Spring Cupcakes: Almond with Raspberry Buttercream

With Easter right around the corner, I wanted to make a nice light spring cupcake to bring to my family’s celebrations. These are easy to make, and such a lovely pink color! I also have to confess, I’m on an almond kick lately. Apologies in advance to anyone with a nut allergy, but you could of course omit the almond aspect of this recipe and just make the raspberry buttercream.

Perfect Pumpkin Pie with Cinnamon Whipped Cream

When I first met my husband, he told me a story of the night he put away an entire pumpkin pie at Denny’s.  He is proud of that accomplishment.  I am not a fan of the traditional pumpkin pie recipe that is on the can of Libby’s, which is what I always ate as a kid.  I decided that to win that boy’s heart, I would have to knock his socks off with the perfect pumpkin pie recipe.  This pie came about after years of experimentation, and through the continued encouragement of my husband.  I never get tired of hearing his praise over this pie.  I prefer this recipe for two reasons:

1. Its sweet.  I like sweet.

2. The flavor is over the top.  I add way more spice to this pie than I have ever seen in any other pumpkin pie recipe.  Feel free to tone it down, but I think it’s the perfect amount and always think there could be a little more spice in it.  My husband, the pumpkin pie connoisseur, agrees with me on this point.

Now, this is the first time I have ever written this recipe down.  Each time I make the pie I adjust slightly based on the size of the pies (8 or 9 inch, deep dish or regular) to make sure I have enough filling.  This will easily fill 2 9 inch pies,, or 2 8 inch deep dish pies.

Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you don’t like cookies, stop reading now.  If you don’t like chocolate, it is best you avert your eyes.  If you don’t like soft, gooey, chocolate chip cookies, I don’t know if we can be friends.  I got this recipe from a friends mom, so I have no idea where it originated.  All I know is that is my personal favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe I have baked, and I’ve made a few!  Also, I should mention that I hold another category for best ever oatmeal chocolate chip cookie, which is clearly entirely different, and if you guys are good I’ll share that recipe with you someday.

I tweaked the recipe a bit because it didn’t call for salt, and that is a sacrilege in my humble opinion.  The key to this cookie’s success is instant vanilla pudding mix.  It keeps the cookies soft for days after baking.

Penne with Prosciutto and Vodka Sauce

This is one of my favorite recipes to make.  The recipe isn’t fussy, but the end result is spectacular.  It also takes only 25-30 minutes to make, from start to finish.  By the time the pasta has cooked, the sauce is ready to go.  I will give you all a piece of advice I learned the hard way:  Don’t skip on the prosciutto!  I tried it in the past sans prosciutto, and it is not the same.  The salty cured ham gives this dish a little somethin’ somethin’ you can’t recreate just by adding salt or seasonings. 

Also, don’t bother with fancy vodka.  I use the $5 stuff, and it works perfectly fine.  DON’T EVER use flavored vodka!  I know it sounds silly, but this is a true story.  The first time I made it for my boyfriend when I was 19, we asked his dad if they had vodka we could use to make pasta sauce.  He said yes, so I started prepping the recipe.  When I asked for the vodka, he handed me a bottle of Smirnoff blueberry.  Luckily their friendly neighbor had some vodka to spare that day!

Mixed Review- Stonewall Kitchen Pumpkin Pancake and Waffle Mix

I decided to celebrate the end of summer and beginning of fall with a special breakfast made from Stonewall Kitchen products.  I stopped by one of their outlet stores and picked up a Pumpkin Pancake and Waffle mix for $3.96, originally $9.95.  I never would have bought the mix had it been full price, but I’m a sucker for a bargain!

The mix requires standard ingredients expected of a pancake mix (eggs, milk, etc.).  I would say I managed to make about 10-12 pancakes with the mix.  For $9.95, I would hope to get more use out of a mix, but these pancakes were delicious.

Salted Caramel Ice Cream

Salted caramel and salted chocolate has been all the rage for a few years now, and understandably so.  It is just so good.  Food Network Magazine has a two page spread in their latest issue of food to salt.  As a result, I felt inspired to spice up my boring vanilla ice cream.  I am now providing you with the easiest dessert you can possibly make, just in time for Labor day!  Are you ready for this?

1. Scoop vanilla ice cream.

2. Drizzle with caramel sauce.  I bought a Smuckers squeezable topping for brownies earlier this summer, and that works just dandy.  If you want to go all Martha on me, go ahead and make your own caramel.

3. Drizzle with coarse sea salt.

4. Sigh with pleasure as your mouth makes a happy dance when you eat it.

Meatball Hamburgers

I’ve done quite a bit of grilling this summer, as any American with a grill does in the warmer months.  Marinated turkey tips, “roasted” garlic, and potatoes cooked in foil pouches have been a staple around my house.  The sound of fat dripping into the fire, the smell of onions sizzling.  Need I say more?  I’m no Bobby Flay, but I’m more than passable at grilling.

One recipe I made this summer is a Meatball Hamburger.  Feel free to adjust seasonings for your personal taste.  I like mine nice and garlicky, so I added both dried and fresh minced garlic.  This burger was the best of both worlds: tangy and garlicky, but with a smokey grilled taste.  My husband decided to take the recipe one step further and topped his burger with more carbs.  He boiled up lasagna noodles and threw it on the top of his burger.  I shudder at the thought, but he enjoyed it.  Try this recipe out before the summer is up!

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes

I would like to start this post by proclaiming how amazing these cupcakes are.  I’ve simplified each component of the cupcake, so they are super easy to make.  You will have quite a few dishes to clean up after, but I promise you, these cupcakes are worth the mess.

That being said, you don’t have to use all three components of this recipe to have a fantastic cupcake.  You could just use the Guinness cupcake with your own frosting, or use the whiskey ganache to pour over your own chocolate cake.  Pick and choose what you want to make!

Lets get down to business.

Rubber Duck Baby Shower

I’m not sure if this is the case with anyone else, but it sure seems like babies are in the air around here lately.  A few weeks ago I helped throw a baby shower for a lady at work, and we decided on a rubber duck theme.

Cute, right?  I love making diaper cakes for baby showers, but time wasn’t on my side.  Enter Plan B.  If you have ever been on Pinterest, you will probably have seen this Pin, by blogger Tidy Mom:

Indian Cooking Lessons

I love Indian food.  I love the complex flavors, the aroma, but not so much the heat level.  My very first experience with Indian food wasn’t fantastic.  The food was so spicy that the waiter kept having to refill my water-glass.  He eventually got sick of running over constantly to help me, and just plopped down the whole pitcher of water in front of me.  I was mortified, and for a while refused to eat Indian food.  I don’t want that to deter people who may be new to the world of Indian cuisine though, as the spice can vary according to taste.

My husband has begged me for years to make him Chicken Tikka Masala, but I’ve been extremely reluctant to adventure into the realm of Indian cooking at home.  Though the technique of most Indian dishes seems easy enough, it was the spices that worried me.  I didn’t know very much about them or how much to use to not burn my mouth out like the first time I had Indian food.

Enter Shilpi Ranjan, a cooking instructor and owner of EZ Compliments, who offers Indian cooking classes in her home, or in your own home.  I can’t express enough how helpful this class was to bolster my confidence in cooking Indian food.