin foil and place in oven, until golden and nutty, about 3 to 5 minutes.
8. While the brie is cooling, lets make the balsamic glaze. To a small saucepan, set over medium heat, mix together the reserved strawberry juice, honey, balsamic vinegar and pepper. Simmer for 3-6 minutes, until slightly thickened and sweet. Turn off the heat and drizzle a little over the baked brie. Garnish with a few slivered almonds; serve with remainder of almonds, glaze and crackers. 

Two years ago: Strawberry Shortcake, Chocolate Brownie Cookies

Broccoli Cheddar Grilled Cheese

I've been inactively watching nature shows on PBS for the past hour or three while putzing around on the Internet and editing these here photos. Not a lot has been learned, but I have noticed that the music has a very ominous almost spooky thing going on. The scientists and narrator's voices also have a similar vibe happening. Why is this? Has anyone else noticed this?

Maybe it is time for me to change the channel. They must be going for that feel. After all, science can have a sort of awesome and ominous quality to it. Right? Enough of my ramblings about the production qualities of PBS nature shows and more about grilled cheese.

April is grilled cheese month and quite possibly the best month EVER. I don't care if it rains a lot. It is named after me and involves warm cheese between delicious carbs. Enough said.

Broccoli cheddar soup is up there on my favorite soups list. Roasted broccoli is also like vegetable candy for me. It gets all crunchy and roasty on the outside. You can sometimes find me on a wild Friday night drinking wine, watching trashy TV and shoveling a whole head or two of roasted broccoli in my face. You should try it sometime. I live a wild life. No big deal.

I roast extra broccoli and grate extra cheese in anticipation of snacking while I make my sammie. You should do the same. Snacking is inevitable. The addition of the Havarti adds a good melty and creamy quality to the sandwich, mimicking the creaminess of soup.  While the cheddar is obviously necessary to the sandwich and adds a good sharpness.

I have made this sandwich using both sourdough and whole wheat bread, they are equally as good. Go ahead and make your life a bit easier and use whatever bread you have on hand. Celebrate the end of the best month ever and grilled cheese month with this sammie; you won't regret it.

April
 
Ingredients:
Roasted broccoli:
1 head of broccoli
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Pepper

Sandwich:
1/4 cup roasted broccoli, chopped
2 slices sourdough or french bread
1/3 cup extra sharp cheddar, grated
1/4 cup Havarti, grated
Onion powder
Garlic powder
Pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

Instructions:
Broccoli:
Preheat the oven to 425 degree Fahrenheit. Cut the broccoli florets into bite sized pieces. Toss the broccoli with the olive oil, generous pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Spread the florets evenly onto a baking sheet and roast for 20 minutes or until tender and beginning to brown slightly.

Sandwich assembly:
Spread 1/2 tablespoon of butter on both pieces of bread. Flip the slices over (the buttered sides are the ones that are going to hit the pan) and place half the grated cheddar on one piece of the bread. Add the chopped broccoli on top of the cheddar. Sprinkle a pinch of onion powder, garlic and generous pinch of pepper on top of the broccoli. Then add the Havarti, remainder of cheddar and final piece of bread.

Heat a heavy bottomed skillet over low heat. Carefully transfer the sandwich to the skillet and cook until the bread is toasty and golden on both sides and the cheese is gooey and melty. About 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and let sit for a few minutes before enjoying.

Spicy Turkey Lasagna

I just recently discovered HBO Go and Showtime Anytime. I can watch all of my favorite shows, any season, anytime I want. Obsessed. Naturally this discovery deserved a good marathon accompanied by a bottle of wine and food. Since I chose Sopranos, lasagna was the natural choice.

I'm not normally a huge fan of lasagna. There always seems to be a  unpleasantly dry and somewhat tasteless layer of ricotta, which is a big turn off. The noodles always seem to be off on their own, sliding around as you try to eat. Like the whole layered thing immediately falls apart when in hits your plate. Recently I had some lasagna at my favorite Italian place. There was none of that happening. Everything was all happily getting along, being delicious and moist.

Part of it may have been the homemade noodles and the way it was layered. The homemade noodles aren't necessary  but do make this dish. Everything else comes together really quickly, but the noodles take a little work. You'll get a good arm workout though. Can't complain about that. The noodles come out perfectly al dente. They aren't pre-cooked, cooking instead in the sauce and filling. Perfectly melded sauce and noodle situation.

If you have a pasta machine, go ahead and use that instead of a rolling pin. The difference with really be arm workout or not. The sheets also won't be as wide, but most of mine weren't anyways. Don't panic when your sheets aren't a perfect 9 x 13 rectangle. Just think rustic lasagna. Cut them up to fit appropriately.

I'm not sure what the "normal" way of layering lasagna is because I've never made it. The majority of recipes I looked at had layers of ricotta all by its lonesome. Easy solution was to not do that. It worked. No dry ricotta bits in this lasagna. Ricotta is sort of bland too, which doesn't help its situation. Mixing the ricotta with the mozzarella  Parmesan and basil, I like to think also made a big difference. All together it is a little piece of heaven.

Ingredients:
Homemade lasagna noodles:
2 1/4 cups flour
4 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1. In a food processor, combine the flour, eggs and salt. Pulse several times until the dough resembles medium crumbs (if the dough seems too moist, add a 1/4 cup flour).
2. Turn out the dough onto a clean, dry, flour-dusted work surface. Gather the dough together and knead it until it comes together and is smooth and elastic, about 3-5 minutes. Cover the dough with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let rest for at least 10 minutes or up to 2 hours. Remove from fridge 5-10 minutes before rolling out, into your desired form.

Sauce:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 pounds spicy Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
1 large onion, chopped
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon (generous) cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1 28-ounce and 1 14-ounce crushed tomatoes

Filling:
3/4 ounce package fresh basil leaves
1 15-ounce container plus 1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella cheese (about 6 ounces)
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 2 ounces)
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Topping:
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese (about 12 ounces)
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (about 3 ounces)

Instructions:
Sauce:

1. Heat oil in a heavy large pot over medium-high heat. Add sausage, onion, garlic, oregano and red pepper and saute until sausage is cooked through, mashing sausage into small pieces, about 10 minutes.
2. Add crushed tomatoes. Bring sauce to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 5 minutes to blend flavors. Season with salt and pepper.

Filling:

1. Using on/off turns, chop fresh basil leaves finely in a food processor. Add ricotta, mozzarella, Parmesan  egg, 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Using on/off turns, process filling until just blended and texture is still chunky.

Assembly:

1. To make the lasagna noodles, divide the dough into 3 equal balls. Using a rolling pin, flatten the ball out from the center to the outer edge. Keep rolling out the dough, rotating the dough one-quarter turn as you go. Flip the dough over once or twice and be sure to lightly flour the surface to prevent sticking. Continue rolling out the dough until it reaches a 1/16-inch thick, or until it becomes transparent enough to read through.
2. The sheets of pasta should be roughly large enough for a 13 x 9-inch baking dish, if not cut them to cover the whole area of the pan (it doesn't need to be pretty, mine wasn't).
3. Preheat the oven to 375F. Spread 1 1/4 cups sauce in 13 x 9-inch baking dish. Arrange one layer of noodles on sauce. Drop 1 1/2 cups cheese filling and 1 1/4 cups sauce over noodles, then spread evenly to cover. Repeat layering of sauce, filling and noodles 2 more times (3 layers of noodles). Top the final layer of sauce and filling with mozzarella and Parmesan. Spray large piece of foil with nonstick spray. Cover lasagna with foil, sprayed side down.
4. Bake lasagna 40 minutes. Carefully uncover. Increase oven temperature to 400F. Bake until noodles are tender, sauce bubbles thickly and edges of lasagna are golden and puffed, about 20 minutes. Transfer to work surface; let stand 15 minutes before serving.

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Truffle Mac & Cheese

I'm back! It has been a shamefully long time since I have posted on this here blog and a lot has happened in that time. My senioritis procrastination situation really came to bite me in the past two months of my absence. Despite my heightened procrastination, I made it through my last semester of college with flying colors. That is right, I'm a UW-Madison Alumni now, which is weird to think. It is true though, no big deal.

It is a new year and everyone is trying to hold onto those new year resolutions to eat healthy and get organized. Not me though. I shoot for moderation in my eating all year round. It has worked for me thus far, mostly. A good resolution would probably be to cut back on the procrastination, but it works for me. Did I mention this recipe came to be for Thanksgiving. So it is a few month late, but equally delicious. Case and point: procrastination works for me.

So for those of you looking to break your new years resolution, have already done so or don't make them, this recipe is for you. This bad boy mac & cheese has over a pound of cheese. Tons of whole milk. Although  a combination of whole milk and skim milk works too.

Instead of adding the truffle oil to the cheese sauce, I toss it with the pasta right after I drain it. The steamy hot pasta, cooked al dente, will soak up all that yummy flavor. Plus, there is already plenty of fat, dare I say grease, in the cheese sauce. No need to dump the truffle oil right into the sauce. Plus, I imagine the oil separating from the cheese mixture like water and oil, yuck.

There is more cheese in the topping, along with panko bread crumbs and truffle oil. Never tried panko bread crumbs? You should, they can be found in most grocery stores and make for a perfectly crunchy topping for any casserole. Beats store bough bread crumbs or grinding up your own.The end result is a decadent and elegant macaroni & cheese, with the addition of the truffle oil. It will impress your next dinner guests for sure, because truffles are always impressive.

xo
April

Ingredients:
Topping:
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted
2 cups panko bread crumbs
1 1/2 cups (4 oz) cheddar cheese, grated
3/4 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
1 teaspoon truffle oil

Macaroni and Sauce:
1 stick unsalted butter
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 1/2 cups whole milk
6 cups (1 lb) extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 cup (2 oz) Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
3/4 cup (3 oz) fontina cheese, grated
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoons truffle oil
1 pound elbow macaroni, twists or penne pasta

Instructions:
Topping:

1. Preheat oven to 400F, with rack in middle. Combine the butter, panko bread crumbs, truffle oil, cheddar and Parmigiano-Reggiano, in a bowl, until well combined.

Macaroni and Sauce

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Once butter has melted whisk in the flour, continue whisking for 3 minutes, until the mixture is a light golden color and thick, then whisk in the milk. 
2. Increase the heat and bring sauce to a boil, whisking constantly, about 6-8 minutes. Reduce heat and simmer for 4 minutes or until sauce has thickened. Stir in cheeses, until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Cook the pasta in boiling water until al dente (a few minutes shy of what you normally do). Drain macaroni a colander, placing the drain noodles in a large bowl. Toss the noodles with the truffle oil, until well coated. Combine the noodles and cheese sauce, until evenly coated. Transfer to a 9 x 12 baking dish, sprinkling topping over the pasta evenly. 
4. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until topping is golden.

Slightly adapted from Gourmet

Cheesy Jalapeño Stuffed Chicken

I'm back!  That's right, my last post was in May, can you even believe it!  I spent 8 weeks this summer in Europe studying abroad in Toledo, Spain and then doing a little backpacking as well with my fellow blogger Emily.  When I got back in mid-August who knows what happened because I had been wanting to cook and bake the entire time I was in gone.  For some reason it took until now to get things rolling again.  But here I am, finally back at it again and with this cheesy jalapeño stuffed chicken to get things started again.

Bear with me as I have downgraded my camera since my last post.  (My mom wanted hers back apparently.)  I'm thinking a new camera is going to be the main item on my Christmas list this year!  Not to mention I haven't really gotten this whole lighting and editing thing down yet.  My photography skills are a work in progress to say the least.

I hope you enjoy!  I served my chicken with roasted red potatoes, a simple vinaigrette salad, and a tall glass of milk to balance out the hotness from those jalapeños (I left the seeds in.)

Recipe adapted from Skinnytaste.

Ingredients

• 2 slices center cut bacon, cooked and crumbled
• 2 jalapeños (remove seeds if prefer more mild)
• 3 oz 1/3 less fat cream cheese (about 1/3 cup)
• 2 oz reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese (about 1/4 cup)
• 2 oz shredded pepperjack cheese (about 1/4 cup)
• 2 tablespoons green onion, chopped
• 6 skinless chicken breast cutlets, about 3 oz each
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs with italian seasoning
• 2 limes, juice of
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• salt and fresh pepper
• olive oil non-stick spray

Directions

1. Wash and dry chicken cutlets and season with salt and pepper.
2. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Lightly spray baking dish with non-stick spray.
3. In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, cheeses, green onion, jalapeños and bacon crumbles.
4. Lay out chicken cutlets and spread an equal amount of cheese mixture on each.  Roll each cutlet and secure ends with toothpicks.
5. Combine olive oil and lime juice in a small bowl.  Place bread crumbs in another.
6. Dip chicken in liquid mixture and then in bread crumbs.  Set seam-down in baking dish.
7. Lightly spray top of chicken with olive oil spray.
8. Cook for about 25 minutes and serve.

Tomato Avocado Feta Salad

My excessive eating and fine wine drinking didn't stop when I got back from California. Why you ask? The sister-in-law came back a few days after us. She only got to stay for a few days before heading back to California and then to Texas. Then she finally gets to come home forever and ever or at least until she goes off to grad school. Probably somewhere cool like Harvard or Oxford. Smarty pants.

This salad was the perfect healthy cleansing meal I needed after over indulging for more consecutive days than I'm willing to admit. I exercised, a few times, in there. That counted for something. Anyways, my dad and my mom gave this rave reviews. They took part in the overindulging binge as well and thought it was only fair they had a bowl of this too.


I tested out two different dressings for this on my dad. One made with bacon fat and balsamic vinegar, a little BLT inspiration situation. Bacon grease and everything else associated with bacon, usually makes everything better. Surprisingly not the case here and not just because this was supposed to be a healthy meal.

The vinaigrette listed below, made for a much brighter salad. Made the tomatoes a little more sweet and paired with the avocado better. It was just all around better. The tomatoes became the star, which is the point. Save the bacon for your next BLT or don't. Sprinkling bacon pieces over the top of the salad was a nice option, giving it a bit more richness without having a greasy heavy bacon vinaigrette.

The best part of this salad has to be that you can make it as big or as little as you want. Make it fit your needs. Love avocado? Use two instead of one. Love feta? Use more of it. Crumble it instead of cube it, getting little bits in every bite. You get the idea. Its a awesome summer salad perfect for showing off summers tomatoes.

xo
April

Serves 2-4
Ingredients: 
Vinaigrette:

1 medium shallot, minced
1 garlic clove, minced

2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 1/2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup plus 1 1/2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Salad:
3 large heirloom tomatoes, cubed
1 avocado, cubed
4 ounces feta cheese, cubed
2 slices bacon, cut 1/4-inch pieces, cooked crispy (optional)

Instructions:

1. For vinaigrette: combine all the ingredients for the in a bowl, whisking until the mixture emulsifies.
2. In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, avocado and feta. Pour some vinaigrette over the salad, gently tossing. Serve, dressing with more vinaigrette to taste.