Pumpkin brioche French Toast w/Spiced Whipped Cream
Holy Crap- It’s been 3 months since I’ve posted on my blog. I’m so disappointed in myself! Oh well, I’m here now.
Life has gotten the best of me. I started coaching volleyball & working photo jobs- It happens! Since I have less time- I’m going to attempt to make things easier for myself hint- store bought.
AnYwAyS, here is something fun, easy, cheap and delicious for you!
Pumpkin Brioche French Toast with Pumpkin Spiced Whipped Cream
Simple steps over here!
Buy Trader Joe’s Pumpkin Brioche Bread
French toast it up- I used 2 eggs, a little milk 1/4 cup sprinkled some pumpkin spice in there and whisk.
Dip your bread in the mixture until it’s completely soaked.
Heat your pan to medium heat but a little butter in the pan and fry. (The toast should be a little brown)
After you are done frying, whip up some heavy cream in your stand mixer or use a hand mixer in a glass bowl. Whip until stiff peaks form adding a teaspoon of sugar at a time. Taste as you go so you don’t “over sugar it” not sure if that’s a phrase. Sprinkle some pumpkin spice until you see little speaks in there.
Top stacked bread with whipped cream, syrup and you are DONE!
Some other house keeping- Halloween just came and went. I’m not sure why time is flying by but it’s extremely sad. But I’m ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas. I LOVE everything about this time of year- Over indulging in every type of sweets you see, eating all the bread and butter, the extreme moisture that make your clothes damp for months, you know the fun stuff.
I’m hoping I can keep up with my blog. Lately it’s been a struggle to come up with anything to post. The creative process is so interesting, one week you are busting shit out and the next week you can’t seem to pick up your camera.
Taylor and I went down the criterion rabbit hole again and here are some scary movie recommendations- Black Christmas 1974 with Olivia Hussey and Don’t look Now 1973 with Donald Sutherland. JUST WATCH! No spoilers.
TV show recommendations- I’m pretty sure I’ve recommended Ted Lasso but I’m going to again. Succession came back for season 3 and it’s great too.
Ok that’s my life. Let’s hope I post next week!
Lemon Tea Cupcakes with lemon cream cheese frosting
I’m back! It’s been awhile since I’ve posted on here. SLACKER. I was asked to make cupcakes for a birthday party this weekend that had lemon in them so I went for it! I used my past cupcake recipe and added lemon. SUPER easy and approachable.
Oh! My blog is 1 year old Friday the 23rd. The Olympics and Ted Lasso season 2 are premiering too. It’s going to be a good day!
I have no idea how I feel about the blog being 1. This year has been relentless, difficult, easy, sad all at the same time. It’s been so odd.
Side note: I’ve been working on putting a recipe index on my site, but squarespace is being a brat. Hopefully I can get one going soon.
I’ve been reading meme’s lately about bloggers writing too much before the recipe so I’ll stop and the recipe is below-
This recipe makes 15-20 cupcakes (depends on how much you fill the liners)
Ingredients:
2 cups of all purpose flour
1 cup of sugar
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 eggs (room temp)
1/2 cup of veggie oil
1/2 cup of whole milk
1 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 bags Lemon loaf tea from Tazo
1 cup of boiling water to steep tea
Zest of 2 medium size lemons and juice of 2 medium lemons
Pam or some sort of spray type oil (used for the cupcake liners so the cake doesn’t stick)
Cream cheese frosting:
80z of cream cheese
1/2 cup of butter (room temp)
3ish cups of powder sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Zest of 1 medium size lemon
Juice of 1 small lemon
(if the frosting gets too watery because of juice add more powder sugar)
Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 350
2.Fill a measuring cup with boiling water and put both bags of tea in it. Let it steep while you are mixing ingredients
3.Put cupcake liners in tin and then spray with oil.- this depends on the liner. I bought more expensive liners and didn’t need to use oil. I guess you will have to test it out.
4.Mix, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl set aside
5.Add eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla extract in another and whisk until combined
6.Then add wet ingredients to dry and fold everything in. You don’t want to over mix it! The cupcakes will be tough. Mix until it looks like a paste
7.Add hot tea to mixture and carefully fold in. It’s hot so be careful!
8.The batter will be a little runny but it’s ok!
9.Once most lumps are gone, you can spoon batter into cupcake liners and fill 2/3 full.
10.Bake at 350 for 15-16 minutes. Insert toothpick into the middle of the cupcake If there is no batter on the stick- they are done
11.Pull cupcakes from tin and let cook on a wire rack
12.While cupcakes are cooling- add butter and cream cheese to the stand mixer. Mix on high until blended.
13.Once combined add 1 cup of powdered sugar at a time. Then salt, and vanilla. Lastly add lemon zest and juice. Blend. AND DONE!
You can pipe frosting on or you can use a butter knife to swirl around the frosting! If you want to pipe I have some resources below.
To pipe:
Put tip at the bottom of the piping bag
Add frosting
Cut tip of piping bag so the air is released and then squeeze down frosting
I’m not an expert at piping things so here is a tutorial if you want to get fancy haha sorry! But honestly just have fun with it! You are eating it so it doesn’t need to be perfect.
Nectarine Madness
I bought a flat of nectarines at Costco and needed to use them. Plus I LOVE nectarines. They remind me of being a kid. My grandpa & grandma would serve them with ice cream for dessert.
Not sure if I said this in my last post but I’m attempting to have a different fancy toast every Thursday. We will see how long it lasts…
My blog is almost a year old! Everyone says it but it’s crazy how time flies. I started the blog to pass the time until my previous job called me back… Thinking that was going to be in July. Well that didn’t happen so I kept going and now I’m attempting to do this full time. It’s fucking scary, but I really do love it. It’s difficult, rewarding, tiring and fun! No idea what I’ll come up with as a post for my year, but it will be something good!
Ok, first up- Nectarine compote (above)
3 nectarines chopped
1 tablespoon of sugar
1/2 tablespoon of honey
1/2 vanilla bean
1 tablespoon butter
Get a pot and brown tablespoon of butter takes about 5-9 minutes
add chopped nectarine, sugar, honey, vanilla bean and cook for about 10 minutes until broken down.
Store sealed in the refrigerator for up to a week!
Nectarine bark
Get a sheet pan and line with parchment paper
Spread your favorite Greek yogurt into a thin layer on the parchment paper
Take nectarine compote and dollop onto yogurt and swirl around. I dolloped 7 teaspoons and used a toothpick to swirl around and make fun designs.
Put in freezer for 3 hours
Once hard break into pieces and enjoy!
It melts pretty quickly so eat it fast!
Strawberry week!
It’s strawberry week in my house!
I had a job last week shooting strawberries every different way. In bowls, on a wood plank, in strainers, etc. Let me tell you, styling berries isn’t easy! You start to question the most simple things- “do I turn the berry to the side?” “ Do I cut the berry?” “How do I group a group of berries?” It was fun but realllly challenging. I ended up with 16 retail packs of strawberries and needed to do something with them and this is what I came up with.
4 delicious ways to use A LOT of strawberries:
Strawberry compote infused with Chamomile toast with honey vanilla bean creme fraiche
That’s a mouthful. Literally. I love fancy toast because it’s so easy. I had a fancy toast week a couple of weeks ago. The only tricky part about this toast is infusing the compote with tea. I add a little water to my compotes so instead of using plain water I used about 1/4 cup of chamomile tea. It’s a very subtle flavor but really fun!
Strawberry scones with a the chamomile infused strawberry compote! Strawberry scone recipe from two peas & their pod
Scones are so easy to make and you can add any type of fruit in the dough. Perfect for a Sunday morning of “reading.” My Sunday usually consists of New Scandinavian Cooking, Bob Ross Painting, Yan can cook, Simply Ming or Julie Child on PBS. I look forward to PBS cooking shows on the weekends.
Strawberry Shortcake- Recipe by Sally’s Baking Addiction
Strawberry shortcake reminds me of being a kid. It’s so easy and delicious! I whipped up some fresh whipped cream as well. Also, everyone says this but fresh whipped cream is the way to go. If you have a stand mixer, heavy whipping cream, and sugar. You are set. Add the cream and whip until peaks form- Add a little sugar right before it’s set.
Strawberry & Brie sandwich with Nutella and Mint
This is a fancy grilled cheese. Layer brie, strawberries, drizzle a little nutella on the top, and top with fresh mint. Grill until cheese has melted and you are done!
That’s the end of strawberry week! Here are some more ideas that I didn’t tackle-
Jam
Roast
Add to a salad
Add them to sparkling water
Eat fresh
Eat with whipped cream
Add them with pineapple for a fruit salad
Freeze them for smoothies
Make popsicles
THE LIST GOES ON! Hope you enjoyed my strawberry rant.
JLM
Beef Chili
Chili by me!
Hi there!
I unintentionally took a break last week from posting on Instagram. Time just flew by! I had so much to do and didn’t realize it. So I’m coming in hot with something savory. Chili. It’s a pretty good chili. I’m not a fan of the sweet kind. Sweet chili reminds me of being a kid, but not a good memory. I’ll have to do some soul searching on why I don’t like the sweet stuff.
This chili has ground beef but non-meat eaters you can leave it out. As with all of my savory recipes, I have a loose list of how I make this, and you can sub different types of beans or leave out the meat, etc like I said before.
Life update:
I’m starting to become pretty busy with photos! And my work is mainly food & product photography which is really exciting! Give me all of the good vibes for the rest of the year!
I’ve been doing Barre 3-4 times a week for the past month and a half. It’s really difficult. Like weirdly difficult. You would think that working so hard would pay off, but after I hit 30 it’s a bit harder to shake the weight, am I rite? I went on a hike with some friends on Monday. It’s Sobrenes Hike right outside of Carmel. It’s a pretty crazy hike, but the views are worth it. This time of year there are wildflowers EVERYWHERE. when you get to the top the view of the ocean is FUCKING crazy. Here are some pics:
If you are ever in Monterey and have the time- Go on this hike. Bring lots of water and good shoes. It usually takes me around 4 hours because I take my time and take breaks, but if you are in shape and don’t stop it would take around 2ish hours. Ok, here is the recipe!
Ingredients:
3 cans of beans I use 2 cans of Kidney beans and 1 can of pinto- but you can adjust to what you have in your pantry! I haven’t used dry beans for this recipe so don’t use them. It will take a lot longer to cook if you do.
1 medium onion chopped
1 tbl of garlic
1 lbs of ground beef
1 can of tomato sauce
2 cans of diced tomatoes
1.5 tbl of trader joe’s chili seasoning
3-4 cans of beef broth
Directions:
Saute onion until translucent in a large pot
add garlic and cook for about 3 minutes
Add ground beef and cook until it’s not raw
Add beans
Add diced tomatoes and sauce
Add TJ’s seasoning
Add beef broth
Then simmer for 3-4 hours (stirring every 15ish minutes) or until it’s thickened!
Toppings-
I used cheddar cheese, chopped red onion, creme fraiche, and a serrano chile! I wish I had Frito’s for a topping.
As for the cornbread I used the box kind… Don’t judge me. I did make the honey butter though! Which is so easy.
Honey Butter-
Put half a stick of softened butter in a small bowl
Add around 1.5 tablespoons of honey ( add until you like the taste)
About 1/4 teaspoon of sugar and mix together with a fork or small spatchua!
DONE!
Fancy Toast #3
Blueberry Cardamon Compote & Vanilla bean Honey Creme Fraiche
So. Many. Words.
This is the last of the toast posts. I ran out of sourdough and ideas. Maybe I’ll do a toast post every week? They are fun to create!
The toasts have vanilla bean & honey creme fraiche on the bottom and blueberry cardamon compote on top. I could eat the creme fraiche by the spoon full. Here is another “guide” on how to make these gems! This is all by taste so start small with the spices and add until you like what you taste.
Get some creme fraiche. Mix in 1 vanilla bean and a couple of teaspoons of honey. Spread it on your toast. I put this in a round deli container with a lid. Kept it in the fridge until I was ready to spread it.
Make blueberry compote. I probably added about a cup of blueberries and some sugar, with a bit of lemon zest and a half of a lemon to a medium size pot. Let it come to boil and then added ground cardamon to taste. It was about 3 pinches. I used a pods and ground it in a pestle and mortar. Then add as much as you want to the top of the toast!
DUNZO.
Randy knows what’s up.
Making fancy toast was such a great way to practice food photos! It’s helped me learn how to blend flavors, work on my composition, and styling! It’s practice. I played volleyball for years. 7th grade to sophomore year of college- year round. I loved practicing techniques like getting a ball out of the net, setting drills, practicing different types of serves, and footwork drills- this is kind of like that. ( I clearly miss volleyball) Muscle memory for styling photos! OK that’s it!
If you make the toast please tag me!
-JLM
Fancy Toast #2
Strawberry Burrata Toast
Yay! I love this combination of flavors. It’s so Italian and lovely. I’m going to guide you through how to make this, even thought it’s super simple and I have no measurements. So technically this is not a recipe but a flavor guide? I don’t know just go with it.
Ok so I started with reducing balsamic vinegar and honey. Now beware, it will stink the house and kitchen up. It’s vinegar. I had a hard time breathing and keeping my eyes open when it was boiling. It took about 10ish minutes. Pull it off the stove when it coats the back of spoon. Side note- I’m obsessed with honey. I don’t know why it’s taken me so long?
Next I cut up strawberries put them in a bowl, prepared the burrata by putting it in a container and sort of mixing it around so it was spreadable, then toasted the bread. Spread the burrata on the bread, then strawberries, drizzle the reduced balsamic and top with basil! My dad grows a bunch of stuff and he gave me this micro basil. It’s powerful and full of basil flavor. Not sure if the above was necessary but I wanted to document my toast week.
New TV recommendation- Ted Lasso. I can’t recommend this show enough. All of the characters play their characters perfectly. Ted is the sweetest man in the history of the world, Keeley- I need to be friend with you. I wish you were real. I love the Brit’s. I talked about another British production in my last post too!
I’m slowly working on a media packet. Let me tell you. this is not easy. I need to pick my “brand” colors, text, solidify what I am going to charge and what it entails. But it needs to be done. I’m trying to chip away each day at one item so I don’t get overwhelmed. I’m realzing there are a lot of tasks that can’t be rushed. You do have to put thought into why you want things to look a certain way because it’s a representation of you! So I’m trying to not rush the process. I’m also taking my time styling photos. I was getting into the habit of rushing through the process and I don’t want to do that anymore!
Music- Methodman & Redman were on verzuz last night. I love rap ps. IT WAS GOOD!!!! You’re welcome.
Fancy Toast #1
Steak and jammy egg toast! (or what’s left in the refrigerator)
Ok, I don’t think I need to go into super detail on how to make the fancy toast. But here are some general directions:
Make some Jammy Eggs
Make some Pesto
I used leftover steak from Friday night
I bought a sourdough loaf from a local bakery
Toast the bread, layer the ingredients, then add some coarse salt and pepper!
I’m more than halfway through my monthly baking class with Christina Tosi. This class is intense. The cookies were easy to develop- we are on pie… WOW. It’s been a headache. There are so many options that I’m getting lost in the thought process. It’s not cool. I’m behind on the course. Only by 2 days- I basically need to come up with a pie and I’ll be good, but I am struggling. The next course is a 3 tier cake! I’m soooo excited. When my pie is done- I’ll write up a blog post on my creative and technical process.
Officially starting your own business is extremely intimidating, scary, and really fun. I wake up every morning still in shock that I made the decision. But guess what? Right now I am in charge of my day. It’s really wild. I’ve also tried to change my mindset- think in abundance, not lack. For example- there are more than enough jobs for everyone etc. It’s been difficult to shift my mindset but it’s slowly happening. I have to correct myself almost every fucking hour and what it comes down to is practice! I also remind myself, I’m still learning! Everyone is! I do not know everything but have the balls to fuck up and learn from my mistakes. It’s the only way I personally learn. Ok, enough of me convincing myself I made the right decision.
I bought a loaf of sourdough from Ad-Astra in Seaside. You are going to see a lot of fancy toast this week
As for TV- if you know me you know I like movies and TV. We have been watching silly movies. We watched Thunder Force the other night. It’s silly and amazing. I love Melissa McCarthy. OH! If you are a fan of British cult films- Withnail & I is on HBOmax. I am in heaven. It’s one of my favorite films. It’s very British.
OHHH! I’m fully vaccinated on Thursday! I took the J&J. Not sure how I feel about everything that is going on in the news, but I took it and I can’t take it back. The day after was not fun. I was in bed all day. I was totally fine by 5pm though. Let’s hope nothing bad happens to me. I do think everyone should get vaccinated and I have VERY strong opinions on why. If you are curious you can email me.
Ok, what should I make next? Any suggestions? Leave it in the comments! Even though no one ever comments. Blogs are weird.
-JLM
Duds-Leche Cookies
Duds-Leche- *Recipe* By me but also based off of Christina Tosi’s Cornflake Mallow Cookies
I’m so far behind on my baking course! We are making pie’s this week and I haven’t started it. Life, am I right?
Not sure if I’ve mentioned my obsession with Rocky horror Picture Show? Tim Curry is the best.
Ok here is the recipe! Everything is a in grams because that’s how you do it. Sorry. One day I will convert these into volume measurements-swear.
Ingredients:
112.5 g unsalted butter (room temp)
112.5 g dulce de leche (canned)
250 g granulated sugar
75 g brown sugar
75 g light brown sugar
1 egg
2 g vanilla
260 g AP flour
2 g baking powder
1.5 g baking soda
5 g kosher salt
Mix ins-
125ish g of milk duds
65ish biscoff cookie
Directions:
Cream butter, dulce de leche and all sugars for about 2 minutes in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment
Add egg and vanilla and mix for about 7 minutes
Slowly add dry ingredients into butter mixture but don’t over mix. Mix until combined.
Once combined add chopped milk duds. I cut them in half and then passed through once with a knife then add broken biscoff cookies. I broke each cookie into about 3-4 pieces. I basically made them bite size. Fold in these ingredients making sure the are dispersed evenly!
Bake at 350 for 12-13 minutes
DONE! These are so easy and so delicious. I hope you like them!
Milk Bar Cornflake Marshmallow cookie
I’m back! First day of Tosi’s baking class we made her Cornflake Chocolate Chip Marshmallow Cookies
These are insanely good. Chewy, crispy, salty, sweet. Absolutely everything you want in a dessert in my opinion.
About the class:
It’s a prerecorded class and you bake along side Christina Tosi. I think I spent around 4 hours making the cookies. In the class she pauses and explains why certain techniques are used for each step. It’s a lot of information BUT it’s all very useful. She’s not throwing out random info to hear herself talk, there meaning behind everything she says.
These took a bit to maek because you have a “sub recipe” (learned a new term) which is crisping the cornflakes.
She also recommends you make a tester before baking all of the cookies AND you have to chill the dough for 1 hour. But my word. These are worth every freaking minute and every calories. I couldn’t stop eating the crispy cornflakes. Christina- you should bag and sell like potato chips.
How do you like my photo? I’m in love. I’ve been wanting to use a pink backdrop for months now. Ps I’m keeping this posts short because 1. I’ve had a VERY long day. 2. I don’t want to give away too much about the class.
Ok bye!
Moz & Bacon Pasta
Moz & Bacon Pasta
It’s been soooo long since I’ve written a blog post. I miss it! I have some updates and then I’ll give you the recipe for the pasta.
How have you guys been? I’ve been good. Picking up random photo jobs here and there. I’ve decided to be a full-time photographer. I’m terrified but ready. When else will I have the opportunity to do this? IT’S NOW OR NEVVVERRR. So if you know anyone that needs photos, specifically food photography let me know!
I’ve decided to challenge myself. I signed up for Christina Tosi’s 30-day baking class. It’s every day for 30 days. She teaches you the fundamentals of baking, you learn how to bake her Milk Bar Cake, Pie, and cookies, AND then you walk away with 3 recipes of your own. That’s why I’m taking the class. I want to have a solid foundation of recipe development. I’m going to try and blog every day??? (maybe every other day) to document the process. I’m extremely excited about it!
oh! I’m also redoing my website in the next couple of weeks. Redoing meaning reorganizing and adding tabs. You’ll see.
Ok now for the pasta- I have to admit, I learned this recipe about 12ish years ago. I read it somewhere. I can’t for the life of me remember where. Sorry… But I’ll give you the roundabout instructions. This pasta brings back such good memories. I think the last time I made this was when I was on a trip in Spain. I went to visit my friend Molly who was living in Granada for a year abroad. I spent almost a month over there. I went to Milan for a couple of days to visit an exchange student that lived with me and my family when I was in high school (Sofy!) and then Molly and I decided to travel to Tangier, Morocco. One of the best trips of my life.
We were in our early 20s and had zero money so we would eat at home. It was my turn to cook dinner one night and moz & bacon pasta was on the menu. We sat around her dinner table- we being Jose Luis, Kelly, Katlyn, Molly, and I, oh and table estufa (google it) and had a great family dinner. I sure do miss traveling abroad guys. I love the smell of foreign countries, the freshness/non-freshness of the food, the wine, and everyone knowing you are from the US. Ok enough, I’m getting sad. Here is the recipe!
Ingredients-
Boxed pasta (any type)
Fresh mozzarella
1 Pack of bacon
Tomato sauce (I used Pomi crushed tomatoes)
Parmesan
Salt and Pepper
Directions:
Cook bacon- Set oven to 400 degrees and bake the bacon for about 13-15 minutes. Just keep checking until bacon is crispy.
Boil water and add pasta to salted water
Once the bacon is done cooking, put on a paper towel to soak up fat. I find it makes it crispier
Once pasta is done cooking- 10ish minutes- strain and put back into the pot and keep on low heat. This will help melt the mozzarella.
Add the tomato puree. I don’t heat the sauce. I add it straight to the cooked pasta. Stir for a bit until the sauce evenly coats the pasta
Add the mozzarella- I rip it up so it spreads evenly throughout the pasta and stir until it’s melted
Add the bacon- I rip up the bacon and sprinkle it in the pasta
Add salt to taste or parmesan and pair with your favorite red wine! We drank Las Jaras 2019 Pinot Noir from Mendicino county. We are club members and it’s a small club. They sell out of stuff really quickly and this is sold out, (sorry) but any pinot will do!
Honey Vanilla Tea Cupcakes with Honey buttercream frosting
Recipe by me!
I did it. I made my own cupcake recipe! I never thought the day would come.
There is hot water in the recipe and there is a reason for it! A couple of weeks ago made chocolate cupcakes and hot water was added to the recipe. I had never seen it added before, but I believe it helps the chocolate bloom, so I decided to add it to this recipe because I wanted the cake to be infused with tea and the hot water “blooms” the tea. I thought about pulling the tea from the tea bag and grinding it, then adding to the batter but I didn’t want the little bits of tea in the batter so I chose to steep the tea and by golly it worked out.
Taste- The cake itself isn’t too sweet but the frosting is pretty sweet which is why I didn’t want the cake to be super sweet. I think it’s a nice combo of vanilla, tea and honey! Cool explanation… Just make the cupcakes to see what I’m talking about!
This recipe makes 21-22 cupcakes
Tools needed:
Cupcake or muffin tin
Stand mixer or hand mixer
Cupcake liners
If you want to pipe the frosting you need:
Piping bag
Piping tip I used this tip
Cupcake Ingredients:
2 cups of all purpose flour
1 cup of sugar
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
2 eggs (room temp)
1/2 cup of veggie oil
1/2 cup of whole milk
1.5 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 bags Honey Vanilla Camomile Tea
1 cup of boiling water to steep tea
Pam or some sort of spray type oil (used for the cupcake liners so the cake doesn’t stick)
Honey Vanilla Buttercream Frosting:
4 cups of powder sugar
2 sticks of butter
5-8 Tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
2-4 teaspoons of honey (depends on how much you like honey)
2 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste
Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 350
2.Fill a measuring cup with boiling water and put both bags of tea in it. Let it steep while you are mixing ingredients
3.Put cupcake liners in tin and then spray with oil. This helps the cake not stick! I’ve tried not spraying and the cake sticks to the bottom of the liner. It really bugs me. Use the spray oil.
4.Mix, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl set aside
5.Add eggs, oil, milk, and vanilla extract in another and whisk until combined
6.Then add wet ingredients to dry and fold everything in. You don’t want to over mix it! The cupcakes will be tough. Mix until it looks like a paste
7.Add hot tea to mixture and carefully fold in. It’s hot so be careful!
8.The batter will be a little runny but it’s ok!
9.Once most lumps are gone, you can spoon batter into cupcake liners and fill 2/3 full.
10.Bake at 350 for 15-16 minutes. Insert toothpick into the middle of the cupcake If there is no batter on the stick- they are done
11.Pull cupcakes from tin and let cook on a wire rack
12.While cupcakes are cooling- add half of the butter and half of the powdered sugar to the stand mixer (use the paddle tool) and 2 tablespoons of heavy cream and mix until semi-combined. (I put a clean towel over the bowl while it is mixing because powdered sugar will get everywhere)
13.Once the frosting is half way mix add the rest of the butter, sugar, vanilla bean paste, honey and 4 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream. The heavy cream helps combine the frosting.
I’m guessing you will need around 7ish tablespoons. If the frosting gets too runny add more powered sugar. If it’s too dry add heavy cream 1 tablespoon at at time.
You can pipe frosting on or you can use a butter knife to swirl around the frosting! If you want to pipe I have some resources below.
To pipe:
Put tip at the bottom of the piping bag
Add frosting
Cut tip of piping bag so the air is released and then squeeze down frosting
I’m not an expert at piping things so here is a tutorial if you want to get fancy haha sorry! But honestly just have fun with it! You are eating it so it doesn’t need to be perfect.
Drizzle extra honey on top if you want and you are done!
Thai Coconut Curry Cauliflower soup
Oooo! This soup is so good! I used Khufu’s Thai Spice
I’m proud of this recipe. It’s healthy, delicious and beautiful! Recipe below
Ingredients:
4 Medium size carrots chopped and peeled
1 Medium head of cauliflower
1 Medium size onion
1 Tablespoon of Khufu’s Thai seasoning
1/2 can full fat coconut milk
4 cups of chicken or veggie stock
Salt
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425
2.Put chopped carrots on sheet pan and drizzle EVVO and salt. Put in oven for 23 minutes
3.In the mean time cut up the cauliflower head into florets and then cut florets in half
4.At around 13 minutes take out the carrots and put chopped cauliflower with a bit of EVVO and salt and roast until lightly brown on top. Could be a bit longer than 13 minutes. keep checking.
5.Chop onion when the veggies have about 5 minutes left in the oven then add to a pot with a little EVOO
6.Saute onions on medium heat until until soften, about 5 minutes
7.Add a tablespoon of Khufu’s Thai Spice and cook for another 3ish minutes. (if you are sensitive to spice decrease to 1/2 tablespoon)
8.Once veggies are done roasting, add to the spiced/cooked onions.
9. Add chicken stock to veggies in the pot and cook for about 10 minutes or until it starts to boil
10. Stir in 1/2 can of coconut milk. Stir until the fat has melted (Add half of the fat and half of the liquid)
11. Pull off stove and let it set for about 5 minutes. Once it’s cooled a bit take your immersion blender and blend! It took me about 10 minutes to get the soup to the consistency I like but it might take you less time.
12. Salt to taste and you are done! ( I added a decent amount of salt, but I would start with a teaspoon- taste then keep adding until you reached the desired flavor.
Garnish with Creme fresh, parsley, lime or even chunks of roasted cauliflower!
Mac & Cheeeese with Khufu’s Korean BBq seasoning
Ok!! I made some mac & cheese with a twist! I added Khufu’s Korean BBQ spice blend to it! The blend has paprika, salt, peppers, and some other fun ingredients :) Check out their website to order! I think it gives the dish a punch of flavor.
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups of hand-grated sharp cheddar
2 cups of hand-grated Monterey Jack
2 cups of cream
1 cup of milk
1/2 teaspoon of Khufu’s Korean BBQ spice
1lbs of elbow macaroni ( I used Barilla)
2 handfuls of cheez-its
Spring of thyme if desired
Directions:
1.Preheat oven to 350
2.Fill a large pot with water, saltwater and bring to a boil. Once the water comes to a boil, pour macaroni noodles in and cook until al-dente- about 7 minutes
3. Strain noodles and set them aside in a large bowl. I added a bit of EVOO to prevent the noodles from sticking together
4. Make roux- add butter and flour into pot at medium heat, mix with a whisk until combined- about one minute
5. Slowly add 2 cups of cream and 1 cup of milk to roux
6. Whisk milk mixture until it’s thickened slightly. Takes about 6 minutes.
7. Once mixture has slightly thickened, take pot off of stove and add 2 cups of sharp cheddar and 1 cup of Monterey Jack and mix until combined.
8. Add 1/2 teaspoon of Khufu’s Koren BBQ blend. If you would like to add more, add a little bit at a time so you don’t over-season the cheese sauce
9. Pour cheese onto the macaroni noodles and mix so the cheese has covered all noodles
10. Put half of the noodles into a 11x7x2 baking dish, sprinkle half of the remaining cheese and 1 handful of cheez-it’s over the noodles. Then add the rest of the cheese coated noodles on top and then sprinkle the rest of the cheese and cheez-its on top. At this point, if you don’t think there is enough cheese, add more!
11. Place baking dish in the oven for 16 minutes or until cheese is melted, after 16 minutes, broil if desired. This will give you the crunchy top! I let the mac & cheese broil for about 4 minutes. Do watch it though, things burn very easier under the broiler.
12. Once all cheese has melted and you have a crunchy top, pull out of the oven and garnish with more cheez-it’s or thyme or both!
Ahn-Chiladas
Recipe- me
These ahn-chiladas are so easy to make. Do you know why I call them ahn- chiladas?
This recipe is one of my go to’s when I’m tired and don’t want anything fancy! It takes about 15 minutes to assemble and 20 minutes to bake.
Ingredients:
Corn Tortillas
Shredded Mexican blend cheese
Rotisserie chicken (I got mine from Costco)
Canned Green Chili Enchilada Sauce ( Las Palmas brand 28oz)
Cilantro (if desired)
Sour Cream
Directions:
1. Open canned green enchilada sauce and pour half of the sauce into a pot to warm up. You will know it’s warm when it starts to bubble. Takes about 5-7 minutes (the other half you will use at the end of assembling the dish.)
2. Shred rotisserie chicken in a bowl. I used one breast and some thigh meat.
3. Warm corn tortillas in the microwave for 30-60 seconds, just so they are easy to work with- Set aside
4. Once sauce is warm, pour over shredded chicken and add a handful of cheese, then mix together.
5. Pull out baking dish and put a bit of sauce (from the can) at the bottom of it. This helps secure the enchiladas. (I used 11x7x2 sized dish and it fits about 8 enchiladas)
6. Start assembling enchiladas- Put 2 spoon fulls of the chicken and sauce mixture into the corn tortillas and then lightly roll it up, then set in baking dish. Proceed with the rest of the tortillas.
7. Once enchiladas are secure pour the rest of the sauce from the can over enchiladas and sprinkle as much cheese as your heart desires!
8. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.
9. You will know it’s done when the cheese is bubbly! You can garnish with sour cream, cilantro and lime if desired.
Cinnamon Rolls
Recipe by Jo Cooks
I could eat the whole tray of these lovely rolls. I’m currently trying not too.
Process-
Cinnamon rolls take awhile to make. I think I started these at 12 and was finished at 3. But they are worth every minute of waiting. They are proofed twice. The first time is the dough and the second time is after they are rolled into cinnamon roll form. The last time I made them I used the over night method and it was torture. I like this method better. Quicker and tastier.
Taste-
I think I might have proofed these correctly hahaha They were so freaking good. Soft in the middle, but not doughy soft, pillowy soft and they had some structure/crispiness on the outside so they didn’t fall apart when you picked it up. I added some vanilla bean paste to the cream cheese frosting also. Which is the perfect combo to cut through the cinnamon sweetness. I could keep describing these but I won’t. Just try Jo’s recipe. It’s worth it.
Random Thoughts-
I am going to make boring and dry reels. Like how to make cereal, how to crack an egg, how to cut the cheese etc. I took a poll on my Instagram to see if people would be interested in them, and like 98% said they would like to see it, BUT the majority of those people were people I know. People that know my personality.
I made the most boring 1st reel and it got 1400 views. HOW? I don’t get it. Luck? These new reels will only occur once a week so don’t fret. I’m talking like everyone that follows me actually reads my blog.
Reasons to make reels:
Experimenting with what works and what doesn’t on Instagram
Become a pro at reels
I love breaking down monotonous tasks. I think it helps people see common things, activities etc differently
IT WILL BE FUN, OK?
Ok byeeee
JLM
CopyCat Sakara Coconut Sugar Popcorn
Recipe- Me
I was gifted a tin of Sakara popcorn last year. It came with a trio of organic air popped popcorn. There was a cheezy one (nutritional yeast) Salty (coconut oil and Himalayan salt) and Coconut Sugar flavor. Unfortunately, you can’t buy the tin year round and I have been craving the Coconut sugar flavor for about six months, so I decided to make it! I have no idea how Sakara made it or what they used for ingredients so this is my best shot. It taste prettttyyyy prettttyyy good
Ingredients:
2.5 tablespoons of organic coconut oil
2 tablespoons of organic coconut sugar
1 teaspoon of pink Himalayan sea salt
A handful of popcorn kernels
Directions:
1- Warm coconut oil in a large pot for 2ish minutes
2- Add one kernel to oil and if it pops, you are ready to add the rest of the kernels
3- Add just enough kernels to cover the bottom of the pot
4- Cover pot with lid after adding kernels and swirl around so the popcorn doesn’t burn
5- It takes about 3ish minutes for it to be finished
6- Once the popping starts to slow down take off heat (I put my pot on a pot holder with the lid on and let it finish there)
Add to a bowl and sprinkle coconut sugar on top and swirl around to coat!
B&B soup
Recipe adapted from Nospoonnecessary
I didn’t have all of the ingredients so I modified the recipe. No cream, carrots, or celery.
Here is a fun recipe for you!
It’s delicious and hearty. It’s sort of healthy except for the bacon fat. My measurements aren’t exact but they are a good place to start. I feel like you can’t mess up this soup unless you add too much salt.
Ingredients:
Pack of bacon (cut into chunks- I cut it when it’s partially defrosted because it’s easier to cut)
1 medium onion chopped
2 cans of chicken broth
2 cans of cannellini beans
sprig of rosemary
2 bay leaves
A chunk of parm. put your index finger and thumb together to make a circle. That’s the size
2 teaspoons of minced garlic
1 teaspoon of salt and pepper
1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes
2-4 handfuls of kale
Directions:
Sautee bacon until crispy
Pull the bacon out and drain on a paper towel
Add chopped onion, garlic, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes to bacon fat and saute for about 3 minutes
Add chicken stock and beans
Then add a sprig of rosemary, bay leaves, and a chunk of parm
Boil for 15-20 minutes
Around 15 minutes pull out 2 ladles of soup into a bowl and mash with a potato masher or immersion blender, then put it back into the soup. This makes the soup creamier
After you add the mashed bean mixture to the soup add the kale and bacon
Cook for another 2ish minutes
Serve with warm bread and butter! I used beckman’s sourdough take and bake. It’s so good guys. Crispy on the outside and soft/sour on the inside.
I hope you like the recipe and I hope I didn’t miss anything hahaha
Marshmallow
I made Marshmallows! Heart-shaped mallows. I know it’s early for V-day stuff, but I’ve had this idea in my head for a month and it needed to come out.
Process-
Marshmallows are surprisingly easy to make. You boil sugar, water, and corn syrup- heat to 24o then slowly add to a stand mixer with gelatin and water. Then you whisk until fluffy! If you want to add in any flavor you add it right before it’s done mixing. I added vanilla bean paste.
Taste-
They tasted like mallows and vanilla bean, but softer. I love the texture of these guys. They are soft and kind of floppy. I think I could have whisked a bit more for them to be a bit stiffer, but I think they turned out great.
Random Thoughts-
Have you noticed I haven’t been making a lot of sweet things? I needed a break from making dozens of cookies over the holidays. I’m also playing around with light and I want to keep the recipe simple! I hope you like what I’ve been doing. It’s been fun using artificial light but also annoying hahaha
We finally bought a dining table. We have been eating over a coffee table for the past 6 years. I can’t believe we waited this long. It’s really life-changing.
This gif has no reason to be in this post, but I don’t care.
Everyone should watch Mr. Mayor on NBC. It’s so cute. If you liked 3o rock you will like this show. Tina Fey is a writer/producer and you can tell. I think I figured out my favorite episode of 30 rock yesterday. Season 3 Episode 11. It’s the Valentine’s day Episode. I actually just put together that I made something V-day themed and talking about the episode. Just watch it.
Ok, that’s all. Byeeeee
-JLM
Pasta pasta
Recipe- Love and Lemons
First time making pasta guys!
Process-
I loved the process. It was labor-intensive especially kneading the dough, but I felt like a real Italian while doing it. To make pasta you mix flour, egg, salt, and EVOO. That is it. Leave it up to the Italians, well actually it’s the Chinese right? I should look that up.
I think my favorite part of this was rolling the dough in the pasta maker. I really enjoyed watching the dough get thinner and thinner and then longer and longer. I didn’t mean for that to be sexual at all.
After you roll out the dough you can either use another pasta attachment for uniform shapes or cut manually for a rustic look. I went for the rustic look and I am so please with how it came out.
So I won’t be commenting on the taste this post. Ya probably don’t care and neither do it. It’s less work for me.
Random Thoughts-
I’ve been struggling with being creative lately!! It sucks. But after making the pasta I feel more inspired.
I’ve cracked the 1000 follower mark which is cool! I truly don’t think it’s that big of a deal in the long run but I guess I should celebrate the little wins!
Taylor and I are still watching The Wire. It’s 5 seasons and each episode is 1 hour. We are on season 3 episode 3. Calculating the time we have spent watching the show kind of freaks me out. I won’t do the math for you. Anyway, if you are into film/TV or crime you should watch this show. It takes a deep dive into how our legal system works. It also is a beautifully written story. They move from character to character flawlessly.
Did you notice anything different about my photos? VERY MOOOODDDDDYYYYY right? I have no consistency in any of my photos other than doing what I want. I know that’s not what you are supposed to do, but I’m working it out. You have to try everything to know what you like right?
Ok, I’m done. BYE
JLM