Fillin the baking void

My oven and I have sadly become distant over the past couple of months. Last week I filled my baking void by trying my hand at something simple and new: Andes chocolate chunk cookies. Andes mints bring back fond memories of my childhood. I used to look forward to them after every family Friday night meal at Luby's cafeteria (one of my favorite restaurants in the world). These cookies hit the spot, and brought back good times. Makes me miss Texas all over again.

You should try it too! Click here for the printable recipe.

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Pizza my love- Chanterelle and truffle cheese pizza

{these babies were almost mistaken for trash LOL}

{homemade pizza crust}

{truffle cheese nirvana! Check out those truffle bits}

{finished product!}

Now that grad school is behind me for the remainder of the year, I can finally put away the instant ramen and microwave dinners and actually put together a decent homemade meal. My long hiatus from the kitchen caused me to get a little carried away at Whole Foods, but in the end it was sooooo worth it. After I fell hard for truffles (first on our trip to Seattle, and later on our visit to the French Laundry), I decided to re-create Tom Douglas's Truffle Cheese pizza from his infamous Seattle pizzeria "Serious Pie". From what I remember, every bite was nothing short of perfection. The crust had just the right crisp to it, while the truffle cheese and chanterelles came together in harmony to form a melt in your mouth nirvana. It's THAT good I tell you. Anyways, so yeah If I was going to make a pizza, I had to be sure it had 1. truffle cheese and 2. Chanterelle mushrooms, which both unfortunately come at a steep cost, weighing in at $32.99 per lb. I almost had a heart attack when D asked me if these "rotten looking mushrooms" could be thrown out along with the other garbage for tomorrow's trash day. To my horror, when I looked up he was holding the bag of Chanterelles. It's funny now, but I'm sure it wouldn't be had he thrown it away. I'm happy to report that my attempt to recreate the best pizza ever was pretty successful. We've eaten it for two nights straight, and now I think I'm on some kind of truffle high!

The recipe is simple:

I used this fool-proof (and I say this because I was able to make it) thin crust recipe courtesy of Kitchn.

• 1/2 cup good quality mozzarella cheese (shredded)
• 1/4 cup truffle cheese (the non-goat cheese kind)
• 1/2 lb chanterelles

1. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees

2. Lightly grease your pizza pan with vegetable oil then set your crust on top

3. Sauté your Chanterelles with olive oil in a pan on medium high heat for approximately 4 minutes.

4. Top your pizza with the Chanterelles, add a pinch of salt

5. Sprinkle 1/4 c of mozzarella, followed by 1/4 c of truffle cheese shavings on top

6. If you're feeling crazy, add a dash of truffle oil

Bake for 10 minutes until golden, and voila! Enjoy =)

D and I like it with plenty of red hot pepper flakes!

ps. Don't forget to join in on my Holiday Giveaway!! The more the merrier ;)

xoxo

Ice cream sandwiches for dinner

{Burger likes it!}

At the end of a long day, there's nothing like a homemade ice cream sandwich to make everything better =)

I used Dorie Greenspan's "World's best chocolate chip cookie" from her beloved book, Baking from my home to yours. They are slightly crispy on the outside and delightfully chewy on the inside making for a flatter cookie and perfect for sandwiching your favorite ice cream. How can you resist? (even Burger can't).

ps. Today is the last day to sign up for my giveaway, so come and join in all the fun here =)

happy Thursday loves !

Chicken soup for the sniffles

{lotsa veggies}

{simmer the rotisserie chicken along with the broth and veggies for a more robust flavor}

{and enjoy! slurping is allowed =) }

Poor d has been fighting the sick bug today. In addition to drugging him with medication and forcing him to chug countless glasses of water, I thought he could benefit from the oldest remedy in the book: homemade organic chicken noodle soup. If all else fails, it ought to do the trick. I used this recipe with my own modifications and it was perfect. Just like grandma's.

Airy Orange chiffon cake recipe

{orange chiffon cake topped with whipped cream and the strawberries I bought from the farmer's market last weekend}

{sneaking that third piece}

{the cookie monster}

My oven and Kitchen Aid mixer have a strange way of pulling at my heartstrings. Despite a never ending to-do list breathing down my back, I somehow always find a way to put it on hold and make time for baking. This week's creations included a dreamy orange chiffon cake and tons of chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies.

This sounds strange, but indulging in chiffon cake is like eating sweet airy bites of clouds. It's almost guilt free. That's why I ended up sneaking a third piece. SHHH!

ORANGE CHIFFON CAKE (adapted from Kevin Chai's recipe)

Ingredients:

Part I

7 egg yolks room temperature
1/3 c sugar
1/4 c orange juice
½ tsp salt
1tsp orange essence
4 tbsp vegetable oil
1 c cake flour plus 1 tsp. baking powder

Part II
7 egg whites
1 cup sugar
½ tsp cream of tartar

Directions:

Part I
1. Mix egg yolks, sugar, salt, oil, orange essence, and orange juice in a mixing bowl. Fold in sifted flour carefully until combined.

Part II
1. Whisk egg white and sugar (divided into 3 parts). Do this three times until soft peaks form. Add cream of tarter until stiff peaks form. It is imperative that the peaks are STIFF.

2. Fold in one-third of the whites into the yolk mixture. Then add the yolk mixture into the remaining whites and fold in gently until well mixed.
3. Pour into a 9 in tube pan and bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees for 30 -40 minutes or until cooked. ( my oven gets super hot, so I only baked it for 30 mins)

3. Remove from oven and invert cake pan to cool completely on rack.

Top it with homemade whipped cream, and you are golden :)