The kids and I went for a run/hike in the park yesterday. It was a beautiful day and I'm so glad we were able to be outside enjoying the nice weather. What a great way to get our exercise. I am sticking with the theme of quick and easy dinners for today's recipe - roasted shrimp and broccoli. I threw together a side of couscous and dinner was ready in under 30 minutes - perfect. Roasted Shrimp and Broccoli 5 cups broccoli 1 1/2 pounds shrimp 1 Tablespoon lemon zest 2 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
Served with a side of couscous, this is a great healthy meal that I can make in under 30 minutes. Perfect. Ciao!
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What kind of birthday cake do I make for the ultimate chocolate lover? Triple Chocolate Mousse cake of course. Deep, rich dark chocolate - light, fluffy milk chocolate mousse and creamy, sweet white chocolate - bring it on. I get requests for this cake more than any other cake that I make. It really is that good. This is the 4" mini version of the cake. A perfect size for one chocoholic or a couple of chocolate lovers to share. Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake Bottom Layer 6 T. butter 7 ounces bittersweet chocolate 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 4 eggs, separated 1/3 cup brown sugar Middle Layer 2 Tablespoon cocoa 5 Tablespoon hot water 7 ounces bittersweet chocolate 1 ½ cups heavy cream 1 Tablespoon sugar 1/8 teaspoon salt Top Layer 3/4 teaspoon powdered gelatin 1 Tablespoon water 6 ounces white chocolate 1 1/2 cups heavy cream Bottom : Heat oven to 325. In saucepan, melt butter and chocolate. Remove from heat and cool 5 minutes. Whisk in egg yolks, coffee and vanilla. Beat egg whites with brown sugar and salt to soft peaks. Fold 1/3 into chocolate and them fold remaining cream into chocolate. Butter sides and bottom on spring form. Pour batter into pan and bake 13 minutes. Remove form oven and cool at least 1 hour. Middle: Combine cocoa and hot water. Melt chocolate in microwave and cool 5 minutes. Whip cream, sugar and salt in mixer until soft peaks. Fold 1/3 into chocolate and then repeat with remaining cream. Spoon over cake layer and refrigerate 15 minutes. Top: Sprinkle gelatin over water in small bowl. Let stand 5 minutes. Bring ½ c. cream to a simmer in saucepan. Add gelatin and stir until dissolved. Pour cream over white chocolate and whisk until smooth. Cool 5 minutes. Beat remaining cream in mixer to soft peaks and fold 1/3 into white chocolate mixture. Fold in remaining cream and spoon over mousse layer. Return cake to refrigerator and chill at least 2 ½ hours. This cake freezes really well too.
No matter what size or shape it is, this cake never lasts long. I adapted this recipe from a Cook's Illustrated recipe a couple of years ago and it quickly became a very popular cake. Happy Birthday Tracy - I hope you enjoyed your cake as much as I did. Ciao! Last Sunday night I surrendered my role as head chef and I took on the role of sous chef. My son was tasked with making flautas for his Spanish class so I got to assist. (It's great to watch my kids take the lead and express their creativity in the kitchen.) I love the role of sous chef - I could definitely get used to this. Ryan's flauta strategy started was very simple - heat, fill, roll and fry. Why makes things more complicated than they need to be? I even had grilled a couple of extra chicken breasts for our dinner so we would have some leftovers to use in our flautas. He also heated some oil in a skillet over medium heat. Once the oil was warm, he dipped each tortilla in the oil to soften it. (The heat part of the process.)
My son did a great job of rolling his flautas. (They looked way better than the batch of flautas that I made a couple months ago.) The final step was to fry his flautas. In the words of my son "Frying just makes everything taste better." He took the flautas out of the oil and drained them on paper towels. We put 3 dozen flautas on a baking sheet to take to school and we got to eat the rest. A sprinkle of queso fresco and some shredded lettuce is all the adornment that he added to his flautas.
They were really good but I was a little worried that they would get soggy overnight in the refrigerator. (That is also the reason that we didn't put any beans over the flautas.) I wrapped the entire pan in aluminum foil and heated it in the oven for about 15 minutes at 300. To my surprise, the flautas crisped up nicely. Cinco de Mayo is right around the corner - you may just want to celebrate with flautas this year. Ciao! A couple of weeks ago, I played a game on 104.7 the Fish and I won 2 tickets to the Make Your Move concert with Third Day, Steven Curtis Chapman, Tenth Avenue North and Trevor Morgan. How cool is that? Now onto the recipe of the day: There is something about the cooler Fall weather that makes me want to sit down and enjoy my favorite comfort foods. Both of my kids absolutely love macaroni and cheese and they ask for it often. Since I am not a fan of the boxed macaroni and cheese, I usually make my own homemade version. Even though the kids enjoy my homemade version, I can't help but notice the slightest hint of disappointment in their faces when I served it instead of the boxed macaroni and cheese. My mom introduced me to a new recipe for macaroni and cheese this summer and my kids actually said it was BETTER than the boxed macaroni and cheese! It's made with fresh wholesome ingredients and, it can be made in advance. I've swapped my old macaroni and cheese recipe with this new one - for good. Thanks, Mom. Make-ahead creamy macaroni and cheese 6 tablespoons butter 1 pound elbow macaroni 6 tablespoons flour 1 teaspoon dry mustard 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper 4 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth 1 1/2 cups heavy cream 4 cups shredded Colby cheese 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese Cook pasta over high heat for 3 minutes. Drain but don't rinse. Spread pasta on a baking sheet to cool. Heat butter, flour, mustard and cayenne in saucepan for 2 minutes. Stir constantly. Slowly whisk in broth and cream. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer 15 minutes until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and whisk in cheeses, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Stir drained pasta into sauce and mix well. Divide between 3 4x6" containers. (or 2 8" square baking dishes) cool to room temperature. Wrap with plastic wrap and then cover with foil. Refrigerate or freeze for up to 2 months. My mom copied this recipe for me out of a Cook's Country magazine. When she made it for my kids this summer they couldn't seem to get enough of it. The original recipe had a crunchy, buttery garlicky topping but I chose to leave it out. Since I divided my recipe into thirds, I put 2 pans in my freezer to save for another day.
I served the macaroni and cheese along with some grilled chicken and apple sausages. Everyone really liked it. I hope that you enjoy some of your favorite comfort foods this weekend too. Stay warm. Ciao! |
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