Whole Wheat Pancakes with Pomegranate Syrup

I love pancakes for breakfast!  This recipe is perfect for 2 hungry people.  Works great for my husband and I.  I love the whole wheat flour as well.  It just makes me feel better eating pancakes.  Earlier last week I bought a pomegranate - they are perfect this time of the year!  This one was pretty bitter though and not edible just plain.  So I did what I usually do with fruit that's not awesome - I made a reduction with some much needed sugar.  Together, it turned out to be a great breakfast.

Whole Wheat Pancakes

1 cup milk

1 tbsp vinegar or lemon juice

1 cup whole wheat flour

2 tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg

2 tbsp melted butter

vanilla

Combine milk and vinegar/lemon juice and set aside while you make the rest of the recipe.  In a mixing bowl combine dry ingredients.  Pre-heat skillet or griddle.  When ready mix in milk (which is sour and lumpy now), egg, vanilla.  Mix slightly and stir in melted butter and vanilla.  

Pomegranate Syrup (enough for 2 generous servings)

1 pomegranate

3 tsp sugar (to taste)

1 tsp water

Boil pomegranate seeds with water and sugar until the seeds have popped and the juice is released - approximately 15 min.  I used a strainer to remove the seeds from the juice and pulp mixture.  Let cool slightly.

(pancake recipe adapted from www.fifteenspatulas.com)

Soft Cinnamon Rolls

I can't think about the holiday season without automatically thinking about cinnamon rolls!
This recipe is my favorite for these rolls.  When they come out of the oven they are so soft - almost the consistency of a fresh hot donut!  Absolutely delicious.  The trick is to be patient while the dough is rising.  It takes about 1.5-2 hours for it to double at first but it's worth it!

Cinnamon Rolls:

3/4 cup milk, warm
1 envelope (2 1/4 tsp) yeast
3 eggs at room temp.
4 1/4 cups flour
1/2 cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
12 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp. (cut into 12 pieces)
Filling:
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 1/2 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter at room temp

Whisk milk, yeast and add eggs.  In a large bowl mix together flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt.  Add flour mixture to milk mixture and stir.  Use your hand once the dough starts to come together.  Add to a mixer with a dough hook attachment.  Add butter, one tbsp at a time until all incorporated.  Kneed for another 5 minutes.  Cover and set aside for 1-2 hours until the dough has doubled in size.  Roll out into a long rectangle.  Mix filling ingredients and spread in the rectangle.  Roll up the bottom of the dough until you have a long roll.  Cut into individual pieces about 1 inch long and place in a greased baking pan or sheet.  Let double in size again.  Bake in 350 degree oven for about 35 min or until golden brown.

I frosted mine with a mixture of butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, and a little bit of hot water.  You can also make a cream cheese frosting for these.

Russian Honey Layer Cake

Friends, this was literally the most delicious and delicate cake I have ever had.  The secret ingredient - Graham Crackers!  I've made this cake before with actual cake batter but cutting them into layers was a pain.  This took me a total of 1 hour to make and it can serve about 25 people.

http://letthebakingbeginblog.com/2013/10/no-bake-honey-cake/

Fresh Butter in 5 minutes

Have leftover heavy whipping cream from say... a pie... or something you don't even remember since it's been sitting in your fridge forever?  Try making butter!

All you need is...

A mason jar
Heavy cream!

Fill the mason jar no more than half way and shake for about 5 minutes until you get a butter ball.  Voila!
Watch my test subject follow these instructions.

Pumpkin Pie from Fresh Pumpkins

Pumpkin Pie around this time of year is a tradition for many.  I am no exception!  The best, of course, is when you make it from a real pumpkin instead of using the canned version. Trust me, it doesn't take long and is definitely worth it!

For the pumpkin...

Cut a pie pumpkin in half, scooping out the insides and bake at 375 for about 30-40 minutes or until it is soft (test with a fork).  Cool, scrape from the skin and puree in a blender or food processor until smooth.

Pumpkin Pie

- 1 homemade pie crust (recipe here - makes two crusts) (it's the best... hands down)

- 2 cups pumpkin puree
- 2 eggs
- dash of salt
- 1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
- cinnamon (to taste)
- nutmeg (to taste)
- ginger (to taste)

Combine pumpkin, eggs, and salt.  I usually add about 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1/4 tsp each of nutmeg and ginger but it is really up to you and what spices you like.  Add in 1/2 can of sweetened condensed milk and whisk together.  Taste test for sweetness.  This is usually enough for us but you can add more to your taste.

Bake at 375 for 20 min or until the center is spongy and bounces back.

Serve with fresh made whipped cream!

Chocolate-Cinnamon Pear Loaf Cake

Holy delicousness Batman!  Seriously... I didn't have a rectangular cake pan so I used a round one and it didn't turn out quite as pretty but BOY was it delicious.  This is probably my favorite chocolate cake recipe in general now.

Next time I am going to slice the pears into quarters and spread them evenly throughout the cake first.  I frosted mine with some cream cheese frosting - it was the perfect addition, don't do the white chocolate.

http://www.bhg.com/recipe/chocolate-cinnamon-pear-loaf-cake/

Seriously, people, try this!

Arugula Pear Salad

Generally speaking I hate salads with fruit.  These things just don't mix in my mind.  Strawberries and blueberries?  Please put them in a pie and not on top of my romaine.  However... I have one exception to my rule and that's this salad:

Arugula Pear Salad

- arugula
- 1 pear
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
- feta cheese
- balsamic vinegar
- olive oil
- salt

Are you bored with your salads?  Try this one next time.  The flavors really do mix well together!

Homemade Spinach Fettuccini

I bought a pasta maker!   Unfortunately, last night's dinner was not made with one.  It's still being shipped but I wanted to see what I could do by hand and compare it to the machine version.  It turned out awesome!  You have to have some time and patience, but it was worth it.  I made about half this dough and it was perfect for 2 servings.

I served this with some chicken Parmesan.  I like my chicken to be crispy so I heat the sauce separately from the fried chicken tenders.  I topped it with some fresh mozzarella, grated parm, and fresh basil.  My hubby was sick last night and stuffed up but even HE could taste the great flavor!

Homemade Spinach Fettuccini

- 6 oz fresh spinach
- 2 eggs + 1 egg yolk
- 1 heaping tsp of salt (emphasis on the heaping)
- 2 1/2 cups flour

Steam fresh spinach over water for a few minutes until wilted.  Cool slightly and with your hands squeeze out the water.  Add into a food processor and chop.  Add 2 eggs and egg yolk, and salt.  Pulse on low until combined well.  Place in bowl and add flour.  Combine until dough comes together.  It should be very tough.  I tried kneading this with my hands first because I thought it might be too tough for my food processor but it did work!  I threw it in the KitchenAid for about 6 min.  The original directions say between 5 and 10 by hand.  I separated the dough into quarters and rolled it out as thin as I could and then sliced it into pasta sized strips.  Leave the strips out to dry for about 20-30 min.  Boil in salted water for about 10 min or until al dente.

Original recipe from: http://www.marthastewart.com/314301/fresh-spinach-pasta-dough

Banana Crunch Bread

I finally found this recipe that I had in an old Family Circle cookbook that I don't have anymore.  I love this one because the actual bread uses what I call the "shortbread method" or adding a stick of cold butter into the flour mixture to make crumbs.  In the end you get a "crumbly" type of bread which is delicious!  I toasted some almonds at 350 for about 10 min as I did not have any walnuts and they added a nice crunch!

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar (I usually under fill the 1 cup)
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup cold butter, cut in pieces
1 cup mashed ripe banana or a little more
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)
2 eggs1 teaspoon vanilla

CRUNCH TOPPING
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon


Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease 9x5x3-inch loaf pan. (I used a bundt cake today)
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in bananas, walnuts, ginger, eggs and vanilla until mixture is just moistened. Spoon batter evenly into prepared pan.
Prepare Crunch Topping: Combine flour, sugar, butter and cinnamon in a small bowl. Sprinkle evenly over batter.
Bake at 350 degrees oven for 70 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool bread in pan 10 minutes. Remove bread and cool on wire rack completely. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.


Recipe adopted from www.food.com.

Salmon - sushi style at home!

Ever wonder how they make that salmon that's on your sushi roll?  Well... I've seen my mom and grandma make this treat for years.  It turns out, it is super simple!  And much more cost effective than buying a tiny package of smoked salmon at the store - or stocking up on salmon rolls.

I bought a fillet about the size of my hand -

Take off the skin of the fillet.
Mix 2 tbsp of salt with 1 tbsp of sugar and rub the entire fillet - both sides, everywhere!
Place in a bowl and cover, set aside on the counter for 2 hours.
You'll see liquid start to come out - that's a good sign.
Place in the refrigerator for 24 hours - with the liquid and everything.
Take out, cut off a piece and check for salt level.  If you like it, wash the remaining salt off, cut into pieces and place in a container with olive oil - so the fish is just covered, not swimming in olive oil.

Enjoy!

Russian Oliv'e (Potato Salad) & Kotleta (Turkey Burger)

I have been feeling homesick for some good Russian cooking.  Since flying to see my mom or grandma were not an option, I decided to make some comfort food myself.  The Russian potato salad is staple at all special occasions - birthdays, New Years, everything!  It's very simple but does take some time for chopping everything up.  The key is to chop everything as fine as possible - without turning the potatoes into mashed potatoes.  The trick to this is to wait until the vegetables are cooled from boiling and are at room temperature or even cold out of the fridge.  I usually don't have that much time but cold would work best for chopping.

Oliv'e (Russian Potato Salad)

5-6 small potatoes
3 eggs
2-3 long carrots
1/4 to 1/2 lb deli bologna (sliced thick)
1 can peas
2-3 dill pickles
1 apple
Mayo
Salt
Pepper

- Boil 5-6 small potatoes, 3 eggs, 2-3 long carrots.  Eggs will be done after about 10 minutes of boiling.  Take them out and place them in a bowl with ice cold water.  Carrots will be next in another 5-10 minutes, followed by the potatoes.  Check the readiness of the carrots and potatoes by putting a fork through them occasionally.

- Chop up bologna, pickles, apple along with the cooked veggies.  Be sure to cut in cubes as small as possible without making a mush.

- Add salt to taste.  Add 3-4 tablespoons of mayo.  Mix and check for flavor.  Veggie should be held together by the mayo.  If the salad looks dry, add another tablespoon of mayo.

Kotlety (Turkey Burgers)

1lb ground turkey
1 egg
1/4 onion
1/4 cup bread crumbs
salt
pepper
garlic powder
flour

Sautee onion with a little bit of butter until soft.  Cool.  In a bowl mix ground turkey, eggs, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, garlic powder and cooled onion.

Form into small patties, roll in flour and place on skillet to fly in some olive oil.  Turn once browned.  Cover and add a splash of water to cook on the inside.  Once clear liquid is coming out from the middle, they are done.

Simple but awesome!

German Chocolate Cake

...from scratch, of course.

http://www.browneyedbaker.com/2012/06/14/german-chocolate-cake-recipe/

German chocolate cake is my husband's favorite and I had to make it for his birthday this past week.

The cake turned out pretty awesome!  Instead of the rum sauce, I substituted some pineapple orange juice I had in the fridge.  I remember that my grandma in Russia always poured a little bit of a dilluted jam mixture on the cakes before stacking them and that kept them very moist even after being in the fridge.  It's a great trick.  The only thing we were not super happy with is the chocolate frosting.  It turned out exactly as it should, but it was just VERY chocolate-y.  Too much for our taste.  Next time I think I will lighten it up with maybe a chocolate cream cheese frosting.  We'll see how that works out.

Good luck!

Spinach Artichoke Lasagna

I was in the mood for something cheesy yet somewhat healthy with vegetables.
Behold!  Spinach Artichoke Lasagna!

http://www.laurenslatest.com/spinach-artichoke-lasagna-florentine-style/

I was pretty hesitant at first with the pesto addition but it actually really added great flavor to the sauce.  Looking forward to my leftovers!

Conclusion: this dish is like a mixture of mac & cheese with spinach artichoke dip.  Awesome!

"Better than the Box" Brownies

So I came home last night and while my husband decided to go for a quick run, I decided to make a batch of brownies.  The last time I made some from a random recipe off google search, they were absolutely terrible and more like dry chocolate cake than brownies.  And then! I found my saved recipe that got wonderful reviews.  As expected, they turned out perfect!  Simple and so delicious! ... and now my dessert at work!

4 oz bittersweet chocolate (I used leftover Ghirardelli)
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
pinch of salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 350.  Melt chocolate and butter in the microwave until fully melted.  Let cool for a minute. Add sugar, vanilla, and salt.  Mix.  Beat in eggs, one at a time.  Fold in flour and cocoa powder.  Bake at 350 for about 20 min, checking to make sure the center is baked through with a toothpick.

Done!

Recipe from: http://desertcandy.blogspot.com/2007/04/brownies-simple-sublime.html

Hot Spinach Artichoke Dip

One of my favorite snacks!! Salty, yet somewhat good for you too.

2 packages frozen spinach
1 can artichoke hearts
6 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayo
1/2 cup cheese: parmesan, mozzarella, etc (or more!)
salt
pepper

Defrost the spinach and squeeze to remove as much excess water as possible.  Drain artichokes.
Mix all ingredients, bake at 375 for about 20 min or until bubbly in the middle.  Cool slightly and enjoy!

Russian Napoleon Cake

This butter cream frosting recipe can and should be used for every cake from this point forward.
Note: not for those on a diet.

My grandma used to make napoleon cake when I was little.  It consists of several very thin layers of a flaky dough in between which are layers of frosting.   It takes quite a while to make the layers, so I cheated and used premade puff pastry.  It's worth it.

Russian Butter-cream Frosting

1 cup sugar
1 egg

Mix together and set aside.

1 cup milk

Heat milk on the stove in a medium size pot until milk is steaming hot and almost boiling.  Turn off.  With a whisk, slowly VERY SLOWLY, add the sugar mixture into the milk, whisking all the way so the egg doesn't cook in one place.   Set aside to cool.

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature

Beat butter until light and fluffy.  When the milk mixture is room temperature (not hot), slowly beat it into the butter batch by batch.  I usually don't end up using all of the milk mixture because it would be too sweet.  Add just enough for your sweetness level. Beat in 1 tsp of vanilla.  All done!  Put in fridge for a few minutes while getting ready to frost. Do not leave in fridge for long as the frosting becomes hard when cold and difficult to spread.

For this dessert, I cut up the puff pastry sheet into three pieces, based on the fold lines.  Baked at 400 for approximately 15 min and then let cool to room temperature.  Once cool, layer the puff pastry with the frosting.  For best results, I let the cake sit in the fridge over night, so the frosting can soak through the layers.

Tuscany Bread

My secret to homemade bread?

This puppy.  A dutch oven pot.  It's about $75 but completely worth it.  Very heavy too, so that's some arm exercises right there.

http://www.simplysogood.com/2010/03/crusty-bread.html

Mix it in the night before and make sure your yeast is not old.  Otherwise, you can't go wrong.

4 Ingredients!!

3 cups bread flour
1/2 tsp yeast
1 3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups water

Mix and let stand for 12-18 hours.  Follow baking directions in the link!

It's very cheap too. This would probably cost somewhere upwards of $5-$6 at the bakery.  And you can now make it at home for about $.75 or less.

Meatloaf

So I tried this recipe:
http://foodiewife-kitchen.blogspot.com/2009/03/blue-plate-special-very-best-meatloaf.html#

... and my husband said it was "literally, the best meatloaf" he has ever had.  That's a pretty good review.  I cut down the amount of sugar in the sauce and it was perfect.  Otherwise, it's very strong with the vinegar and I am not a fan of sweet meat.

Try it!

Pork Barbacoa and the Amazing Green Sauce

This recipe came from a good friend, who probably got it from another good friend.  While you don't have to make the pork and can instead make it vegetarian, the green sauce is a flavorful addition to pretty much any meal.

1 1/2 pork loin roast
1 to 2 cups black bean and corn salsa
1/2 to 1 cup brown sugar (depending on how sweet you like it)
salt and pepper

Please all ingredients in a slow cooker set on low for about 6 hours.  Take two forks and shred the meat.  Let simmer another hour.  If your meat is not ready to shred and is still tough at 6 hours, set on high for another hour.

GREEN SAUCE

1 dry ranch packet
1 lime squeezed
1 lime zest
3 tomatillos (peel outside shell off, wash)
1/2 bunch cilantro
2 fresh cloves garlic
3/4 cup mayo (real, not miracle whip)
3/4 cup sour cream

Combine all ingredients in a food processor or blender until puree is smooth.  Add salt, lemon juice, more lime or cilantro to taste!

I serve this with jasmine rice, cut avocado, pico de gallo, and black beans.  After you make black beans at home once, you will never go back to the can.

Black Beans

1/2 lb dry black beans
4 cups water
salt
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 onion, chopped

Soak beans in water for 1 hr.  Add all ingredients, turn on medium to simmer then on low for another 30-40 min.  Taste test for firmness.

Enjoy!!