For now, I'll have to settle for baking this one birthday cake:
I'm trying to make this zebra cake but with chocolate frosting instead of vanilla! I'm so excited...maybe more than she'll be to get it as a cake!
Friday, February 1, 2013
Baking for Money?!
My co-worker just asked me to bake her daughter a birthday cake. I'm so excited! I sold some pies to co-workers for Thanksgiving and they were a hit. I'd love to take my love of baking to a place where I could consider it to be a legit side-business.
For now, I'll have to settle for baking this one birthday cake:
I'm trying to make this zebra cake but with chocolate frosting instead of vanilla! I'm so excited...maybe more than she'll be to get it as a cake!
For now, I'll have to settle for baking this one birthday cake:
I'm trying to make this zebra cake but with chocolate frosting instead of vanilla! I'm so excited...maybe more than she'll be to get it as a cake!
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Dinner for Two
I love having an evening at home to cook for my hubby. It sounds old-fashioned but creating a meal to share together is one of my favorite things to do.
Last night's dinner:
Broccoli Slaw Salad--this has become one of my mom's go-to recipes and it's delicious and so easy.
--A package of broccoli slaw. Combine with Brianna's poppyseed dressing, craisins, and slivered almonds. The crunch factor is just perfect.
Roasted Butternut Squash and Beets
I love roasting vegetables in the winter but often fail to plan ahead enough to get them to the right consistency in time for dinner. I worked around this by cubing the squash and beets into fairly small pieces (bite-size) and roasting with olive oil, kosher salt, and rosemary for about 45 minutes at 425 degrees. Buy the pre-peeled, pre-cut squash to save time (cut the pieces even smaller.) For beets, I just peeled them and choppe up. Wear gloves if you don't want to turn your hands purple!
Chicken Cacciatore
--Brown chicken breasts in a pan with some olive oil. Remove.
--Saute onions and peppers in remaining oil. Once softened, add a can of diced tomatos (28 oz), add salt, pepper, oregeno, and chili flakes. Once the liquid has evaporated to your liking, add back in the chicken and simmer for 5 minutes or less.
Easy and delicious!
Last night's dinner:
Broccoli Slaw Salad--this has become one of my mom's go-to recipes and it's delicious and so easy.
--A package of broccoli slaw. Combine with Brianna's poppyseed dressing, craisins, and slivered almonds. The crunch factor is just perfect.
Roasted Butternut Squash and Beets
I love roasting vegetables in the winter but often fail to plan ahead enough to get them to the right consistency in time for dinner. I worked around this by cubing the squash and beets into fairly small pieces (bite-size) and roasting with olive oil, kosher salt, and rosemary for about 45 minutes at 425 degrees. Buy the pre-peeled, pre-cut squash to save time (cut the pieces even smaller.) For beets, I just peeled them and choppe up. Wear gloves if you don't want to turn your hands purple!
Chicken Cacciatore
--Brown chicken breasts in a pan with some olive oil. Remove.
--Saute onions and peppers in remaining oil. Once softened, add a can of diced tomatos (28 oz), add salt, pepper, oregeno, and chili flakes. Once the liquid has evaporated to your liking, add back in the chicken and simmer for 5 minutes or less.
Easy and delicious!
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Shabbat Dinner
My *new* husband (3 months and counting!) is in school studying to be a reform rabbi. This often comes as a surprise to the people we meet. It's sort of commical in a way trying to anticipate what people's reactions will be. I'm excited to write more about this as I post but one comment we often get right off the bat is that we must be very religious. That term can lead to a lot of discussion. What does it mean to be religious? How is that different from observant? What do we believe?
One thing we hold very dear is Shabbat dinner. Hosting (or attending) Shabbat dinner is one of the best ways to end the work week and mark the start of Shabbat. For us, hosting Shabbat dinner involves cooking a delicious meal, gathering our friends and family, singing prayers and recounting favorite moments from the past week.
This past Shabbat, we hosted eight friends and family at our home in Brooklyn. Since it was our first time hosting Shabbat since returning from our honeymoon in Argentina and Chile the previous week, we thought it only appropriate to infuse our Shabbat meal with some recipes we picked up along the way.
Shabbat Menu for 1/18/13:
Challah (raisin and sesame)...This was a true partner activity. I made the dough and left it to rise when I went to work. Five hours later, while I was still at work, my husband kneaded and braided the loaves and left them to rise so we could bake them right before Shabbat.
Empanadas! We were so excited to try these out at home as our appetizer. We used pre-made pie crust and cut out circles (using the top of a tin of nuts as a cookie cutter...classy). We topped the pie discs with ground beef that we sauteed with onions, salt and pepper in olive oil, added a slice of hard boiled egg, and a sliced up piemento-stuffed green olive. Fold the pie dough in half and press the edges together tightly so the mixture stays in. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. They were a huge hit!
Vegetarian Moroccan Stuffed Peppers (sans Peppers). This is my second time making this dish and it's so delicious. This time, I decided to serve it as a side dish without the peppers.
Harisa Haddock. One of my favorite wedding gifts came from my longtime Israeli friend. We both love cooking and eating and some of the best meals I've ever had were eaten in her ima's kitchen near Haifa. She gave me the new Jerusalem cookbook for our wedding. I've loved salivating over the pictures and recipes and reminscing about the year we lived in Jerusalem. I made the haddock we made this week has so many intense flavors, especially spicy ones from the harisa paste but it truly is delicious.
Dulce de Leche Crepes. I came home from work to learn that my hubby had made crepe batter so that he could make fresh crepes with dulce de leche (Argentina's sweetest offering!) for dessert. What a guy! They were delicious!
I have to become better about documenting our meals and keeping track of the recipes. I'll post these recipes on later blogs but now, time for lunch since reliving this meal has me hungry!
One thing we hold very dear is Shabbat dinner. Hosting (or attending) Shabbat dinner is one of the best ways to end the work week and mark the start of Shabbat. For us, hosting Shabbat dinner involves cooking a delicious meal, gathering our friends and family, singing prayers and recounting favorite moments from the past week.
This past Shabbat, we hosted eight friends and family at our home in Brooklyn. Since it was our first time hosting Shabbat since returning from our honeymoon in Argentina and Chile the previous week, we thought it only appropriate to infuse our Shabbat meal with some recipes we picked up along the way.
Shabbat Menu for 1/18/13:
Challah (raisin and sesame)...This was a true partner activity. I made the dough and left it to rise when I went to work. Five hours later, while I was still at work, my husband kneaded and braided the loaves and left them to rise so we could bake them right before Shabbat.
Empanadas! We were so excited to try these out at home as our appetizer. We used pre-made pie crust and cut out circles (using the top of a tin of nuts as a cookie cutter...classy). We topped the pie discs with ground beef that we sauteed with onions, salt and pepper in olive oil, added a slice of hard boiled egg, and a sliced up piemento-stuffed green olive. Fold the pie dough in half and press the edges together tightly so the mixture stays in. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. They were a huge hit!
Vegetarian Moroccan Stuffed Peppers (sans Peppers). This is my second time making this dish and it's so delicious. This time, I decided to serve it as a side dish without the peppers.
Harisa Haddock. One of my favorite wedding gifts came from my longtime Israeli friend. We both love cooking and eating and some of the best meals I've ever had were eaten in her ima's kitchen near Haifa. She gave me the new Jerusalem cookbook for our wedding. I've loved salivating over the pictures and recipes and reminscing about the year we lived in Jerusalem. I made the haddock we made this week has so many intense flavors, especially spicy ones from the harisa paste but it truly is delicious.
Dulce de Leche Crepes. I came home from work to learn that my hubby had made crepe batter so that he could make fresh crepes with dulce de leche (Argentina's sweetest offering!) for dessert. What a guy! They were delicious!
I have to become better about documenting our meals and keeping track of the recipes. I'll post these recipes on later blogs but now, time for lunch since reliving this meal has me hungry!
Tuesday, January 15, 2013
A New Year
For as long as I can remember, I've been baking. Whether making my grandmother's clothespin cookie recipe with my mom or batches and batches of chocolate chip cookies with my best friend, baking and sharing treats with my friends and family has been central to my life. And while almost nothing brings me more joy than whipping up some cookies, over the years, I've realized that not everyone likes to bake! This has come as quite a surprise to me since I can think of nothing more satisfying than attempting a new recipe with delicious success.
I've eaten more raw cookie dough than my mom would deem acceptable but along the way, I've produced some very delicious treats. I also realized that I couldn't subsist on cookies, pies, and cakes alone. (Well, I could but even I know that may not be the healthiest combination of food groups!) I've become a more adventurous cook and thankfully, my new husband is very happy with the combination of cooking and baking that happens in our kitchen.
After sharing recipes and treats with friends over the years, I decided it would be fun to document my kitchen endeavours more methodically. And what better time to start than in the new year? I can't wait to look back on my posts on December 31, 2013 and see what I've created this year.
Happy eating!
Arielle
A few photos from the many baking projects last year...
I've eaten more raw cookie dough than my mom would deem acceptable but along the way, I've produced some very delicious treats. I also realized that I couldn't subsist on cookies, pies, and cakes alone. (Well, I could but even I know that may not be the healthiest combination of food groups!) I've become a more adventurous cook and thankfully, my new husband is very happy with the combination of cooking and baking that happens in our kitchen.
After sharing recipes and treats with friends over the years, I decided it would be fun to document my kitchen endeavours more methodically. And what better time to start than in the new year? I can't wait to look back on my posts on December 31, 2013 and see what I've created this year.
Happy eating!
Arielle
A few photos from the many baking projects last year...
 |
| My best friend got engaged...a 5 layer cake ensued! |
 |
| Blueberry scones with blueberries picked fresh in VT |
 |
| Baking with my favorite North Dakotan (only babysitting here!) |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)