Banana Nut Chocolate Chip Muffins

Posted on March 23, 2010 by Veronica

OK, I’m just going to get this off my chest. I’m a wuss. A wimp. And I’m not afraid to admit it (my strategy is to point out my shortcomings to others before they beat me to it!). My friend, Pia, posts so many gorgeous ethnic dishes that I would love to serve at my own table, but do I make any of the recipes she posts? Of course not–I’m either too lazy or too intimidated (probably both) to break out of my comfort zone enough to make my own Kimchi (which my hubby would much appreciate) or even something as American as General Tso’s Chicken (another of Dennis’ favorites) . But yesterday she posted a recipe for Banana Nut Chocolate Chip Muffins and guess what I did? That’s right, I made them immediately. These babies were exactly the kind of thing I love whipping up, but they offer no challenge. If the muffins weren’t so delicious, I’d be disgusted with myself.

Once again, I’m promising myself that I will, I WILL, make something from her blog that is not American and is not a dessert. And there is plenty to choose from. In the meantime, however, lets talk about these muffins.

They are soft & moist. So moist. They are flavorful–the banana complimented by chocolate and nuts. They are irresistable, especially when they’re still warm and the chocolate is all melty. Hold on, I think I need to grab another one while they’re still hot…

Banana Nut Chocolate Chip Muffins
adapted from Inato lang Filipino Cuisine and More

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 large eggs
1 cup ripe mashed banana (about 4 bananas)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup pecans, finely chopped
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F and line 12 muffin cups (you might need 14 as I did) with paper liners or grease them well. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda together. In another bowl, whisk the eggs and stir in the remaining ingredients one by one, including the nuts and chocolate chips (reserve a couple tablespoons of both if you want to sprinkle them over the top like I did). Using an ice cream scoop with a lever, fill muffin cups about 2/3 full and sprinkle nuts and chocolate chips over the center of each muffin (they will spread as the muffins rise).

Bake for 8 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 and continue baking for another 6-10 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the muffins sit in the pans for a few minutes before removing them to wire racks to cool.

Tip: The burst of heat in the initial high temperature helps dome the muffins.

Veronica’s Notes: I used bananas that I froze several months ago, just as I always do with anything calling for mashed banana. I constantly replenish my stock of frozen bananas because I like to have extra-ripe bananas at the ready–you never know when you’ll have a hankering for banana bread or cupcakes! I have a whole post devoted to the subject of over-ripe bananas and freezing them and you can find it here.

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Posted in Bread, Breakfast and tagged banana nut chocolate chip muffins. Bookmark the permalink.

Best Made Plans & 10 Dozen Cupcakes

Posted on March 21, 2010 by Veronica

After twenty-nine years of living with myself, I have come to realize that I’m a girl who likes a plan. I make plans and I keep them, if possible, and I get upset if anyone messes with my plans. For example, if my Mom invites us to dinner at 5, I, rather foolishly at this point, plan to be eating dinner at 5. Usually we eat 1-2 hours later than the appointed time because Mom is only halfway through her five-hour bath and my sisters and I have to do the cooking. Thus, I’m often upset when attending a dinner at my parents’ house.

Well, a couple weeks ago I learned that an old friend from high-school was coming to town for spring break and I invited her to come over to dinner on the 15th. She agreed and also put in an order for a chocolate peanut butter cake for her brother-in-law’s birthday. So I planned to get the house clean over the next couple weeks (including things like dusting and cleaning the mirrors, which gets done less than monthly if I’m being honest), make our dinner the night before so that I could pop it in the oven right after I got off work on Monday and it would be ready exactly when she showed up. I had a plan, and it was good.

Then another friend asked me if I could keep her dog over the same weekend that I had planned to be cleaning, making a cake and making a dinner. This messed with my plan but it wasn’t a big deal so I readily agreed.

Then my little sister asked me if I could keep my 4-year-old nephew, Owen, on Saturday because she had to work and her husband would be busy moving their stuff into their new house. OK, this was a bigger deal but if I got the grocery shopping done on Friday night after work and managed to get the house clean by the weekend, I could probably get the cake & dinner made on Sunday before the morning and evening Church services, which would leave my Saturday free to frolic with my nephew. I could handle it but was starting to get edgy.

Then, on Thursday, another friend asked if she could leave her dog with me on Saturday since she was unexpectedly scheduled for overtime. This dog is a digger and our house would be harder to keep clean with him and his muddy paws around, but she always keeps our dog when we need her to so I couldn’t refuse. Besides, I was already keeping one dog, so why not two?

Then things got serious. And bad. One of my dearest friends called me to let me know she was coming to town because her mother was brain-dead, on life-support, and they were going to have to pull the plug. She was coming home to say good-bye to her Mother. This made all my stress over getting the house clean seem petty and my heart just broke for her. But still, the part of me that likes plans was unnerved. I wanted to see my friend and comfort her but how could I fit it all in?

I found out through an update on her sister’s Facebook page that they were in need of food and immediately responded, letting her know I could make at least one meal for them. I would just double the enchilada recipe I was going to make for the other friend. Then Jaci called me and made a tearful request for me to supply the desserts for the dinner after her mother’s funeral. I said yes, of course. I would have done anything I could to help and if cupcakes eased her burden or lifted her spirits in the slightest, I was willing to make enough of them for all the guests, which she estimated wouldn’t be more than 100.

Just one problem. Due to the timing of everything, I would have to make the cupcakes Saturday. And Saturday was the day I would have two dogs (three, counting my own) and a small boy running through the house, commanding most of my attention.

Like I said, I like a plan, and changing my plan five times over the course of several days very close to the span of time it was going to play out…stressed me out. I hate to admit that since it makes me sound small and petty & ridiculous in light of the enormity of my friend’s trauma and grief, but it’s the truth, even if I don’t like it. I also really don’t like cramming that many things into a weekend but it couldn’t be helped so I sucked it up and asked my husband to help because I knew I wouldn’t be able to do everything by myself. And, Godsend that he is, he did.

On Saturday, I took my nephew shopping for a few baking supplies (we also somehow ended up with a puzzle and some plastic chicks filled with Play-Doh) and he “helped” me with the first batch of cupcakes. Helped as in poured batter all over the floor.

Owen with his cupcake creation: banana with cream cheese frosting and FOUR WHOLE STRAWBERRIES on top! I was so tickled watching him cram all those strawberries on there. If you look closely, you can see the back of my Jessie's head looking out the window--probably at her two friends who just flew out the doggie door!

Although he was absolutely delightful and adorable, I couldn’t take the pressure of trying to bake and watch/entertain him at the same time. Dennis swooped in like an angel and played games with him indoors and out and then took him to a McDonald’s PlayPlace for TWO WHOLE HOURS and I not only got 120+ cupcakes made, I also had time to bake and freeze the cake layers for the chocolate peanut butter cake.

Phew.

I was able to get the cake & copious amounts of enchiladas made on Sunday afternoon, almost in time to meet Jaci for dinner at 7:00. Yes, I was late, which usually would have upset me, but I let myself get away with it this time. It was so good to see her, even under the circumstances, and I think the hugs and chatting face-to-face did us both some good since we’ve only seen each other twice since her family moved several years ago. There were wet eyes but no shed tears–we were too happy to be with our friends. Since the bulk of my to-do list was checked off and I could enjoy my time there with her, it turned out to be a therapeutic evening for both of us.

Dennis, me, Jaci, Everett & Danielle at Il Vicino 3-14-10

Needless to say, I didn’t get to the dusting or window-washing like I had planned,but by the time Heather came over for dinner on Monday, I was too relieved and happy to see her, too happy to eat my favorite enchiladas with green rice, to care. I love it when a plan comes together.

True story--I took like 20 pictures of my food during dinner and forgot to take any with Heather so after she left, I called her up with the bribe of cookies to come back just for this photo! Who takes pictures of their food and not their friends?!

OK, so how about those recipes for the the cupcakes? If you made it this far into the blog, I’m sure you’ve worked up an appetite and you deserve a treat!

For starters, feast your eyes on this:

The first two dozen were banana cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, sprinkled with black walnuts. I’ve posted that recipe before and you can find it here.

The third dozen was Turtle Brownie Cups, which I pretty much made up on the spot out of desperation. Come to think of it, these are all my own recipes (some inspired by forgotten recipes found online & in mags during the past several years) except for the Brownie Cakes. I hardly ever post any of my own recipes, and never so many at once. I hope you like them!

TURTLE BROWNIE CUPS

1 fudge brownie mix
1 stick melted butter
2 eggs
1/4 cup water
1 cup dulce de leche
heavy cream, as needed
24 pecan halves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and put paper liners in a 12-cup muffin pan. Now this part is important: Spray lightly with oil. I forgot to, maybe I was distracted (you think?), and the brownies got really stuck to the liners. Yup, for future reference, brownie batter sticks to paper liners if you don’t lightly spray them with cooking spray first. I knew this but my brain was operating on a reduced number of brain cells at that point (I think some of them were rocking back and forth in straight jackets inside the padded cell of my skull).

OK, whip up the brownie mix with the melted butter and water until well mixed. Scoop the batter into the muffin cups, filling them about half full. Put a teaspoon or two of cold or room temp dulce de leche on top of each brownie cup. Bake for 20 minutes or until they’re as done as you like ’em. I like ’em fudgy but my brain cells weren’t working right, as we’ve already established, and I baked them for half an hour so they were little overdone. Dang it, I hate it when I do that!

Take them out and let them cool completely, then use some dulce de leche to glue on two pecan halves to each top. You can either warm the remaining dulce de leche and drizzle it on over the tops of the brownie cups, or mix in a little cream to keep it from drying out if you won’t be serving them for over 24 hours. I did some crazy concoction with dulce de leche, a little caramel frosting, and a little cream.

*Veronica’s notes: You could also make these using wrapped caramels (but you’d want to unwrap them of course), placing one on top of the batter before baking and then melting some more to drizzle over the top. I just happened to have dulce de leche and used that.

The next dozen is a recipe I adapted from my friend, Kim D., and it’s a glorious combination of brownie and cheesecake in a cupcake liner. I did forget to spray these liners with oil as well, and I also overbaked them. But I have made them properly before and can attest that they are stupendous. I always use dark chocolate brownie mix with this recipe.

BROWNIE CAKES

Brownie layer:
1 box brownie mix
1/4 cup water
1 stick (1/2 cup) melted butter
1 egg

Cheesecake layer:
1 cup (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

ganache (optional–see note)

Preheat oven to 350 and line 16 muffin cups with liners. Spray them lightly with oil (!). In medium bowl, stir together brownie mix, water, oil and egg until well mixed. Spoon batter into cups, filling 1/2 – 2/3 full. Using mixer, beat cream cheese, sugar, egg and vanilla on medium for 1 minute. For each cupcake, place rounded tablespoon of mixture on top of brownie batter on one side (don’t spread or you will get an earthquake surface where the brownie makes the cheesecake layer crack when it rises). Bake 28-32 minutes. Makes 16 cupcakes.

*Veronica’s notes: If you want, you can make a ganache to drizzle over the tops. It isn’t necessary since the brownies add enough chocolate flavor, but it makes them pretty. Just follow the recipe for ganache in the “Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes” below.

The next two dozen I decided to use up the leftover whipped caramel ganache I had used on a birthday cake (frosting freezes well in an airtight container–I’ve kept it this way up to a year with no bad effects). That birthday cake, ironically enough, was for Jaci’s sister, so although Jaci couldn’t be here for Liz’s birthday to enjoy the cake she ordered for her, she was able to taste the frosting on cupcakes at her Mom’s funeral dinner. It sounds very bittersweet, but I hope that the cupcakes brought her a moment of small happiness on such a grief-stricken day in her life. I know just looking at a cupcake makes me happy–doesn’t it make you happy?

CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES WITH WHIPPED CARAMEL GANACHE

Easy Sour Cream Chocolate Cake:
1 dark chocolate fudge cake mix
1 cup sour cream
1 cup water
3 eggs

1/2 recipe Whipped Caramel Ganache
1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 and line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. Mix the cake ingredients on medium for two minutes, scraping sides of bowl. Fill muffin cups 1/2 – 2/3 full (I prefer half full so that the tops just barely dome above the liner but fill fuller for bigger cupcakes. If you have extra batter, you can just set it aside and use it to make more cupcakes once the first batch comes out. It works–I promise–I did it with two of my cupcake batters that day). Bake for 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of largest cupcake comes out clean. Let cool in pans for five minutes, then remove to cooling racks. Cool completely, then pipe or spread the whipped ganache over the tops and sprinkle some mini chocolate chips over the ganache, if desired.

Next I made my favorite cupcakes in terms of prettiness. My favorite as far as taste goes is the lemon one that will come last, but only because I have a fondness for this particular lemon frosting and because I’ve been yearning for spring and those seem to herald it. These cupcakes are based on my dark chocolate raspberry cake, but the recipe for the cake part is new–I just kind of threw it together and it I’m really proud of the result. These muffins weren’t just dark, they were BLACK but weren’t bitter in the slightest and hand a crumb so moist and tender, I couldn’t believe I was responsible for creating it. Forgive me my moment of self-pride, but I don’t often come up with my own recipes and when I do and they are this good, I get excited!

DARK CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY CUPCAKES

Cake:
1 dark chocolate fudge cake mix
½ c dutch process cocoa powder (Hershey’s Special Dark works)
¼ c granulated sugar
½ c oil
1 c sour cream
1 c water
3 eggs

Frosting:
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, softened
2 lbs powdered sugar
¼ c seedless raspberry preserves
2 T raspberry liqueur OR 3 t raspberry extract

Ganache:
¼ c heavy cream
4 oz semi-sweet chocolate

30-40 fresh raspberries (a half-pint will suffice)

Preheat oven to 350. Put paper liners in two 12-cup muffin tins & set aside.

Beat cake ingredients on low until moistened, then on medium speed for two minutes, scraping sides of bowl. Fill lined muffin tins almost to the top, or 2/3 full and save extra batter to make 3-4 more cupcakes once the first batch comes out of the oven. If you want smaller cupcakes and more of them, fill them 1/2 full and you can get 6-10 more cupcakes out of the second baking cycle. There will be enough frosting for all. Bake for 17-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of largest cupcake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Remove from oven and cool in tins for 5 minutes, then remove onto cooling rack to cool completely. If you have extra batter, put liners in another pan, fill, and bake them while the first batch is cooling.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. Cream the butter and cream cheese, then beat in the remaining ingredients. Pipe or spread over COOLED cupcakes.

Prepare the ganache: place the cream and chocolate in a double boiler over medium heat and stir until melted, shiny & smooth. Allow to cool to room temperature, I think it only took a few minutes b/c it won’t be very hot to begin with, then drizzle over cupcakes with a pastry bag or a spoon or fork. Place a fresh raspberry on top and refrigerate until ready to serve.

OK, now for my favorite! I actually prefer to put this frosting on white cupcakes but this time I put it on lemon cupcakes since I had a lemon cake mix in the cupboard. Just bake up your choice of cupcakes and top them with this frosting. If you want to get a little fancy, you can pipe a teaspoon or two of raspberry or strawberry preserves (or even lemon curd if you don’t mind a double or triple lemon shot-depending on what kind of cupcake you used) into the tops of the cooled cupcakes so they are filled!

ZESTY LEMON FROSTING

2 lemons
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 lb powdered sugar
milk as needed
Yellow food coloring (optional)

From lemons, grate the peel and squeeze ¼ cup juice. Cream the butter until smooth, then add the grated peel, lemon juice, sugar, and 2 tablespoons of milk. Beat until smooth & creamy, adding additional milk as necessary to reach your desired consistency. Increase speed to medium-high; beat until light and fluffy. If desired, beat in enough yellow food coloring or icing paste color to tint a pale yellow. As you can see from the picture, I didn’t tint the frosting b/c I wanted a contrast between the color of the cupcakes and the color of the frosting. When I use white cupcakes, I tint the frosting. I guess I think all one color is boring.

OK, that’s it, folks! Let me know if you try any of the cupcakes–I love feeback.

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Posted in Cake & Frosting and tagged banana cupcakes, brownie cakes, chocolate cupcakes, dark chocolate raspberry cupcakes, turtle brownie cups, whipped caramel ganache, zesty lemon frosting. Bookmark the permalink.

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

Posted on March 20, 2010 by Veronica

Although my confidence in baking is pretty high, I have very little confidence as a chef. (I’m sure that’s obvious from the amount of sweet vs. savory recipes I post!) Countless times, I have relied on this simple recipe, one I developed over time from another given to me by a friend, to fall back on when I wanted to serve something that wouldn’t disappoint. I can always count on it–it never fails me. Mother’s Day potluck? Bringing these enchiladas. Family reunion? Bringing these enchiladas. Friend coming from out-of-town? Serving these enchiladas. Providing food for the grief-stricken survivors of a lost loved one? It’s gonna be these enchiladas. Preacher and his wife coming to dinner? Definitely serving these enchiladas.

These aren’t just my favorite enchiladas, this are my favorite dish, period. It might not top your list of favorites, but I do know that everyone I serve them to really enjoys them as well. Dinner guests don’t always do the eye roll and moan that I usually do with the first bite, but they always give rave reviews.

Although I tend to think of anything that contains “cream of fill in the blank soup” as ghetto food and try to avoid it, I’ve tried leaving it out and subbing more sour cream but it really does taste best with the stupid soup.

Two tips to get the best flavor: shred your own cheese instead of buying pre-shredded and be sure to buy PACE brand picante sauce. Here’s why. Pre-shredded cheese is coated with some sort of junk* to keep it from clumping together in the bag, but it also inhibits the beautiful gooey melt we desire. It will melt, but not as well as cheese you shred yourself (see photo below of pre-shredded cheese-topped enchiladas compared to first photo for proof). I was also astonished to discover that shredding your own combination of cheddar and Monterrey Jack tastes ten times better than using the Mexican cheese blend. Strange, but true. As for the picante sauce, this is probably the only time I’ll ever insist on not going generic (I’m the Queen of Generic, FYI) but the flavor of the sauce really enhances the enchiladas and generic just really isn’t as good here. I don’t even know if it would be as good with some fancy-schmancy expensive stuff but since I haven’t tried it, I won’t forbid it. If you go for the fancy schmancy, let me know how it worked for you!

OK, enough talk. On your mark, get set, go make these enchiladas!

CREAMY CHICKEN ENCHILADAS
Makes 15 enchiladas

Printable recipe

2 cups cooked & shredded chicken breast meat
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 (7-oz) can chopped green chiles
4 cups shredded Mexican cheese blend OR 2 cups Monterrey Jack & 2 cups Cheddar, divided
1/2 cup Pace Picante Sauce (use original in your choice of heat)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt & Pepper to taste
15 flour tortillas (soft-taco size)
2 (10 oz) cans enchilada sauce (AKA red sauce)
Butter for pans and tortillas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13×9 and a 9×9 pan with butter and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine the chicken, onion, sour cream, soup, green chiles, 2 1/2 cups of the cheese (reserve the rest for the top), salsa, garlic, salt & pepper.

Heat the tortillas in stacks of six by wrapping them in a damp paper towel and microwaving for 50 seconds. Rub a stick of cold butter over one side of each tortilla while they’re hot, turn them over, and begin filling them. Use about 1/3 cup per tortilla. Place seam-side down in pans. Once assembled, pour the enchilada sauce evenly over them (I use a pastry brush to get it evenly spread), cover the pans with foil and bake in for 30 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle the cheese over the top and return to the oven for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and let sit for a few minutes before serving (they’re easier to move from pan to plate after sitting a little bit).

If you are making them in advance, assemble them in your pans but don’t put on the sauce. Keep in the fridge covered with plastic wrap. When ready to bake, cover them with sauce, swap the plastic wrap for foil and bake for 40 minutes, then uncover and top with cheese before returning it to the oven for an additional 10. These can definitely be frozen but since but I haven’t tried it yet, this is just my theory on how that should be done: after filling the pan with rolled enchiladas, go ahead and pour the sauce on top and sprinkle on the cheese. Cover and freeze. You could probably bake them from frozen, but you’d have to bake them at least an hour, covered, and an additional 10 uncovered. You could also defrost them in the fridge for a couple days before baking, then bake covered for 40 minutes and uncovered for 10.

Believe me, it tastes better than it looks!

*I learned this from Mel at My Kitchen Cafe, whose husband works at a cheese factory. Ever since she mentioned this in one of her blogs (can’t remember which), I’ve shredded my own cheese and haven’t looked back. It really is worth the extra minute or two it tacks onto the preparation. If you’ve never been to her blog–check it out and browse around. Hers is my favorite food blog and I make more dishes from it than any other. Family friendly, comfort, down-home cookin’ dishes is what she offers and that’s what I’m comfortable with & enjoy eating most.

*Veronica’s Note: I almost always serve these enchiladas with green rice, another tried-and-true recipe that I’ve been making longer than the enchiladas and it always gets as many compliments. If you want that recipe, click here.

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Posted in Main Dishes, Mexican, My Favorites. Bookmark the permalink.

Tres Leches Cake

Posted on March 16, 2010 by Veronica

See these three milks (tres leches)? Imagine them stirred up together and poured over a hot sponge cake that soaks up every drop until it is bursting with sweet milk, and then slathered with a light & fluffy white topping after being chilled. That’s this cake. And it’s fabulous.

My first and only Tres Leches Cake experience prior to making this one was taking a bite of one that was brought to a Church potluck dinner a decade ago. I believe it was made from a mix and there is no comparison between it and this one. The texture was too fine and the cake too moist to properly absorb all the liquid and flavor of the milks and it was almost a pile of mush on my plate. Not very appetizing.

If it wasn’t for my friend, Marina, who provides me with so many wonderful recipes, I never would have tried another. But she mentioned that she had a fabulous recipe for one and since I can’t resist a fabulous recipe, particularly one that comes from her, I asked if she would share it and happily for us, she did!

I made the cake for my husband to take to a Mexican-themed potluck at work, along with Chicken Enchilada Chili. They gobbled it up and Dennis came home with rave reviews. The story that tickled me most was about a co-worker who has been on a diet but decided to take a small piece. He was still standing next to the cake when he took his first bite and immediately cut himself a larger second piece before he even finished the first. I don’t blame him!

Just look at this milk-laden goodness. If you stare at it long enough, you can almost hear it whisper, “Eat me. You know you want to.”

I did nab a piece myself before sending it off with Dennis. What, don’t you take a piece for yourself before bringing cake to potlucks? You should–just tell anyone that asks that you did it for quality control purposes. Works for me. Anyway, see that piece below with the cherries on top, à la Pioneer Woman? I ate that sucker in a minute flat. Then I licked the plate.

I’m sending this recipe to Creative Sanyukta, the host for this week’s BSI–milk!

TRES LECHE CAKE

Cake:
6 large eggs, separated
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream Topping:
1 14-ounce can evaporated milk
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup heavy cream

Icing:
3 tablespoons water
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3 large egg whites

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease and flour a 13 x 9-inch baking dish and set aside.

In the bowl of a mixer, beat the egg whites on low speed until soft peaks form. (I’m impatient so I beat them on high speed.) Add the sugar gradually with the mixer running and beat to stiff peaks. Add the egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after the addition of each.

Sift together the flour and baking powder and add to the egg mixture, alternating with the milk. (Do this quickly so the batter does not lose volume.) Add the vanilla. Bake until golden & a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean, 35-40 minutes.

To make the cream topping:
Whisk together the evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream in a medium bowl. Remove the cake from the oven and while still warm, pour the cream mixture over it. Let sit and cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight.

To make the icing:
Once the cake is completely chilled, in a saucepan combine the water and sugar. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and stir to dissolve the sugar. Cook until the mixture reaches the soft ball stage, 235 to 240 degrees F. Remove from the heat. In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. While beating, add the hot syrup in a stream. Beat until all the syrup has been added, the mixture cools, and a glossy icing forms.

To assemble: Remove the cake from the refrigerator and spread the icing evenly across the top. Keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

recipe courtesy of Marina C.

*Veronica’s Note: This recipe is similar to Pioneer Woman’s recipe, but makes a larger cake (compare the ingredients, there’s larger quantities of most everything) and the method is easier–you don’t have to use more than one bowl. Also, instead of whipped cream on top, Marina’s calls for a light egg white frosting (you may have heard it called 7-minute frosting, but the method here is a little different) that is fat-free, and since the cake already contains three highly caloric milks, I thought it was heavy enough without adding any additional fat. It wasn’t a hard decision choosing Marina’s recipe over Ree’s (although I am a faithful PW fan), despite those drool-worthy pictures, and I don’t regret it.

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Posted in Cake & Frosting, Mexican and tagged tres leche cake, tres leches cake. Bookmark the permalink.

Black Gold Cookies

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Veronica

These cookies don’t need a long introduction. They are uber-chocolatey and sort of like a truffle in cookie form. My husband describes them like this, “Chocolate-chocolate chip with chocolate and added chocolate.” Yeah, that pretty much sums it up! They are so moist, soft, and melty on the inside, unlike any cookie I’ve ever had before. Definitely will win over any chocolate-lover!

Black Gold Cookies
From Death By Chocolate Cookies by Marcel Desaulniers

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces, divided
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla

Preheat the oven to 325°F and line 3 baking sheets with parchment.

In a sifter combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Sift onto a large piece of wax paper and set aside until needed.

Heat 1 inch of water in the bottom half of a double boiler over medium heat. With the heat on, place 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, the unsweetened chocolate, and butter in the top half of the double boiler. Use a rubber spatula to stir the chocolate and butter until completely melted and smooth, about 6 minutes. Transfer the melted chocolate mixture to a 1-quart bowl and set aside until needed.

Place the eggs, sugar and vanilla extract in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle. Beat on medium 4 minutes until soft. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl, then continue to beat on medium for 2 more minutes. Stop the mixer, then add the melted chocolate and beat on medium for 1 minute until incorporated. Scrape down the bowl. Add the sifted dry ingredients and the remaining 4 ounces semisweet chocolate and mix on low speed until just incorporated, about 30 seconds. Remove the bowl from the mixer and use a rubber spatula to finish mixing the dough until thoroughly combined.

Using a heaping tablespoon of dough for each cookie (approximately 3/4 oz.), portion 12 cookies, evenly spaced, onto each of the prepared baking sheets. Place the baking sheets on the top and center racks of the preheated oven and bake for 9 to 10 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to center about halfway through the baking time (at this time also turn each sheet 180°F.).

Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature on the baking sheets, about 30 minutes. Store the cooled cookies in a tightly sealed plastic container until ready to serve.

Makes 36 2 3/4-inch cookies.

Veronica’s Notes: I chose to melt 6 oz (half a bag) of semi-sweet chocolate chips with the unsweetened chocolate and then stirred in 4 oz of mini-chocolate chips into the batter at the end, b/c I found it easier than chopping chocolate.

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BSI Challenge: Caramelized Tofu Over Brussels Sprouts

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Veronica

Despite my affinity for vegan and vegetarian meals, I’ve never been a huge fan of tofu. There are, however, a few tofu dishes that I really love and this one holds the #1 spot. Heidi at 101 Cookbooks has such amazing vegetarian, whole food dishes, and everything I’ve tried from her website I’ve loved. Not surprisingly, my second favorite tofu dish is also from her blog, the Garam Masala Tofu Scramble (I prefer to make mine with leeks in place of the fennel).

This one is a wonderful balance of savory and sweet, with the tofu crispy on the outside and the sweet pecans adding nutty crunch. The slightly bitter edge of the brussels sprouts is offset by the brown sugar and garlic and the different flavors come together in complete harmony.

I’m submitting this recipe it to the lovely Sophia of Burp and Slurp for the BSI (Blogger Secret Ingredient) challenge (she chose brussels sprouts). Check the link if you’re interested in joining in the brussels sprouts fun!

(My apologies for the harsh picture–my eyes are watering just from looking at it a few seconds–but it’s the only one I have. It was one of the first food pictures I took and never took another after the first time I made the dish. I will update the pic as soon as I make it again.)

Caramelized Tofu
recipe from 101cookbooks.com

7 – 8 ounces extra-firm tofu cut into thin 1-inch segments (see photo)
a couple pinches of fine-grain sea salt
a couple splashes of olive or peanut oil
2 medium cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup pecans, toasted and chopped
3 tablespoons fine-grain natural cane sugar or brown sugar
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1/2 lb. brussels sprouts, washed and cut into 1/8-inch wide ribbons

Cook the tofu strips in large hot skillet (or pot) with a bit of salt and a splash of oil. Saute until slightly golden, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and pecans, and cook for another minute. Stir in sugar. Cook for another couple of minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro. Scrape the tofu out onto a plate and set aside while you cook the brussels sprouts.

In the same pan (no need to wash), add a touch more oil, another pinch of salt, and dial the heat up to medium-high. When the pan is nice and hot stir in the shredded brussels sprouts. Cook for 2 – 3 minutes, stirring a couple times (but not too often) until you get some golden bits, and the rest of the sprouts are bright and delicious.

Serves 2 – 3 as a main, 4 as a side

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Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

Posted on March 4, 2010 by Veronica

I’m not sure how the ritual started, but when I was nine and my sister, Danielle, was seven, we would wake up every morning at five to make buttermilk pancakes from scratch for Dad’s breakfast (he was the early riser since he had to be to work by seven). We were total “Daddy’s girls” and loved to do anything that pleased him, but we especially loved to make him buttermilk pancakes because we also got to reap the delicious rewards of our efforts.

Before Dad’s alarm went off, we’d tiptoe down the stairs and together we’d measure the ingredients for the pancakes into a big bowl and then carefully pour spoonfuls onto a special plug-in pancake griddle that we cooked eight small pancakes on at a time. While they cooked, we’d nibble on the edges and once the first ones were done, we nibbled on those. I loved those pancakes probably more than anything else I ate growing up because it was the closest thing to junk food that was regularly allowed to be produced in my Mom’s kitchen. A product with dairy, white flour and white sugar was unheard of in our house and it still kind of surprises me today that she allowed us to do it. Then again, she was probably just grateful that she wasn’t the one waking up at five to make breakfast! :)

By the time Dad came down from his bath in his mailman uniform, smelling like Old Spice, we had a big plate full of pancakes and coffee ready, and if we were really on the ball we’d have scrambled eggs cooked up too. I still can smell the combination of pancakes, butter, coffee and Old Spice surrounding me as we sat down with Dad and gleefully tore into the butter and syrup-laden pancakes, trying to keep our voices down while Mom and our little sister, Lacey, slept peacefully upstairs.

Eventually the thrill of eating those “forbidden fruit” pancakes wore off and was no longer enough of an incentive to get us out of bed before dawn. The daily ritual eventually diminished to once a week and then once a month, but it lasted for years. By the time I was in high school, pancakes were a special Sunday breakfast that we only indulged in a few times a year and I haven’t seen that old stained buttermilk pancakes recipe that we cut out from the back of a flour sack since I left home over a decade ago.

That recipe somehow got lost without me there to use it, however infrequently, and I was left slightly unsatisfied with the pancakes I’ve made since then. Well, the “Best Buttermilk Pancakes” were really good, but not fluffy like my favorite childhood pancakes. These pancakes are the closest thing I’ve had to those I made growing up since I’ve left home–wonderfully soft and fluffy with just a hint of sweetness.

Maybe it’s because I never had real maple syrup growing up (shocking, since Mom mainly stocked unrefined sugars such as honey and molasses–maybe real maple syrup was just not in our food budget), but I prefer these pancakes with Aunt Jemima. (They are pictured with real maple syrup, which is why it’s soaking in rather than sitting on the surface.)

Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

Printable recipe
Printable recipe with picture

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups well shaken buttermilk
2 large eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil (plus extra for skillet)

Mix dry ingredients together in medium bowl. Add all wet ingredients at once and stir just until combined. Do not over mix, batter will be slightly lumpy. Lightly coat skillet with oil. Heat to medium low. Drop 1/8 cup of batter onto heated skillet. Cook on first side until bubbles begin to form on surface, 2-3 minutes. Flip over and cook another 2-3 minutes until golden brown and centre springs back when lightly touched. Serve warm with maple syrup and butter. Makes 10-12 pancakes.

Recipe source: Radishes and Rhubarb

Most of the pictures taken of us growing up remain at my parents’ house, but I thought I’d include a few that I do have here.

Dad and I in 1980

Already a Daddy’s girl!

Danielle, Franciska (aka Lacey) and Me on the fold-out couch we slept on until we moved into a bigger house a few years later.

Danielle, me and Lacey at a baby shower. My Mom made the cake on the left. Danielle and I were a little younger than this when we started making the pancake breakfasts.

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Vegan Gluten-Free Mounds Cake

Posted on March 2, 2010 by Veronica

I made this cake the same day I made the chocolate peanut butter cake because the latter was for a friend’s birthday and I wanted to bring something that her son with food allergies could enjoy as well. It was so good, however, that we all had some (yes, on top of the chocolate peanut butter cake!) and she served the leftovers to her entire family later on. They all loved it, which makes me so proud because producing a palatable vegan and gluten-free cake was a challenge.

Dennis and I took a single piece home with us, which we regretted the next day when we split it and it was gone all too quickly. We both love Mounds candy bars and this cake really does capture that flavor. I would make this cake for any one, not just those with food allergies.

I’m submitting this cake to Sophia’s “You are What You Cook” challenge because I feel the recipe really defines me. I do not personally have food allergies, but I love the challenge of creating a palatable dish when there are obstacles to overcome (in this case, no dairy and strange flours!). I do commiserate with those who are vegan because they love animals, and I’m enthusiastic about recipes that are meat & dairy-free for that reason. This recipe is the love I have for baking, the heartache I feel for those who can’t enjoy the treats most of us do, my determination not to sacrifice flavor & texture due to the restrictions, and my triumph in creating something that made a ten-year-old boy give a huge grin after his first bite and declare, “This is awesome!”

If you do not have an allergy to gluten, you can substitute all-purpose flour and omit the xanthan gum, but there’s no need to change anything else, even if you aren’t vegan. The recipe is perfect the way it is!

Vegan Gluten-Free Mounds Cake

Really Wacky Cake
Wacky Cake was popular during the depression when eggs and butter were rationed and harder to come by. Taking this dairy and egg-free cake and making it gluten-free makes it really wacky!

3 c gluten-free all-purpose baking flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
1 t Xanthan Gum
2 c granulated sugar
1 t salt
2 t baking soda
½ c cocoa powder (I used Dutch processed for a deeper color & chocolate flavor)
¾ c vegetable oil or melted coconut oil
2 t vanilla extract
2 T distilled white vinegar
2 c cold water

Coconut Filling
2 T coconut oil
¾ c coconut milk
1 c granulated sugar
20 large vegan marshmallows
10 oz unsweetened coconut

Coconut Ganache
½ c coconut milk (not light)
8 oz Ghirardelli semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 9×13 pan with cooking spray and set aside. Sift all dry ingredients together into a large bowl. Make three wells and put the oil in one, the vanilla in another and the vinegar in the last. Pour water over it all and mix until well blended. Pour into prepared pan and bake 30-40 minutes (mine took 40) until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool on a wire rack.

Once the cake is cool or mostly cool, prepare the filling. Heat the coconut oil in a saucepan over medium heat until it melts, then add the coconut milk and sugar. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the marshmallows until dissolved. Stir in the coconut and spread over the cake. Allow to cool before preparing the ganache.

Place the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl and set aside. Heat the coconut milk until it bubbles around the edges and steam rises off the surface. Pour over the chocolate and allow to sit for several minutes. Stir until smooth and shiny—this will probably take two minutes. If necessary, place bowl over a small saucepan of simmering water & stir constantly to melt the chocolate completely.

Pour the ganache over the cake and spread to the edges. Allow to set for at least an hour before serving.

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Posted in Cake & Frosting, Vegetarian & Vegan and tagged gluten-free, mounds cake, vegan. Bookmark the permalink.

World’s Greatest Salmon (improved)

Posted on March 1, 2010 by Veronica

Yes, I know the title is a bold statement, but that is how much I love this salmon. I’m willing to admit there may be better recipes, but I honestly have never had better salmon, no many how many variations I try. This is my favorite and it may be presumptuous to call it “world’s greatest” simply because I love it, but this is my blog and I think it’s the best, so there! :)

This is actually the first recipe I ever posted, back when I was just a MySpace blogger. I actually started Veronica’s Cornucopia in the fall of ’09 but if you do much searching, you’ll see I have recipes dating back to June of 2008 because I copied all those I had on MySpace over to here when I started it. And this one was the very first. But I like it so, so much, and have improved it since the original post, so it merits an encore.

Enjoy!

World’s Greatest Salmon
adapted from my friend Rossie K’s recipe
Serves 6

6 (4-oz) salmon fillets
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup REAL maple syrup
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 green pepper, cut into strips
1 red pepper, cut into strips
1 yellow pepper, cut into strips
1 onion, sliced into rings
1/4 teaspoon cornstarch

Put the minced garlic, maple syrup and soy sauce in a gallon-size Ziploc bag, seal it, and shake it to combine. Add the filets and reseal, then place the bag in the fridge for at least two hours, turning halfway through.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and spray a 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray. Arrange the salmon filets in a single layer in the dish and pour about a tablespoon of marinade over each filet. Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until the fish flakes easily when pierced with a fork.

Meanwhile, heat the sesame and vegetable oil in a large skillet. Add the peppers and onion, stir, and pour the remaining marinade over everything. Saute on medium-high until the vegetables are tender and the sauce has reduced. If the sauce is too thin, add the cornstarch and cook another minute or two until it has thickened, adding additional cornstarch if necessary.

To serve, plate a salmon filet and spoon some of the vegetables and sauce over the top. Serve hot!

Veronica’s Notes: This recipe is best with skinless salmon filets. You can replace the maple syrup with honey if you don’t have any–I haven’t tried it this way because I like the maple version too well to change it, but Rossie made it that way and loved it. You can use any soy sauce you like, but I always use light soy sauce (in this case, the “light” is referring to reduced sodium) because even that has plenty of salt and makes a wonderfully flavored fish.

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Posted in Lighter Fare, Main Dishes, Meats, My Favorites and tagged garlic, maple syrup, recipe, salmon, soy sauce, world's greatest salmon. Bookmark the permalink.

Falafel Pita Pockets

Posted on February 23, 2010 by Veronica

It’s been several weeks since we had this meal but I swear, when I close my eyes, I can still smell and taste it. I love it when I find a vegetarian recipe that doesn’t rely on gobs of cheese to taste wonderful and this one really delivers in the flavor department without being high in fat. My mouth was watering while the falafel balls baked up and the smell of cumin laced with garlic and onion filled the air. I could scarcely wait to pop them in the pockets, douse them with the dill dressing and gobble them up. They are seriously delicious and the recipe is now saved in my permanent “Favorite Recipes” binder. I only put the recipes I know I’ll use again in it. Do you have one of those?

Falafel Pita Pockets with Dill-icious Yogurt Dip
recipe from Hungry Girl
Ingredients:

For Falafel Pockets
2 1/2 whole-wheat or high-fiber pitas
One 15-oz. can chickpeas, well-drained
1 onion, very finely chopped
1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3 tbsp. finely chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tbsp. chopped garlic
1 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 tbsp. ground cumin
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. paprika, or more to taste
black pepper, to taste
Two 2-second sprays olive oil nonstick spray

For Dip
6 oz. plain fat-free yogurt
1 Persian cucumber, peeled and chopped (or another small cucumber, peeled, deseeded, and chopped)
1 tsp. dried dill
3/4 tsp. crushed garlic
1/4 tsp. salt
black pepper, to taste

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Place all ingredients for falafel (except for the pitas and nonstick spray) in a large bowl, and give them a good stir. Using a potato masher, mash well. Mixture should remain slightly chunky, not smooth.

Spray a baking sheet thoroughly with a 2-second spray of olive oil nonstick spray.

One at a time, take spoonfuls of mixture in your hands and form 15 balls, each about the size of a ping-pong ball, and gently place them on the baking sheet. Spray the top of each ball with olive oil nonstick spray, for a total of about a 2-second spray.

Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine all ingredients for dip in a blender or food processor, and pulse until just blended. Season to taste with black pepper and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Remove baking sheet from the oven, and carefully turn each ball over, gently reshaping if the bottoms have flattened. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 – 15 minutes, until golden brown and slightly crispy. Allow to cool and set for at least 5 minutes.

Cut the whole pitas into halves, toast or warm all pita halves slightly, and then fill each with three falafel balls and 3 tbsp. dip. Enjoy!

MAKES 5 SERVINGS
PER SERVING (1 pita pocket with 3 falafel balls and 3 tbsp. dip): 198 calories, 2.25g fat, 863mg sodium, 37g carbs, 8.5g fiber, 5g sugars, 10g protein — POINTS® value 3*

HG Alternative! Enjoy your falafel ‘n dip pita-free (wrapped in lettuce, over a salad, or straight from a plate!). A pita-less serving has 139 calories, 2g fat, 718mg sodium, 24g carbs, 6g fiber, 5g sugars, and 7.5g protein (POINTS® value 2*). Woohoo!