Author Archives: Anne

The TV Made Me Do It: Sausage, Peppers & Onions

Watching cooking shows on television is a dangerous thing, especially if you’re hungry. I’m sure many of you can relate to this. If I see Tyler Florence making his “ultimate” mac & cheese, then I’ll crave mac & cheese for days….until I finally just break down and make some. Damn him and his “ultimate” dishes! Sometimes I’ll crave things that I never even had a craving for until I saw it on TV.

Peppers and onions……..

This happened to me last week. I was watching Everyday Italian while cleaning the downstairs (I do this often- it makes the work easier!!) and Giada started making what she dubbed “Italian street food.” The deep-fried ravioli looked good enough and I wasn’t much interested in the zeppole, but when she busted out some sausage, peppers and onions, I was hooked. It’s something I have eaten maybe twice in my lifetime, but the rich tomato sauce coating each fat link made me drool, and when she stuffed them along with the onions and peppers into large Italian rolls, I knew I had to have one.

Sausages, nice and browned…….

As you probably have guessed, I try my best to make slightly healthier versions of fatty foods so that I won’t grow a dress size over one meal. I found some smoked chicken sausages at Trader Joe’s and had a few multigrain Roman Meal buns leftover from my last craving (see cheeseburger post). I browned the sausage, sautéed a ton of sliced onions and red bell peppers (I LOVE onions), added some wine and finished it off with garlic, canned tomatoes, tomato paste and fresh herbs. I figured it would be sort of messy to eat so I just topped each half of a bun with the mixture.

It doesn’t win in the looks department, but it sure tasted good!

To go with the open-faced sandwiches, I quickly tossed some chopped cauliflower with olive oil and sea salt and roasted it in the oven at 450 degrees. This is probably my favorite way to eat cauliflower. The high temperature almost caramelizes the cauliflower and gives the edges a nice, golden brown color. I could honestly eat 2 heads of cauliflower in one sitting if it was made this way. I suppose that wouldn’t qualify me as a glutton because it’s a vegetable, right?! A light sprinkling of grated parmesan makes this side dish even better.

Golden brown cauliflower

J and I sat down and pretty much devoured our dinner. The sausage and pepper “sandwiches” were fantastic- it totally filled that craving. Although watching cooking shows when you’re hungry can be dangerous, it is nice to be coerced into making food that you would otherwise not even think about.

Maybe next time I’ll try the fried ravioli………….?

Have a great weekend!

Healthy cooking

J Homecoming Dinner

J came home on Tuesday after three weeks on the road. He almost always wants a Japanese meal when he returns from a tour, so I planned a mini feast of all his favorite foods. Don’t get me wrong- he does manage to eat at a couple of great restaurants on each tour, but generally he lives on backstage catering that isn’t bad, but probably isn’t the best food on earth.

Since he was coming home on a weekday, I made most of the things in advance since there just isn’t enough time after work to prepare everything. I started with some spicy braised eggplant (nasu), which my dad gave me the recipe for years ago and I have it written on the same little piece of paper that is stuck in one of my cookbooks. I tweak it a but by adding less sugar and including some sesame oil and hot chili flakes for a kick. It’s long been one of our favorites- I could probably eat about 6 eggplants if they are prepared this way. They get meltingly soft and are loaded with flavor.

So where’s your serving coz this is all mine!

Next: saya ingen goma-ae (green beans in a sweet sesame paste). This is something my mom always made for us when we were growing up. I love the crunchy freshness of the green beans coated with the sweet, nutty paste. I just grind some toasted sesame seeds in my Japanese mortar & pestle, then add a little bit of miso paste, soy sauce and sugar.

Fuzzy photo of green beans…

I made a quick trip to Bristol Farms to pick up some sashimi since I just didn’t have time to go downtown to Mitsuwa after work. I find that Bristol has a nice selection of single-serving sashimi, and that night they had quite a lot to choose from. I picked up a packet each of salmon, hamachi and maguro. I also noticed that they had the cutest atsuyaki tamago (the thick, fried egg you get at sushi restaurants) complete with a kanji character burned onto each one.

Look at the cute egg!

Since there still wasn’t enough food (ha) I cut up some silken tofu into small cubes, added them to a mixed green salad and tossed the whole thing in some wafu (Japanese) dressing. I love how silken tofu melts in your mouth and I think the creaminess of it goes so well with crisp greens.

No Japanese meal is complete without miso soup and gohan!! I made mugi-gohan (rice with barley) and miso soup with cockles, since the smaller asari (clams) weren’t available. I’d be a happy camper with just these two elements for any meal, any time. Miso soup and rice is just the BEST combination. When I have leftovers, I will heat up the soup, add the remaining rice, then mix in a beaten egg- it makes for a bowl full of comfort, let me tell ya! Maybe sprinkle that with some sichimi powder…..ok, now I am getting off track. I had some stewed daikon left from last week so I served it with some spicy Chinese mustard and dinner was finally complete.

Daikon left over from last week….

We enjoyed all of it- taking a bite of tofu, then reaching for some maguro, oh, then a bite of rice….don’t forget the eggplant. This is why I love Japanese meals like this- you get to eat a bit of this and a bit of that, and all of it is really healthy. There’s so much variety that you really feel like you’re eating a feast, when really it’s comprised mainly of vegetables. One thing- although the Bristol Farms sashimi would do in a pinch, I thought it lacked the flavor of the sashimi I get from Mitsuwa or Marukai.

My side of the table…….

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

Japanese food

Dinner For One #5: Sometimes You Just Need A Burger

This is the last installment of my “Dinner For One” series for a little while since J is now home and will be for at least a couple of weeks. I’m glad I stayed in the kitchen even on those nights where I had to nosh alone, because a lot of good eats came out of it! As tempting (time wise, at least) as it is to just heat up a Lean Cuisine pizza, the results just aren’t 1/10 as satisfying as having something homemade.

Speaking of satisfying, I felt the need to satisfy an urge I had the other night for a big, old-fashioned cheeseburger. I don’t eat them nearly as often as I get a craving for one, and it had literally been months since my taste buds had come in contact with anything resembling a burger. Keeping in mind that I try to eat as healthy as possible (to balance out my wine habit!) I took a short trip to Trader Joe’s with the focus of brain surgeon. I knew what I had at home (spicy mustard, ketchup, pickles, lettuce, kewpie mayo – don’t gag..! Mayo in small amounts is good on a burger!) and knew what I had to purchase in order to create my burger. I picked up a 4-pack of already formed “super-lean” ground beef patties, sliced cheese, a pack of bright red tomatoes and a fat, red onion. The only buns available at TJ’s are these massive white ones or the too-sweet honey-wheat ones which I’m not crazy about. A quick stop at Von’s and a pack of Roman Meal Multigrain Buns (I like my buns to be hearty….ha) later, I was home and ready to start my mission!

Whoops, forget the lettuce in this shot…

First, I had to prepare the side dish. What goes best with a cheeseburger, you ask? Well, fries, of course. Unfortunately I was not born with Kate Moss’ metabolism so I decided to have a serving of Fat Free Pringles, which are surprisingly delicious and yes, I am aware of the, er, digestive side effects warning on anything containing olestra products but have never, ever experienced any sort of tummy aches eating these…..but again, probably because I hardly EVER buy them. I think, as with anything, moderation is key. Ahem, back to the topic at hand. What better to top off a meal of cheeseburger and potato chips than a nice big helping of Brussels sprouts, right? I knew that’s what you were thinking. When people think “cheeseburger!” they immediately go to “Brussels sprouts!” Ok, well maybe not but I love me some Brussels sprouts IF they are made properly. My love affair with the little green cabbage-like creatures started at Firefly Bistro in South Pasadena where they come almost BLACK- sautéed to a golden….well, black. The sugars in the Brussels sprouts make a delicious crust if they are sautéed long enough. Over the last year, I’ve learned to make my own version with some onions and a splash of balsamic and it’s been in regular rotation at our house.

Blackened brussels sprouts……

After making a batch of those, I cooked my beef patty to a nice, medium rare and piled on all of the fixins’. This healthier version was just as juicy, delicious and flavorful as any cheeseburger I’d had and filled that NEED for one. It was so good that I actually had the exact same dinner the night after! Now I have two patties left in the freezer and I think I’ll have to treat J to a cheeseburger dinner this week.

Cheeseburger, get in my belly!

Guest cook on Tuna Toast: Dinner at Sister’s House

My sister recently moved into a beautiful, big Pasadena apartment after living in a super cute but small one in Silverlake for a few years. Although the Silverlake pad had an amazing view of the lake (well, reservoir) and the hills, it was too small to really entertain in. Her new place is massive, comfortable, has a gigantic patio and a really sweet pool and jacuzzi so you know where I’m going to be spending a lot of my free time!

In order to break in her new place (and dining table…and dishwasher….and sofa….and bar….) she invited my parents and I to dinner last Saturday. We popped a bottle of champagne and enjoyed a light appetizer of cheese/tomato/basil skewers and crackers while she finished cooking the meal. It smelled great and we were all very happy to be taken care of! Isn’t it nice when you’re invited to someone’s house for a home cooked meal? As much as I absolutely love cooking for others, it’s nice to be treated to someone else’s cooking too.

Wine and appetizers at the bar, anyone?

We sat down to a first course of grilled radicchio salad. The point of grilling the radicchio is to get a slight char and reduce the natural bitterness of the purple leaves. The minute my sister took a bite, she made a face and commented that it was super bitter. After sampling it, we all agreed. It seemed that the grilling made the radicchio MORE bitter than when it was raw. Does anyone out there know if this happens when radicchio is grilled? Anyway, the rest of the salad (especially the cheese!) was great.

Next up: The Main Course! We had roasted rack of lamb with spiced lentils and roasted carrots. The lamb was perfectly pink the the middle and had a light sauce that matched very well with the meat. I love lentils and can pretty much eat them in any preparation and these were fantastic! The biggest surprise, however, were the carrots. I do like carrots but these were just so tender, slightly sweet and very flavorful. A real winner.

Hmmmmm, lamb, lentils and carrots, oh my!

Thanks for a great meal!

Desserts For Family Dinner


My sister had my parents and I over for supper last Saturday, and I wanted to make a light but satisfying dessert since I knew we were having lamb chops as a main course. Since most of my desserts are of the cake or tart variety, I took the opportunity to really break away from what I normally do.

Logs of raw biscotti, ready to go into the oven

As my regular readers know, I am a cookbook, food blog and cooking magazine addict who is always bemoaning the fact that there just isn’t enough time to actually create all of the lovely recipes found in the universe. One blog that I am always drooling over is the brilliant and outrageously gorgeous Kuiadore. I can only daydream about ever becoming as artistic and creative as J but I have kept a few of her creations in the back of my mind with the hopes that one day, I would be able to create such loveliness.

Baked and ready for slicing….

One particularly pretty dessert came to mind when I was trying to choose what to make, and the fact that it was on the lighter side made it a shoe-in. I had seen J’s Espresso Orange Panna Cotta Parfait with Coffee Gelee many times and had always stared at the perfect layers of rich panna cotta and espresso gelee in awe. I googled the name of the dessert and lucky me- the recipe was available online so I printed it out and made my way to Crate and Barrel to buy some small, clear glasses for the panna cotta. I also picked up a few things to make some Chocolate and Pistachio Biscotti, a recipe from Michelle Myers of SONA and Boule fame, to go with the panna cotta. I’d fallen in love with the green on black look of the dark chocolate biscotti when I first saw the photo in the December 2005 issue of Food and Wine and couldn’t wait to try them. Note: I only used 3.5 oz of chopped dark chocolate in the biscotti instead of the 7.5 ounces called for. I honestly think that it works better with the smaller amount- the 7.5 ounces would make it too wet, I believe.

The finished biscotti….all chocolatey and crisp

I found the perfect little European stemless wine glasses, and at less than $2 each, grabbed six of them, extremely satisfied with myself! Yes, I will admit I am the dork who gleefully leaves work and is as happy as a lark at the prospect of shopping for anything kitchen-related. After my successful shopping trip, I gathered all of the ingredients and started. I had to keep in mind that this is the type of recipe that you must focus on- meaning, if you screw up, the whole thing will be ruined, at least looks-wise. While the recipe is quite an easy and simple one, the actual construction is one you must be very careful with.

First layer- espresso panna cotta

I seeped some decaf (since we were having it later at night) espresso in heavy cream, then added the sugar and softened gelatin. I didn’t have any cheesecloth so I just put a coffee filter in my fine-sieve strainer and poured the mixture into that, but the thick cream refused to drip out! I tried a few other methods (paper towels, just the strainer) all to no avail….and losing precious tablespoons of the cream every time I had to try another way. I finally used my single-cup coffee drip thing (WHY didn’t I think of it sooner?!) which strained out the espresso grounds perfectly. Since I had lost a lot of the cream, I made four servings (which is all I needed) instead of the six called for in the recipe. Of course I did put a couple of tablespoons in a separate cup so that I could taste-test it after it solidified…..ya know- quality control!!

Second layer….espresso gelee…..

After very carefully wrapping the glasses in saran wrap and putting them in the refrigerator, I waited about an hour and then started the second layer of espresso gelee. Growing up, we always had coffee jelly which is a very popular dessert in Japan, and this espresso gelee is basically the same thing. People always react strangely when I tell them about coffee jelly, but it’s one of the best desserts ever! Get some coffee jelly, pour some heavy cream and sugar or simple syrup over it and it’s like eating a cup of coffee. Anyway, back to the gelee. After I seeped the espresso in water, added the sugar and gelatin, I let it come to room temperature before very carefully pouring (using the back of a spoon) it over the now-solidified espresso panna cotta layer. I put it all back into the refrigerator and waited….but not before sampling the small amount of espresso panna cotta that I had put in a separate glass. Although it was absolutely delicious, it was very, very rich due to the fact that the base is entirely heavy cream. I thought that maybe having two layers made with just cream would be too heavy, and decided to make the last layer with whole milk instead.

Third layer….orange panna cotta….

I went through the same process making the orange panna cotta as I did the other two layers, using whole milk instead of the cream. I seeped orange zest in the warm milk and once again poured the cooled mixture on top of the other layers. After a couple of hours in the fridge, they were ready.

Finished dessert, all in a row…..

And what a beautiful dessert it was- both in looks and flavor. I was happy that I made the top layer with milk since it did balance out the richness of the espresso panna cotta on the bottom. The recipe really is simple, and a great stepping-stone to many other panna cotta flavor combinations. I’d love to try a strawberry/vanilla/chocolate or a green tea/chocolate/almond combo.

The final product, accompanied by the biscotti

Thanks Kuiadore, for the inspiration!

Stay tuned for my sister’s lovely lamb dinner which will be featured soon!

Dessert, panna cotta

Dinner For One #4: Stuffed Mushrooms

Here’a a dish that I’ve been making for about five years now. I don’t recall where I got the inspiration or even if there was a recipe that I started out using, but over the years it’s evolved. It changes from time to time, depending on what I have in my refrigerator, but it’s always good. I imagine I started making because when I first met J, he was a vegetarian (gasp!) and I wanted something with some volume. Even though J is now a carnivore, we still enjoy these as much as ever.

Raw stuffed mushrooms…..

There are a couple of “must haves” in my stuffed mushrooms and the rest, as I mentioned, can be improvised based on what’s available. Sometimes I use regular old button mushrooms, but when I want to make it a main course, I used the medium portabellas from Trader Joe’s. The thing that always remains the same is this- cut the stems out of the mushrooms and dice. Heat a small sauté pan with a bit of olive oil, add garlic, diced onion, the mushroom caps, salt & pepper. After you’ve sweated the onions and mushrooms, add a splash of Vermouth and let it evaporate. This is a key step and adds great flavor to the dish. Add a pinch of cayenne pepper and put the mixture into a bowl.

Panko makes everything better………

From here on, you can pretty much dump in whatever you’d like, although you have to make sure you have something to bind it with. Last night, the mushroom caps were quite small and didn’t make enough filling, so I added up a crumbled veggie sausage and some chopped green onion. Some sort of cheese is needed, so I added about 1/2 cup of shredded mozzarella and a couple of tablespoons of grated parmesan. I usually add some sort of cream cheese or sour cream but didn’t have any. I did have some oregano and thyme left over from the fish stew I made the other night so I threw in some of that too. The mixture was quite crumbly so in went one egg and 1/3 cup of panko breadcrumbs. The mixture should just stick together when you pinch it between your fingers, which it did. Ready to stuff!

Wait…is this photo supposed to be here? Shaved zucchini for salad…..be careful not to shave your fingers.

Since the portabellas were quite “meaty,” I sprayed the unfilled caps with some olive oil and seasoned them liberally on both sides with salt and pepper. After packing some filling in each one, I dipped the tops in a whisked egg and then in some panko. A quick spray of olive oil on the top and they were ready to go into my toaster oven which is great for baking small things. Twenty minutes in a 400 degree oven later, they came out tender on the bottoms and crisp on the tops.

Nice and crispy……….

Although I made six of them, they were quite large and three proved to be plenty for me. I added a salad of mixed greens and shaved zucchini garnished with parmesan cheese. Now I have three shrooms left to devour for another Dinner For One later in the week! Out of all the things I have cooked over the years, I can say that stuffed mushrooms are the one thing I’ve made very consistently and that I always come back to wanting to eat. It’s a hit with guests and, if you use the smaller button or crimini mushrooms, a great party appetizer. I did make these for a birthday party that I catered awhile back and they were a hit with the crowd. The best part is, you can use whatever you think suits your taste- use regular sausage if you like meat, add some diced bell pepper….most anything works in this dish.

Er…is there enough CHEESE on your salad???

Hope you get a chance to try them!

Hello Autumn: Pumpkin Chocolate-Chip Mini Muffins

When I found this recipe for Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf Cake in an old issue of Bon Appetite a couple of years ago, I just sort of ignored it. I guess the combination of chocolate and pumpkin had never even entered into my mind nor did it seem particularly appealing. Two years ago, however, when a coworker asked for some sort of pumpkin/chocolate treat (whodathunkit?), I remembered the recipe and whipped up a batch. The results? A super-moist, not-too-sweet and delicious cake that I’ve been making ever since. Who knew that the warm spiciness of pumpkin and the sharp bittersweet chocolate would be such a match made in heaven??

The pumpkin goes in the batter

Since it’s much easier to pass around individual serving sizes, I decided to make this recipe into many mini muffins instead of one loaf cake. For the last two Autumns, this being the third, I’ve made these to give to friends or coworkers to signal the arrival of the season. They are so easy to whip up, and the best part is the longer they sit, the moister they get! Well, maybe the chocolate chips and crunchy walnuts are the best part- and I’m not usually a walnut fan- but they are a must in these muffins.

Nuts and chocolate join the mix…

If you’d like to make a loaf, just follow the recipe exactly. For mini muffins, bake for 14-16 minutes, making sure to check after 12 minutes since you literally want a toothpick to come out with moist crumbs on it. If a toothpick comes out perfectly clean, then your muffins (or any cake or loaf, for that matter) are overdone.

There’s no denying that lovely Autumn feeling when the pumpkin, spice, nuts and chocolate in these muffins touches your taste buds!

Mini muffins, pumpkin recipes

Dinner For One #3: Cod Stew

Since the previous entry was about cat food, I figured I’d better put in a real food post for my Dinner For One series. I’ve had a pack of cod in my freezer for over a month now. I bought it to have the next day…possibly serve it with lemon and capers, or maybe grill with some teriyaki sauce, but I just never got around to it. It’s not that I’d forgotten about the poor fish…it’s actually been nagging me in the back of my mind that I’d better use it before it turned into a freezer-burned brick. I just never got the cod craving after the initial thought, so there it sat, getting pushed further and further into the back of the freezer to sit, doomed, with the bag of lotus roots that moved in over three months ago.

mise en place

Then I was inspired when I was looking over one of my daily blog reads- Simply Recipes. She had posted her father’s fish stew recipe and it just sounded so delicious, I couldn’t wait to try it. The cod would finally see the world outside of the freezer! I loved that the stew was not cream based- not that I don’t love cream soups but it’s kind of scary to inhale that much dairy fat in one meal.

The secret ingredient

I tweaked the recipe a bit by using leeks in addition to the onions, adding lots of fresh herbs and tossing some corn and one Yukon Gold potato into the mix. As the scent of white wine, thyme, garlic and oregano wafted through the house, I felt it was the perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon. After turning off the heat and letting the flavors meld together, I poured myself a bowl along with a slice of toasted pumpernickel and had The Perfect Supper. The cod was flakey and the white wine quite pronounced which complimented the sweetness of the corn and potatoes nicely. This will definitely go into regular rotation as the weather gets cooler. I’m sure it would be great with any white fish and any additional vegetables (carrots, peas, green beans) that you’d need to use up. I suppose a splash of cream wouldn’t hurt it either- if you’re in the mood for a creamier stew. A real keeper!

Even though this makes a lot of stew, it’s great to have in the fridge when you’re at home alone for those nights you just don’t feel like cooking. Of course I put 1/2 in the freezer so that J can try it when he gets home next week!

Cod Stew (adapted from Simply Recipe’s Dad’s Fish Stew Recipe)

1 TBS butter
1TBS olive oil
2 leeks, sliced (white and light green parts only)
1 cup of chopped yellow onions
1 medium Yukon Gold potato cut into small cubes
Corn cut off of 1 ear of sweet white corn
2 large garlic cloves, chopped
2/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped
2 TBS fresh thyme
1 TBS fresh oregano
1 cup of fresh chopped tomato (about 1 medium sized tomato)
12 oz of clam juice (or shellfish stock)
1 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 lb cod fillets, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 TBS of tomato paste.

Heat butter and olive oil in a stockpot, add leeks and onions- sauté for 4 minutes until soft. Add garlic, potatoes and corn and sauté for another 2 minutes. Add parsley, thyme and oregano, stir well. Add tomato, clam juice, white wine and tomato paste and let simmer for another 5 minutes, or until wine alcohol has evaporated. Add cod fillets and simmer for about 6 minutes or until fish has just cooked through. Serve garnished with freshly chopped parsley.

Cod recipes, soup

Dinner for One #3: Chicken with Whipped Egg Soufflé and Garden Greens

Sounds delightful, no?

I know I made a commitment to stay busy in the kitchen in spite of the fact that I’m basically cooking for myself for the next two weeks, but let’s get real.

This lovely supper was not for me, but for my sidekick, Cory. My little (ok, not so little) Ms. Cory turns her nose up at most canned cat food (taking one bite and then leaving it), most people food and has never touched a drop of milk in her life. The only thing she consistently tries to get at are my salty, crunchy snacks. She absolutely loves osembe, crackers or chips of any kind. She also loves the smell of chocolate even though we can’t feed her any. When I got a coupon for this new line of gourmet flavors from Fancy Feast, I was wary but wanted to see if this would be something that Cory would like.

Fuzzy photo of the can

Judging by the way she wolfed it down, I’d say she definitely has gourmet taste!

Mmmmmm, chicken with whipped egg soufflé and garden greens…me like!

PS- Mom and Papa- don’t worry, I don’t usually use this bowl to feed Cory in…..(dear reader: the bowl is one of two that my parents got me for Christmas and they are handmade). When downloading these photos I was horrified to realize that you must think I’ve retired the less-than-year-old bowls to Cory! Not so…it was simply a momentary lapse of reason……..

An ad for Fancy Feast?

I ended up eating leftovers last night and will go out with my sister tonight I have nothing new to blog about in terms of people food. I plan to stay committed to cooking for one, but a girl can’t turn down an invitation to dine at a beautifully fine restaurant now, can she?!

Until next time……….

Dinner For One #2 and Best Mocha Cupcakes

Here is part two of my “Dinner for One” series that will hopefully keep me cooking in the kitchen even though my dear J is away. Last night I had a major hankering for something chicken and something tomatoey. I saw Giada making some sort of tomato-based pork chop dish last weekend and had been thinking of making something similar with chicken ever since. Since I had purchased two perfect little chicken breasts at Mitsuwa, I knew it was time to start cookin!

I started with the chicken…..

then sautéed red bell peppers and white onions in the juices…….

then basically made it up as I went along and added a pinch of oregano here, some chopped garlic there….splashed it all with a generous pour of white wine and let it all simmer for a good 25 minutes.

A small side of whole wheat pasta, a fresh green salad and a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan finished the meal. It was lovely and I’m happy to say that I have the second chicken breast waiting for me at home….swimming in all of that tomatoey goodness!!

After supper I decided to make some chocolate cupcakes for my good friend T to cheer her up. She just found out that her parents are divorcing after 36 years of marriage. THIRTY-SIX YEARS. T is the Queen of Chocolate, so I thought that some serious baking was in order to at least try and cheer her up, if that’s even possible in such a situation.

There goes the can of Hershey’s syrup!

I had seen Barefoot Contessa (yes, I watched waaay too much Food Network last weekend!) make some chocolate cupcakes where the chocolate was simply an entire can of Hershey’s syrup and was instantly intrigued. Although she topped her cupcakes with ganache, I was so focused on the can of Hershey’s and totally forgot to buy any additional chocolate for the topping. This is where one starts to rummage through the cupboards and tries to figure out an alternative. I had powdered sugar, so I figured an icing might be nice….and then remembered yet ANOTHER thing I had seen on Food TV (no, I don’t work for them). Espresso icing- how perfect for chocolate cupcakes! I had instant coffee, water (of course), the powdered sugar, vanilla and butter, which is all it took to make this. To top it all off (no pun intended) I had chocolate covered espresso beans in the freezer with which to,er, top off the cupcakes.

As I made the icing, the smell of the coffee mixed with the rich chocolate scent was absolutely intoxicating. No wonder it’s such a classic combination. The icing was one of the glossiest and easiest-to-handle that I’d ever made. I couldn’t resist and tried one- the crumb was so moist that it was almost like a light brownie, and the icing was rich and delicious. This is definitely going on my favorites list.

I left them in a Tupperware on T’s desk, and she came to me an hour later and exclaimed “Those are the BEST cupcakes I’ve ever had in my entire life!” That’s quite a statement….especially from such a choco-holic! I hope you get a chance to try these- they are truly wonderful, and you get your cake and coffee in one dessert!

You can find the recipe for the cupcakes here.

Super moist cupcake

Coffee icing

1 tsp instant coffee or espresso
1 TBS water
1 tsp vanilla
1 TBS butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Dissolve the coffee or espresso powder in the water, add vanilla, butter and sugar and whisk to combine. Add more water to thin or more sugar to thicken as necessary. Dip cupcake tops into icing and let set for 30 minutes.

Chicken with peppers, onions and tomato sauce

Serves 2

1 TBS olive oil
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 large red bell pepper
1 medium white or yellow onion
1 large clove garlic, minced
1/2 tsp dry oregano
6-7 fresh basil leaves, torn
1/2 cup of dry white wine
1/2 can of diced tomatoes, in juices
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth

parmesan cheese and chopped parsley, for garnish

In medium skillet, heat oil. Generously salt and pepper chicken breasts on both sides. Sear in hot pan for 3 minutes per side, set aside in a dish. Add peppers, onions and garlic to pan and sautee until softened, about 3 minutes. Add herbs and white wine, scaping browned bits at bottom of pan. Add canned tomatoes and chicken stock. Add the chicken back into pan, bring to a simmer and cover with lid. Simmer for 20 minutes. Take chicken breasts out of pan and heat liquid/peppers/onions on high until sauce is slightly reduced. Serve with pasta, chicken, sauce and grated parmesan + parsley. Enjoy!

Cupcakes, chicken recipes