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Happy New Year!


Happy New Year!  I'll admit that New Years' is my least favorite holiday.  Call me a party-pooper (Go for it.  I'll wait.... done?!), but being single takes a whole lot of joy out of New Years'.  Like I need a party to remind me that I'm departing one year and bringing in a new year SINGLE...while surrounded by kissing couples.

Anywho.  I do wish you all a very, very Happy New Year!  I hope that you have someone to kiss as the ball drops.

I'm not making resolutions this year.  Instead, I have a few "wishes".  For both you and I!

I wish us:
  • Joy. The ability to see the joy of the little things even on really bad days.
  • Health. I wish everyone a hospital-free year (except for those of you having babies!).
  • Love. The love of finding your other half. The love of your parents, siblings, children, friends and extended family.
  • A career/job you really enjoy! Doesn't matter if it's as a SAHM, doctor, teacher, etc.  I hope you are where your skills lie, you feel appreciated, and you can't help but smile every morning at the prospect of another day on the job.  :-)
  • Perspective.  (A weird one, I know!) I want you us to realize how lucky we truly are. We have a roof over our heads, food to eat and most of the time our biggest worries are either paying a bill a few days late or concern over sitting in traffic too long.
Now, go on out there and make this the best year yet!!!


Happy New Year!  I'll admit that New Years' is my least favorite holiday.  Call me a party-pooper (Go for it.  I'll wait.... done?!), but being single takes a whole lot of joy out of New Years'.  Like I need a party to remind me that I'm departing one year and bringing in a new year SINGLE...while surrounded by kissing couples.

Anywho.  I do wish you all a very, very Happy New Year!  I hope that you have someone to kiss as the ball drops.

I'm not making resolutions this year.  Instead, I have a few "wishes".  For both you and I!

I wish us:
  • Joy. The ability to see the joy of the little things even on really bad days.
  • Health. I wish everyone a hospital-free year (except for those of you having babies!).
  • Love. The love of finding your other half. The love of your parents, siblings, children, friends and extended family.
  • A career/job you really enjoy! Doesn't matter if it's as a SAHM, doctor, teacher, etc.  I hope you are where your skills lie, you feel appreciated, and you can't help but smile every morning at the prospect of another day on the job.  :-)
  • Perspective.  (A weird one, I know!) I want you us to realize how lucky we truly are. We have a roof over our heads, food to eat and most of the time our biggest worries are either paying a bill a few days late or concern over sitting in traffic too long.
Now, go on out there and make this the best year yet!!!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

I would be a Girl Scout if...

 
...if merit badges were given for watching What Not to Wear.

...if my fellow scouts were these ladies from the Girl Hunter weekend.
{Center: Eric, best guide ever. Left to Right: Kristan, Me (hi!),  Shelly, Wendy, Angie, Cheryl, Georgia, Marla Top: Amy, Erica, Dara, Elana,Carrie, Lori}

...if s'mores had a more grown-up option, like these.

Just in case you're not the champagne type, you might want to make these S'mores Milkshakes for New Year's Eve. 

They are super easy and you'll only need a few ingredients:

1. Chocolate Ice Cream

2. Godiva Liqueur

3. Fluffed Marshmallow Vodka (yes, there is such a thing.)


S'mores Milkshakes {for grown-ups only}
serves 2

3 cups chocolate ice cream
2 ounces Godiva chocolate liqueur
2 ounces Fluffed Marshmallow vodka
crushed graham crackers
mini Hershey cars

Chill one large, or 2 small glasses in the freezer.

Combine the ice cream, liqueur and vodka in a blender.  Pulse until blended, pushing the ice cream down as needed.

Pour into the chilled glasses (if using a large glass, use 2 straws for sharing).  Top with crushed graham crackers and a Hershey bar.

And this is...

PS: do NOT try to drink all of this by yourself, or else you'll be wearing "milkshake goggles," like this:

Happy New Year!!!  
I hope 2012 brings you all peace, love, laughter...and lots of sugar. ♥
 
...if merit badges were given for watching What Not to Wear.

...if my fellow scouts were these ladies from the Girl Hunter weekend.
{Center: Eric, best guide ever. Left to Right: Kristan, Me (hi!),  Shelly, Wendy, Angie, Cheryl, Georgia, Marla Top: Amy, Erica, Dara, Elana,Carrie, Lori}

...if s'mores had a more grown-up option, like these.

Just in case you're not the champagne type, you might want to make these S'mores Milkshakes for New Year's Eve. 

They are super easy and you'll only need a few ingredients:

1. Chocolate Ice Cream

2. Godiva Liqueur

3. Fluffed Marshmallow Vodka (yes, there is such a thing.)


S'mores Milkshakes {for grown-ups only}
serves 2

3 cups chocolate ice cream
2 ounces Godiva chocolate liqueur
2 ounces Fluffed Marshmallow vodka
crushed graham crackers
mini Hershey cars

Chill one large, or 2 small glasses in the freezer.

Combine the ice cream, liqueur and vodka in a blender.  Pulse until blended, pushing the ice cream down as needed.

Pour into the chilled glasses (if using a large glass, use 2 straws for sharing).  Top with crushed graham crackers and a Hershey bar.

And this is...

PS: do NOT try to drink all of this by yourself, or else you'll be wearing "milkshake goggles," like this:

Happy New Year!!!  
I hope 2012 brings you all peace, love, laughter...and lots of sugar. ♥
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

The Outtakes 2011!


Of course I think of myself as pretty good at cooking - enough to blow my own trumpet about something amazing that I have prepared or eaten on a weekly basis. However, I am not infallible and there have been some shockers that don't make it to the pages of M(i)sCh(i)ef! Normally they are blocked from my memory, but here are a few I choose to remember and share for a giggle as I reflect on my year of cooking and blogging!

Gnocchi - Pre freezer disaster!
Gnocchi - after making a huge batch of gnocchi on my first attempt, I read that it was good for freezing and you could even cook it from frozen. I must have added just a few too many to the boiling water, so that by the time they were cooked, all the gnocchi had disintegrated into a gooey mess.

Profiteroles - away for the weekend, I thought that profiteroles would be a quick easy dessert. I am pretty confident with my choux pastry, but with out kitchen scales, I had to wing the quantities adding a bit of flour here and there to get the right consistency of batter. Unfortunately, that's not exactly how choux pastry is made so they didn't puff up, but were flat biscuit-like rings! Next time I've promised my friends proper profiteroles, so I'd better live up to that when I have my trust scales!

The Successful Strawberry Sorbet
Ice cream - sometimes I can get quite impatient in the kitchen, and a little cocky! I made custard for ice cream the other day and was too impatient to follow the recipe thinking I knew better and ended up with scrambled eggs! I ended up making strawberry sorbet instead!

Crab omelette - after a long day of work, working out etc. I sometimes feel a bit exahusted. Last week I thought I'd make a quick Asian omelette. Just as well I checked the recipe a few times only to realise that I had mistaken tablespoons for teaspoons and put in quite a lot more soy sauce than I was meant making a horrible brown coloured egg mixture!

Kahlua Truffles - Making my work colleagues a Christmas gift was supposed to be easy - a recipe I've done over and over since I was little - I thought I'd go fancy and get Lindt 70% Cacao Chocolate to be extra special, only to find that the higher the percentage, the more liquid is required to prevent it from seizing. The mixture ended up like a yucky sludge! My successful attempt used only 40% chocolate.

So tonight, I'll be raising a glass to toast the successes (and failures) of 2011! Here's to a fab 2012!

Of course I think of myself as pretty good at cooking - enough to blow my own trumpet about something amazing that I have prepared or eaten on a weekly basis. However, I am not infallible and there have been some shockers that don't make it to the pages of M(i)sCh(i)ef! Normally they are blocked from my memory, but here are a few I choose to remember and share for a giggle as I reflect on my year of cooking and blogging!

Gnocchi - Pre freezer disaster!
Gnocchi - after making a huge batch of gnocchi on my first attempt, I read that it was good for freezing and you could even cook it from frozen. I must have added just a few too many to the boiling water, so that by the time they were cooked, all the gnocchi had disintegrated into a gooey mess.

Profiteroles - away for the weekend, I thought that profiteroles would be a quick easy dessert. I am pretty confident with my choux pastry, but with out kitchen scales, I had to wing the quantities adding a bit of flour here and there to get the right consistency of batter. Unfortunately, that's not exactly how choux pastry is made so they didn't puff up, but were flat biscuit-like rings! Next time I've promised my friends proper profiteroles, so I'd better live up to that when I have my trust scales!

The Successful Strawberry Sorbet
Ice cream - sometimes I can get quite impatient in the kitchen, and a little cocky! I made custard for ice cream the other day and was too impatient to follow the recipe thinking I knew better and ended up with scrambled eggs! I ended up making strawberry sorbet instead!

Crab omelette - after a long day of work, working out etc. I sometimes feel a bit exahusted. Last week I thought I'd make a quick Asian omelette. Just as well I checked the recipe a few times only to realise that I had mistaken tablespoons for teaspoons and put in quite a lot more soy sauce than I was meant making a horrible brown coloured egg mixture!

Kahlua Truffles - Making my work colleagues a Christmas gift was supposed to be easy - a recipe I've done over and over since I was little - I thought I'd go fancy and get Lindt 70% Cacao Chocolate to be extra special, only to find that the higher the percentage, the more liquid is required to prevent it from seizing. The mixture ended up like a yucky sludge! My successful attempt used only 40% chocolate.

So tonight, I'll be raising a glass to toast the successes (and failures) of 2011! Here's to a fab 2012!
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Christmas 2011: Leftovers

Hello hello!  When there is Christmas feasting, there are also leftovers!  We've finally finished all the leftovers, and I think we're all a bit sick of turkey and ham around here!  Having watched endless episodes of Nigella, Jamie and Gordon's Christmas programs over the break, I was tempted to try my hand at all sorts of big fancy pies to use up the leftover meat, but I thought that would defeat the purpose by creating even more leftovers.  (And don't forget you can't reheat leftover food more than once).

Whilst I did make one batch of pasties, and one sandwich, this year I found that the best way to use up the leftover ham and turkey was to serve it in thin slices to add protein and bulk to a fresh, healthy salad.  Much more suitable for our warm weather, don't you think?

Ham & Leek Welsh Pasties

I made Nigella's ham and leek Welsh pasties again (Kitchen), to use up leftover ham and petits pois.  These have ham, leeks and white sauce on the inside and are encased in a shortcrust pastry.  Lovely with a nice cold cider as an accompaniment.

Turkey and Ham Sandwich

This monster of a sandwich consisted of thick slices of white bread, lettuce, tomatoes, ham, turkey, and a thick smear of crème fraîche mixed with chives.  The crème fraîche mixture, apart from providing a tasty chive flavour, prevents the sandwich from getting dry (especially as turkey can dry out in the fridge).


Fried Ham and Eggs; Broad Bean and Radish Salad with Green Tahini



This lunch was inspired by a recipe from Jamie's Family Christmas.  Did anyone else watch it over Christmas?  (It's actually from 2009, but I hadn't seen it until this year).  I absolutely loved the program, especially the segment where he made fried gammon with his nan - she was so cute!  In the original recipe he uses raw slices of ham (i.e. gammon, which needs to be cooked before eating) but I made a quick version with leftover slices of smoked ham.  All you need to do is dredge slices of ham in mustard powder, and fry them in a pan.  The mustard powder lightly caramelizes on the ham and is just so fabulous!

Even though we can't get gammon here in Australia, the idea of the mustard-powder coating would work well with ham steaks (it sounds so 70's and I don't care who knows it) or Kassler, especially as an indulgent weekend breakfast.  I had it with a poached egg and the incredibly delicious broad bean and radish salad from the Ottolenghi cookbook, and it was a great light lunch, after all the heavy, carb-based meals of the preceding few days!


Marinated Mushrooms with Walnut and Tahini Yogurt


I received a copy of Yotam Ottolenghi's book Plenty for Christmas, and these marinated mushrooms were the first recipe I made.  I found some cheap shimeji mushrooms at an Asian grocer on Victoria street, and off I went! You marinate the shimeji mushrooms with sliced chestnut mushrooms (I used "baby bella" brown-capped mushrooms from my local supermarket) in lemon juice and olive oil, and toss them with broad beans and toasted walnuts.  It's served with a punchy garlic/yoghurt/tahini sauce, and I served it with thin slices of turkey and ham.  The full recipe is here, in Yotam's column in The Guardian. Enjoy!


Mini Christmas Puddini Bonbons


I love these intensely flavoured little truffles! I also got holly-shaped sprinkles this year, so I didn't need to bother chopping up gummi bears like I did last year.  I served them as a little sweatmeet with coffee to finish a post-Christmas dinner party.  They turned out very soft this year, so I'm keeping them in the freezer.  Theoretically, this means I won't be tempted to eat them all at once - hah!


THE SWANSON

I couldn't help it.  In the fridge we had a turkey leg, and we had slices of bacon.  How could I not make one? In honour of my favourite TV character, Ron Swanson from the hiii-larious Parks and Recreation, I made "The Swanson" - quite simply, a turkey leg wrapped in bacon.
"The Swanson"

Ron Swanson - what a legend.
Photo source: Eater.com

And on that note I conclude my Christmas posts for the year! Hope you all have enjoyed the festive season as much as I did this year!
Hello hello!  When there is Christmas feasting, there are also leftovers!  We've finally finished all the leftovers, and I think we're all a bit sick of turkey and ham around here!  Having watched endless episodes of Nigella, Jamie and Gordon's Christmas programs over the break, I was tempted to try my hand at all sorts of big fancy pies to use up the leftover meat, but I thought that would defeat the purpose by creating even more leftovers.  (And don't forget you can't reheat leftover food more than once).

Whilst I did make one batch of pasties, and one sandwich, this year I found that the best way to use up the leftover ham and turkey was to serve it in thin slices to add protein and bulk to a fresh, healthy salad.  Much more suitable for our warm weather, don't you think?

Ham & Leek Welsh Pasties

I made Nigella's ham and leek Welsh pasties again (Kitchen), to use up leftover ham and petits pois.  These have ham, leeks and white sauce on the inside and are encased in a shortcrust pastry.  Lovely with a nice cold cider as an accompaniment.

Turkey and Ham Sandwich

This monster of a sandwich consisted of thick slices of white bread, lettuce, tomatoes, ham, turkey, and a thick smear of crème fraîche mixed with chives.  The crème fraîche mixture, apart from providing a tasty chive flavour, prevents the sandwich from getting dry (especially as turkey can dry out in the fridge).


Fried Ham and Eggs; Broad Bean and Radish Salad with Green Tahini



This lunch was inspired by a recipe from Jamie's Family Christmas.  Did anyone else watch it over Christmas?  (It's actually from 2009, but I hadn't seen it until this year).  I absolutely loved the program, especially the segment where he made fried gammon with his nan - she was so cute!  In the original recipe he uses raw slices of ham (i.e. gammon, which needs to be cooked before eating) but I made a quick version with leftover slices of smoked ham.  All you need to do is dredge slices of ham in mustard powder, and fry them in a pan.  The mustard powder lightly caramelizes on the ham and is just so fabulous!

Even though we can't get gammon here in Australia, the idea of the mustard-powder coating would work well with ham steaks (it sounds so 70's and I don't care who knows it) or Kassler, especially as an indulgent weekend breakfast.  I had it with a poached egg and the incredibly delicious broad bean and radish salad from the Ottolenghi cookbook, and it was a great light lunch, after all the heavy, carb-based meals of the preceding few days!


Marinated Mushrooms with Walnut and Tahini Yogurt


I received a copy of Yotam Ottolenghi's book Plenty for Christmas, and these marinated mushrooms were the first recipe I made.  I found some cheap shimeji mushrooms at an Asian grocer on Victoria street, and off I went! You marinate the shimeji mushrooms with sliced chestnut mushrooms (I used "baby bella" brown-capped mushrooms from my local supermarket) in lemon juice and olive oil, and toss them with broad beans and toasted walnuts.  It's served with a punchy garlic/yoghurt/tahini sauce, and I served it with thin slices of turkey and ham.  The full recipe is here, in Yotam's column in The Guardian. Enjoy!


Mini Christmas Puddini Bonbons


I love these intensely flavoured little truffles! I also got holly-shaped sprinkles this year, so I didn't need to bother chopping up gummi bears like I did last year.  I served them as a little sweatmeet with coffee to finish a post-Christmas dinner party.  They turned out very soft this year, so I'm keeping them in the freezer.  Theoretically, this means I won't be tempted to eat them all at once - hah!


THE SWANSON

I couldn't help it.  In the fridge we had a turkey leg, and we had slices of bacon.  How could I not make one? In honour of my favourite TV character, Ron Swanson from the hiii-larious Parks and Recreation, I made "The Swanson" - quite simply, a turkey leg wrapped in bacon.
"The Swanson"

Ron Swanson - what a legend.
Photo source: Eater.com

And on that note I conclude my Christmas posts for the year! Hope you all have enjoyed the festive season as much as I did this year!
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Snickerdoodles

In all my years of baking, I have never made snickerdoodles before. Shocking, right? Well, my family didn't bake cookies during the holidays, and we rarely made homemade cookies at home (that's what neighbors are for, right?). This year I decided to change that and bake these cinnamon and sugar delights myself.

I was poking around Pinterest and did a search for snickerdoodles and came across this Martha Stewart recipe. I know that Martha's recipes usually turn out well so I gave it a whirl. Luckily, I already had all the ingredients on hand so I didn't need to make an extra trip to the store.

Man, oh man, do these cookies make the house smell delicious! My husband was upstairs and said, "It smells good in here!" These snickerdoodles have the perfect amount of crunch on the outside while maintaining a soft, chewy center. I love the combination of cinnamon and sugar and may have to make a cupcake version of these soon.

Ingredients
  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp coarse salt
  • 1 cups (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
Directions
Preheat oven to 350F. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Put butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.

Stir together cinnamon and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into 20 (1 3/4-inch) balls; roll in cinnamon sugar. Space 3 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.


Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.

Yield: Martha's recipe says it makes 18 cookies, but I used a medium cookie scoop and got 29 cookies. 

Source: Talin Bee; originally from Martha Stewart's Cookies book, page 82
In all my years of baking, I have never made snickerdoodles before. Shocking, right? Well, my family didn't bake cookies during the holidays, and we rarely made homemade cookies at home (that's what neighbors are for, right?). This year I decided to change that and bake these cinnamon and sugar delights myself.

I was poking around Pinterest and did a search for snickerdoodles and came across this Martha Stewart recipe. I know that Martha's recipes usually turn out well so I gave it a whirl. Luckily, I already had all the ingredients on hand so I didn't need to make an extra trip to the store.

Man, oh man, do these cookies make the house smell delicious! My husband was upstairs and said, "It smells good in here!" These snickerdoodles have the perfect amount of crunch on the outside while maintaining a soft, chewy center. I love the combination of cinnamon and sugar and may have to make a cupcake version of these soon.

Ingredients
  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp coarse salt
  • 1 cups (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 2 tsp ground cinnamon
Directions
Preheat oven to 350F. Sift together flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Put butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.

Stir together cinnamon and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into 20 (1 3/4-inch) balls; roll in cinnamon sugar. Space 3 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.


Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to 3 days.

Yield: Martha's recipe says it makes 18 cookies, but I used a medium cookie scoop and got 29 cookies. 

Source: Talin Bee; originally from Martha Stewart's Cookies book, page 82
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Review & Giveaway: My Memories


I was recently contacted by Liz @ My Memories.  When she told me that she'd like me to review the newest version of their digital scrapbooking software, I was curious.  Then she let me know that she'd love to give away a copy of the software too! 

I'm a crafty person, so digital scrapbooking is right up my alley.  :-)  But, trust me, you don't need to have a crafty bone in your body to have some fun with this software.  Here's a little example that it took me just minutes to put together!  And, of course, I used my favorite little photographic subjects.  Aren't they cute?!


In addition to giving away the software to one lucky reader they are offering $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - $20 value!

Just enter this code: STMMMS83631

How to enter:
1. Follow my blog. (mandatory)
2. Visit My Memories and tell me what your favorite layout is.
3. Follow me on Twitter
4. Tweet (and put the link in a comment): "Win Digital Scrapbooking Software from @allthelilstuff and @mymemoriessuite! #giveaway http://tinyurl.com/bm4b76b "5. Follow @mymemoriessuite on Twitter.
6. "Like" My Memories on FaceBook.

*Please leave a separate comment for each entry!*

The giveaway is open until midnight EST on Wednesday, January 4th. The winner will be announced shortly thereafter. 



I was recently contacted by Liz @ My Memories.  When she told me that she'd like me to review the newest version of their digital scrapbooking software, I was curious.  Then she let me know that she'd love to give away a copy of the software too! 

I'm a crafty person, so digital scrapbooking is right up my alley.  :-)  But, trust me, you don't need to have a crafty bone in your body to have some fun with this software.  Here's a little example that it took me just minutes to put together!  And, of course, I used my favorite little photographic subjects.  Aren't they cute?!


In addition to giving away the software to one lucky reader they are offering $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - $20 value!

Just enter this code: STMMMS83631

How to enter:
1. Follow my blog. (mandatory)
2. Visit My Memories and tell me what your favorite layout is.
3. Follow me on Twitter
4. Tweet (and put the link in a comment): "Win Digital Scrapbooking Software from @allthelilstuff and @mymemoriessuite! #giveaway http://tinyurl.com/bm4b76b "5. Follow @mymemoriessuite on Twitter.
6. "Like" My Memories on FaceBook.

*Please leave a separate comment for each entry!*

The giveaway is open until midnight EST on Wednesday, January 4th. The winner will be announced shortly thereafter. 


reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Thanks, Santa!

Was Santa good to everyone?!  He was really nice to me this year.  :-)

I got:

I'm in love with my Kindle Fire.  Santa also brought a pink cover. {P.S. Please tell me all the books I should be reading!!!!}

A2 by Aerosoles Prologue T-Strap Dress Heels

A2 by Aerosoles Prologue T-Strap Dress Heels (clipped to polyvore.com)
These adorable shoes.  I just adore shoes that look like they're from the 30's - 50's. 


Gift cards a plenty!  Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, a few from Amazon and other fun places.  :-)

Some comfy pj's, an adorable sign from my cousin (more news on her coming soon!!!) and a fabulous monogrammed wine glass.

What did Santa (or your family) bring you?
Was Santa good to everyone?!  He was really nice to me this year.  :-)

I got:

I'm in love with my Kindle Fire.  Santa also brought a pink cover. {P.S. Please tell me all the books I should be reading!!!!}

A2 by Aerosoles Prologue T-Strap Dress Heels

A2 by Aerosoles Prologue T-Strap Dress Heels (clipped to polyvore.com)
These adorable shoes.  I just adore shoes that look like they're from the 30's - 50's. 


Gift cards a plenty!  Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts, a few from Amazon and other fun places.  :-)

Some comfy pj's, an adorable sign from my cousin (more news on her coming soon!!!) and a fabulous monogrammed wine glass.

What did Santa (or your family) bring you?
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Promise me?

 
Promise me you'll make this?  Like tomorrow?  Or maybe for New Year's Eve?  Just promise, ok?  If you don't do alcohol, you are excused, but the REST of you...you must make it.

I had an inkling this would be good.  But, I wasn't sure it would be audible-sigh-with-every-bite-good.
It is.
This is the Don Draper of tarts, my friends.  Cool, smooth, rich, decadent, you-know-it's-not-good-for-you-but-you-want-it-anyway tart. 


Chocolate Kahlua Tart
{adapted from Martha Stewart Living}

for the crust:
2 cups whole blanched almonds
10 TBSP unsalted butter
Oreos (about half of a package)
1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

for the filling:
1/2 cup Kahlua
1/2 cup dutch-process cocoa (I use Hershey's Special Dark)
2 large eggs, separated
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
pinch kosher salt
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 TBSP unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup heavy cream
6 TBSP sugar

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Preheat oven to 375.

Place the almonds on a single layer on the sheet and bake for 10 minutes, tossing occasionally, until lightly browned.
Remove from the sheet and cool completely.

In the microwave, or on the stove over low heat, melt the 10 tablespoons of butter.  Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, you'll need to scrape some Oreos.  The original recipe calls for chocolate wafer cookies, but I couldn't find them.  And, you know, I think Oreos are pretty darn tasty.
Twist the Oreos and scrape out the insides.  You only need the cookie part.  What you do with the insides is between you and your kitchen.  You'll need about half the package.

In a food processor, process the cookies until finely ground.  You'll need 1 and 1/3 cups of cookie crumbs.  Place in a large bowl and wipe the food processor bowl clean.

Process the almonds in the food processor...it's loud, you might want hearing protection...until finely ground.

Add the almonds to the cookie crumbs along with the espresso powder, salt and butter.  Stir to combine.
{This is what espresso powder looks like.  You'll find it on the coffee aisle next to the Sanka.}

Press the crust into and up the sides of a 10-11" tart pan with removable bottom.
{I used a heart-shaped pan and had some extra crust leftover.  Mr. E suggested using it as ice cream or yogurt topping.  Did I marry well, or what?}

Place on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Reduce oven temp to 325.  Bake the crust on the cookie sheet for 20 minutes.  Set on a wire rack to cool completely.

Whisk together the Kahlua, cocoa, egg yolks (reserve the whites), espresso powder, and salt in a medium bowl.  Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water.  Once melted, whisk in the Kahlua mixture.  Continue whisking and heating over the pan of simmering water until the mixture has thickened and reaches 160 degrees.  Set aside to cool completely.

Beat the cream until stiff peaks form; set aside.

Whisk the reserved egg whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl of a mixer over a pan of simmering water.  Whisk and heat until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture reached 140 degrees.

Remove from heat and transfer the bowl to the mixer.  Beat with the whisk attachment, starting on medium speed and gradually increasing to high, until the mixture is shiny and cooled.

Use a rubber spatula to fold the cooled chocolate mixture into the beaten egg whites.  Then fold in the whipped cream.
 
Spread into the baked and cooled tart shell.

{You might have some left over.  Grab a spoon and dig in...but please sit down first as fainting may occur.}

Chill the tart for at least 1 hour.


Devour.

Remember at the beginning of the post?  You promised.  You must make it now.  Your life will be all the better for it...you have my word.
 
Promise me you'll make this?  Like tomorrow?  Or maybe for New Year's Eve?  Just promise, ok?  If you don't do alcohol, you are excused, but the REST of you...you must make it.

I had an inkling this would be good.  But, I wasn't sure it would be audible-sigh-with-every-bite-good.
It is.
This is the Don Draper of tarts, my friends.  Cool, smooth, rich, decadent, you-know-it's-not-good-for-you-but-you-want-it-anyway tart. 


Chocolate Kahlua Tart
{adapted from Martha Stewart Living}

for the crust:
2 cups whole blanched almonds
10 TBSP unsalted butter
Oreos (about half of a package)
1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

for the filling:
1/2 cup Kahlua
1/2 cup dutch-process cocoa (I use Hershey's Special Dark)
2 large eggs, separated
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
pinch kosher salt
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 TBSP unsalted butter, cubed
1 cup heavy cream
6 TBSP sugar

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Preheat oven to 375.

Place the almonds on a single layer on the sheet and bake for 10 minutes, tossing occasionally, until lightly browned.
Remove from the sheet and cool completely.

In the microwave, or on the stove over low heat, melt the 10 tablespoons of butter.  Set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, you'll need to scrape some Oreos.  The original recipe calls for chocolate wafer cookies, but I couldn't find them.  And, you know, I think Oreos are pretty darn tasty.
Twist the Oreos and scrape out the insides.  You only need the cookie part.  What you do with the insides is between you and your kitchen.  You'll need about half the package.

In a food processor, process the cookies until finely ground.  You'll need 1 and 1/3 cups of cookie crumbs.  Place in a large bowl and wipe the food processor bowl clean.

Process the almonds in the food processor...it's loud, you might want hearing protection...until finely ground.

Add the almonds to the cookie crumbs along with the espresso powder, salt and butter.  Stir to combine.
{This is what espresso powder looks like.  You'll find it on the coffee aisle next to the Sanka.}

Press the crust into and up the sides of a 10-11" tart pan with removable bottom.
{I used a heart-shaped pan and had some extra crust leftover.  Mr. E suggested using it as ice cream or yogurt topping.  Did I marry well, or what?}

Place on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Reduce oven temp to 325.  Bake the crust on the cookie sheet for 20 minutes.  Set on a wire rack to cool completely.

Whisk together the Kahlua, cocoa, egg yolks (reserve the whites), espresso powder, and salt in a medium bowl.  Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl over a pan of simmering water.  Once melted, whisk in the Kahlua mixture.  Continue whisking and heating over the pan of simmering water until the mixture has thickened and reaches 160 degrees.  Set aside to cool completely.

Beat the cream until stiff peaks form; set aside.

Whisk the reserved egg whites and sugar in a heatproof bowl of a mixer over a pan of simmering water.  Whisk and heat until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture reached 140 degrees.

Remove from heat and transfer the bowl to the mixer.  Beat with the whisk attachment, starting on medium speed and gradually increasing to high, until the mixture is shiny and cooled.

Use a rubber spatula to fold the cooled chocolate mixture into the beaten egg whites.  Then fold in the whipped cream.
 
Spread into the baked and cooled tart shell.

{You might have some left over.  Grab a spoon and dig in...but please sit down first as fainting may occur.}

Chill the tart for at least 1 hour.


Devour.

Remember at the beginning of the post?  You promised.  You must make it now.  Your life will be all the better for it...you have my word.
reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Tuesdays At The Table - Turkey Chili

*It's just after noon, and I just realized that today's post didn't go up as scheduled. BAD, BAD,  BLOGGER!!*
I hope everyone had a great holiday.  Mine was filled with family, friends and food.  Great combo, right?!  Santa also got me a few really cool gifts...but I'll blog about them later in the week.  :-)

Photobucket

OK, so you've had your big family dinner and now you're stuck with half a turkey.  Time to get creative.  Turkey chili time!! I actually make this with chili quite frequently too.

Turkey Chili

2 cups chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, chopped fine
1 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
Two 35 oz cans stewed tomatoes, crushed
Two 15 oz cans kidney beans, drained
2 Tbsp tomato paste
3/4 cup chicken or turkey stock
2 Tbsp chili powder (or up to 4 Tbsp if you like it really hot)
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp dried hot red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt, plus more if desired to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 to 4 cups of shredded, cooked turkey meat
Sugar (if needed)

In a large (8-quart) pot, cook the onion and green pepper over medium high heat, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for a minute or two more. Add a bit more olive oil if needed.

Add tomatoes, tomato paste, stock. beans, oregano, salt, pepper, and cooked turkey meat. Bring mixture to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, for an hour.

Add 1 to 3 teaspoons of sugar to take the edge of the acidity of the tomatoes if desired.

What's cooking in your kitchen?



*It's just after noon, and I just realized that today's post didn't go up as scheduled. BAD, BAD,  BLOGGER!!*
I hope everyone had a great holiday.  Mine was filled with family, friends and food.  Great combo, right?!  Santa also got me a few really cool gifts...but I'll blog about them later in the week.  :-)

Photobucket

OK, so you've had your big family dinner and now you're stuck with half a turkey.  Time to get creative.  Turkey chili time!! I actually make this with chili quite frequently too.

Turkey Chili

2 cups chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, chopped fine
1 cup chopped green pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
Two 35 oz cans stewed tomatoes, crushed
Two 15 oz cans kidney beans, drained
2 Tbsp tomato paste
3/4 cup chicken or turkey stock
2 Tbsp chili powder (or up to 4 Tbsp if you like it really hot)
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp dried hot red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon salt, plus more if desired to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
3 to 4 cups of shredded, cooked turkey meat
Sugar (if needed)

In a large (8-quart) pot, cook the onion and green pepper over medium high heat, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, chili powder, cumin, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, for a minute or two more. Add a bit more olive oil if needed.

Add tomatoes, tomato paste, stock. beans, oregano, salt, pepper, and cooked turkey meat. Bring mixture to a simmer and reduce heat to low. Simmer, uncovered, for an hour.

Add 1 to 3 teaspoons of sugar to take the edge of the acidity of the tomatoes if desired.

What's cooking in your kitchen?



reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Christmas 2011: Christmas Dinner


And now we come to the main Christmas event - the turkey dinner! 

Christmas Dinner for 4

Char grilled Broccolini with Chilli and Garlic
Roast Potatoes
Red Cabbage
Bread Dumplings

Iced Rum Sauce


Can you believe that we had a white Christmas in some parts of Melbourne? There were storms, rain, and lots of hail! (See here for some photos of the incredible weather and its effects.)  We were very lucky to avoid the worst of the weather in our area, and just got a lot of rain.

Judging by the Tweets and Facebook messages in my feed yesterday, it was a big day of eating, and our house was no exception.

This year I changed up our usual Christmas meal a bit, having been inspired by a Gordon Ramsay Christmas Special I saw on TV the week before Christmas - he looked incredibly tense and joyless, but his meal looked fabulous!  The turkey, gravy, and stuffing recipe were all Gordon's.  As accompaniments, we served the usual roast potatoes, red cabbage and bread dumplings, with Ottolenghi's chargrilled broccoli as a vibrant green addition.

Gordon's turkey is smothered in a herby, lemony butter; stuffed with garlic, onions and lemon halves; and draped with slices of bacon to keep the breast juicy and moist (heh). 

I must say I wasn't too impressed with the pallid "standard" bacon I got at the Vic Market; I must look for a better brand and supplier!

Prior to watching the program, I hadn't planned on making stuffing, but the sage-covered roll of stuffing that Gordon made looked totally delicious. (And I'm obsessed with sage right now!)



The pork mince is mixed with grated apples, lemon zest and parsley, and studded with dried apricots and pistachios.  A spicy sausage is laid in the centre (the recipe asks for merguez or chorizo; I could only find chorizo), and rolled up tightly before being baked.

Here is the roasted turkey - it's not the most attractive, but hot-damn it smelled amazing!

The bacon blanket is removed from the turkey and cooked up with the pan juices for gravy.  All that bacon, the herbed butter drippings and the onion/lemon/garlic from the turkey cavity, make the most amazing pan juices!

Look at all that tasty goodness!
Gordon's recipe asks for cider in the gravy; I used beer (which I also used to baste the turkey).  There weren't a lot of pan juices, but they were very intense, and could take quite a bit of stock/beer to make it up to a decent amount.  This was easily the best gravy I have ever made - so tasty and deeply savoury.  Lovely stuff!

The roast potatoes were based on Nigella's perfect roast potatoes, but made with olive oil as I'd run out of goosefat (oops!).  I also took a tip from Jamie Oliver's Family Christmas program (do we see a theme here...?) and squished down the potatoes with a potato masher halfway through cooking to increase the crispy surface area.  I also added garlic cloves and rosemary leaves for extra aromatic deliciousness.



Because of the herbs stuffed under the skin and the bacon-blanket, this turkey wasn't as golden or crispy as my previous efforts. (I love how my niece described last year's turkey as being "covered in turkey crackling"!)  I wonder if this could be improved by removing the bacon for the last 20 minutes of cooking and / or using a maple syrup glaze?  Either way, the turkey was fabulous - it wasn't dry at all!


Here are the sides: roast potatoes, chargrilled broccolini and red cabbage.

Ottolenghi's way of cooking broccoli is great - you blanch the broccoli briefly (I used broccolini), then cook them on a hot griddle until they get some nice char marks. They're finished off with some fried garlic cloves and finely sliced chilli.  I loved the fresh, punchy colours and flavours against the otherwise brown and slightly heavy dishes. 

Carved pieces of turkey

Stuffing with gravy
Below is my plate.  You can (just) see a lone bread dumpling on the top-left side of the plate.  As there were only four of us eating we didn't make the bread dumplings from scratch, but just boiled up some individual dumplings from a packet.  (Labelled as Semmelknödel in delis or continental stores).


Haha, I love how the broccolini is at the bottom of the plate, trying to separate me from all the unhealthy food behind it!!

Phew - I was sooo full!  We took a little break after all that food to open presents.  Yay!!  (I got some great foodie gifts this year, and have posted pics on my Facebook page.)

Dessert was Christmas pudding, of course.  This year I tried my hand at Nigella's Ultimate Christmas Pudding, full of lusciously moist prunes and redolent with Pedro Ximénez sherry.  I made up the batter and did the first steaming a month ago, and simply steamed it again for 3 hours before we ate it.  (I actually doubled the recipe, and have 2 extra puddings at home. One has been frozen for next year, and I'm excited to be having the other one this week when we have friends over for a casual dinner. Yay for pudding!)


I served it with Nigella's iced rum sauce (from How to Eat), replacing the rum with more Pedro Ximénez.  I love this stuff, more so than brandy butter!  It tastes like a kind of smooth, rich sherry ice-cream.  Gorgeous.



The pudding was so wonderful!  It was definitely an improvement on both the Roux Brothers' very traditional pudding I made in 2008, and the gluten-free, vegetarian Christmas pudding I made at "Christmas in July" at The Langham last year.  Nigella's pudding was smooth and rich, with an appealingly moist puddingy texture.  The sherry was an inspired choice, matching and enhancing the sultanas contained within the pudding.

Best Christmas meal ever!

And now we come to the main Christmas event - the turkey dinner! 

Christmas Dinner for 4

Char grilled Broccolini with Chilli and Garlic
Roast Potatoes
Red Cabbage
Bread Dumplings

Iced Rum Sauce


Can you believe that we had a white Christmas in some parts of Melbourne? There were storms, rain, and lots of hail! (See here for some photos of the incredible weather and its effects.)  We were very lucky to avoid the worst of the weather in our area, and just got a lot of rain.

Judging by the Tweets and Facebook messages in my feed yesterday, it was a big day of eating, and our house was no exception.

This year I changed up our usual Christmas meal a bit, having been inspired by a Gordon Ramsay Christmas Special I saw on TV the week before Christmas - he looked incredibly tense and joyless, but his meal looked fabulous!  The turkey, gravy, and stuffing recipe were all Gordon's.  As accompaniments, we served the usual roast potatoes, red cabbage and bread dumplings, with Ottolenghi's chargrilled broccoli as a vibrant green addition.

Gordon's turkey is smothered in a herby, lemony butter; stuffed with garlic, onions and lemon halves; and draped with slices of bacon to keep the breast juicy and moist (heh). 

I must say I wasn't too impressed with the pallid "standard" bacon I got at the Vic Market; I must look for a better brand and supplier!

Prior to watching the program, I hadn't planned on making stuffing, but the sage-covered roll of stuffing that Gordon made looked totally delicious. (And I'm obsessed with sage right now!)



The pork mince is mixed with grated apples, lemon zest and parsley, and studded with dried apricots and pistachios.  A spicy sausage is laid in the centre (the recipe asks for merguez or chorizo; I could only find chorizo), and rolled up tightly before being baked.

Here is the roasted turkey - it's not the most attractive, but hot-damn it smelled amazing!

The bacon blanket is removed from the turkey and cooked up with the pan juices for gravy.  All that bacon, the herbed butter drippings and the onion/lemon/garlic from the turkey cavity, make the most amazing pan juices!

Look at all that tasty goodness!
Gordon's recipe asks for cider in the gravy; I used beer (which I also used to baste the turkey).  There weren't a lot of pan juices, but they were very intense, and could take quite a bit of stock/beer to make it up to a decent amount.  This was easily the best gravy I have ever made - so tasty and deeply savoury.  Lovely stuff!

The roast potatoes were based on Nigella's perfect roast potatoes, but made with olive oil as I'd run out of goosefat (oops!).  I also took a tip from Jamie Oliver's Family Christmas program (do we see a theme here...?) and squished down the potatoes with a potato masher halfway through cooking to increase the crispy surface area.  I also added garlic cloves and rosemary leaves for extra aromatic deliciousness.



Because of the herbs stuffed under the skin and the bacon-blanket, this turkey wasn't as golden or crispy as my previous efforts. (I love how my niece described last year's turkey as being "covered in turkey crackling"!)  I wonder if this could be improved by removing the bacon for the last 20 minutes of cooking and / or using a maple syrup glaze?  Either way, the turkey was fabulous - it wasn't dry at all!


Here are the sides: roast potatoes, chargrilled broccolini and red cabbage.

Ottolenghi's way of cooking broccoli is great - you blanch the broccoli briefly (I used broccolini), then cook them on a hot griddle until they get some nice char marks. They're finished off with some fried garlic cloves and finely sliced chilli.  I loved the fresh, punchy colours and flavours against the otherwise brown and slightly heavy dishes. 

Carved pieces of turkey

Stuffing with gravy
Below is my plate.  You can (just) see a lone bread dumpling on the top-left side of the plate.  As there were only four of us eating we didn't make the bread dumplings from scratch, but just boiled up some individual dumplings from a packet.  (Labelled as Semmelknödel in delis or continental stores).


Haha, I love how the broccolini is at the bottom of the plate, trying to separate me from all the unhealthy food behind it!!

Phew - I was sooo full!  We took a little break after all that food to open presents.  Yay!!  (I got some great foodie gifts this year, and have posted pics on my Facebook page.)

Dessert was Christmas pudding, of course.  This year I tried my hand at Nigella's Ultimate Christmas Pudding, full of lusciously moist prunes and redolent with Pedro Ximénez sherry.  I made up the batter and did the first steaming a month ago, and simply steamed it again for 3 hours before we ate it.  (I actually doubled the recipe, and have 2 extra puddings at home. One has been frozen for next year, and I'm excited to be having the other one this week when we have friends over for a casual dinner. Yay for pudding!)


I served it with Nigella's iced rum sauce (from How to Eat), replacing the rum with more Pedro Ximénez.  I love this stuff, more so than brandy butter!  It tastes like a kind of smooth, rich sherry ice-cream.  Gorgeous.



The pudding was so wonderful!  It was definitely an improvement on both the Roux Brothers' very traditional pudding I made in 2008, and the gluten-free, vegetarian Christmas pudding I made at "Christmas in July" at The Langham last year.  Nigella's pudding was smooth and rich, with an appealingly moist puddingy texture.  The sherry was an inspired choice, matching and enhancing the sultanas contained within the pudding.

Best Christmas meal ever!
reade more... Résuméabuiyad