Madeleines (with a Halloween twist!)

Madeleines are soft, buttery, and yummy. I thought I'd make a childhood favorite and add a Halloween twist to it. This recipe makes 30 madeleines if you use the special pan.

Ingredients:

8 tbsp of butter, plus extra for greasing*

3 eggs
1 egg yolk

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup superfine sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder

*I use margarine for a better taste and grease the pan with baking spray.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease the madeleine pan with butter (or margarine or spray).

2. Melt the butter in a small saucepan and cool.

3. Place the eggs, egg yolk, vanilla extract, and sugar in a large bowl and whisk until very pale and thick. Sift in the flour and baking powder and fold in, then fold in the melted butter. Spoon the batter into the pan.

 

4. Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until risen and golden brown. Make sure you watch then. Remove the cakes carefully from the pan and let cool on a wire rack.

Since it is Halloween, I decided to use the cookies as Frankenstein. I melted some green chocolate and regular semi-sweet chocolate. I used the milk chocolate as the hair and the green as the face and ta-dah!

 

Prepared and Posted by Edit Issagholian

Recipe Courtesy of "1001 Cupcakes, Cookies & Other Tempting Treats"

Quick & Easy Chicken Fajitas!

I'm always looking for a simple, quick, and easy meal to cook so why not just look in the fridge and see what you have? My mom said she was in the mood for Mexican so I got some stuff together and decided I could make chicken fajitas! It's very easy to pick out what spices you'd like to marinate the chicken with and what you'd like to mix in. Have fun with it and get creative!

Ingredients:

2 Chicken Breasts
1 Tsp Oregano
1 Tsp Cumin

1 Tap Chili Powder

1/2 Tsp Salt
1 Lime
2 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 Green Pepper

1 Red Pepper

1 Onion

1. Cut chicken into thin slices. Marinate chicken with the next 6 ingredients for 20 minutes.

2. Slice peppers and onion. Saute onion until tender, add green and red peppers and saute. Put to the side.

3. In the same pan, add chicken with marinade and make sure it cooks all the way through. Add the veggies to chicken.

Warm some tortillas and serve! The great part is you can add whatever you like...sour cream, cheese, guacamole.

Prepared and Posted by Edit Issagholian

Basic Muffin Making

I found a basic muffin recipe from Parade Magazine, which is published weekly in the Los Angeles Times. I was tired of having toast every morning for breakfast so I wanted to change up my routine with muffins, especially since I'm rushing to get to work every morning. I like the fact that on the side of the recipe it gives you a variety of options that you can mix with your basic muffin recipe, whether it's cinnamon sugar or oatmeal raisin it is very easy to add your own mix to it. I had some bananas just lying there lifeless because of the heat so I decided to use them before they went bad and added chocolate chips as well. I also loved the fact that it took me less than 30 minutes to prepare, which was easy for me since I get home late. So here is a quick & easy recipe for anyone to do!

Basic Breakfast Muffins (Makes 1 dozen)

2 cups flour

1 Tbsp baking powder

1/4 cup sugar
3/4 tsp salt
2 egss
1 cup milk
1/2 cup canola oil*
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

* substitute applesauce for oil to cut the calories

Variety of options to add to basic mix:

Banana Chocolate Chip
1 mashed banana
1/2 cup of chocolate chips

Cinnamon Sugar
Sprinkle muffin tops with a mixture of 3 tbsp sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon before baking

Blueberry Streusel
Stir 1 cup of blueberries into batter. Before baking, top muffins with streusel: Combine 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, and 2 tbsp cubed butter.

Oatmeal Raisin
Stir 1 cup raisins into batter and sprinkle muffin tops with rolled oats.

Rasberry Almond
Fill muffin cups a third of the way with batter and spoon 1 tsp seedless jam into each, making sure not to touch edges of the pan. Top with more batter. Spinkle with silvered almonds before baking.

Lemon Poppy Seed
Substitute 1 tsp lemon extract for vanilla and add 2 tbsp poppy seeds to batter.

Apple Pie
Mix in 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, and 1/2 to 1 cup chopped apple.

Pineapple Coconut
Stir 1/2 cup shredded, sweetened coconut and 1/4 cup drained, chopped canned pineapple into batter. Sprinkle each muffin with 1 tsp coconut before baking.

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray or line muffin cups with paper liners.

 2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In a large bowl, beat eggs, milk, oil (or applesauce), and vanilla for 1 minute on medium. Add flour mixture. Beat just until no streaks of flour remain-do not overmix!

3. Spoon batter into muffin cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until tops of muffins spring back when pressed lightly. Transfer muffins to a rack to cool slightly.

The Lighter Chiles Rellenos

Cooking Light magazine is honestly one of the best magazines when it comes to simple and light cooking. Every issue provides a "lighter" version of our most beloved meals. Typically, chiles rellenos is fried, but this recipe is baked, slicing those calories. It's one of my mom's favorites so I thought I'd give it a try. Here's my have it!

Ingredients you'll need:

Cooking spray



*Side Note: In grocery stores, "poblano chiles"
are also referred to as "pasilla chiles."



1 1/4 cups coarsely chopped onion

2 cups chopped tomatoes

1/2 cup low-sodium salsa verde

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup fresh cilantro

4 poblano chiles

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese, divided

2 tablespoons goat cheese, divided

3 large egg yolks

3 large egg whites

1 1/10 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1/4 cup)

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons cornmeal

1/4 cup canola oil

                                     

Directions:

1. Preheat broiler to high.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion; sauté 4 minutes or until tender. Stir in chopped tomatoes, salsa verde, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; cook 15 minutes or until thickened, stirring frequently. Place tomato mixture in a food processor; add cilantro. Process mixture until smooth. Set aside.

3. Place poblanos on a foil-lined baking sheet; broil 3 inches from heat 8 minutes or until blackened and charred, turning after 6 minutes (make sure chiles are broiled until the skin is easy to peel off). Place in a paper bag; fold to close tightly. Let stand 15 minutes. Peel and discard skins (watch out it gets hot!) . Cut a lengthwise slit in each chile; discard seeds, leaving stems intact. Spoon 1/4 cup Jack cheese and 1 1/2 teaspoons goat cheese in cavity of each chile. (To be honest, I did not use goat cheese, but it is up to you.)

4. Preheat oven to 350°.

5. Lightly beat egg yolks in a small bowl. Place egg whites in a medium bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until stiff peaks form. Fold egg yolks into egg whites. Combine flour and black pepper in a shallow dish. Place cornmeal in another shallow dish. Dredge poblanos in flour mixture, and dip into egg mixture. Dredge in cornmeal.

6.  Heat oil in a large stainless steel skillet over medium-high heat until hot; reduce to medium heat. Add coated poblanos to oil; cook 6 minutes or until crisp, turning to cook on all sides. Place chiles on a baking sheet, and bake at 350° for 8 minutes or until cheese melts. Serve with tomato sauce.

 

This all together took a little over an hour. Such a yummy recipe. I even used the left over salsa just as an appetizer later on in the week with Trader Joe's Veggie Flaxseed Chips!

This recipe was provided by Daniel Croddy in Portland, Maine for Cooking Light, June 2011

Posted and Prepared by Edit Issagholian



Cook Chinese at Home

Chinese food has been my favorite as far as I can remember. The problem is after having it at a restaurant, you feel so heavy and so full even if you don't eat that much. Just makes me really think of how much stuff they put in the food. Has anyone looked at the nutrition facts for Chinese food at restaurants? Our beloved orange peel chicken at PF Chang's is 860 calories a serving. A dish contains 3 servings, so do the math! Sigh. A few birthdays ago, my aunt, Eileen, gave me a wok and a stir-fry cookbook. So far I've made the fried rice multiple times along with a couple of chicken dishes and I've definitely discovered my specialty in cooking! Who would've known? An Armenian girl with a specialty in Chinese food. Hah! It's actually not as hard as I thought it would be. So here's a recipe for egg-fried rice with vegetables and sweet & sour chicken.

Egg-Fried Rice with Vegetables (Serves 4)

Ingredients

4 tbsp vegetable or peanut oil
2 garlic cloves, chopped finely
2 fresh red chilies, seeded and chopped
4 oz mushrooms, sliced
2 oz snow peas, halved
2 oz baby corn, halved
3 tbsp Thai soy sauce
1 tbsp light brown sugar
few Thai basil leaves
3 cups rice, cooked and cooled
2 eggs, beaten
2 onions, sliced


1. Heat half the oil in a wok and saute the garlic and chilies for 2-3 minutes.

2. Add the mushrooms, snow peas, and corn, and stir-fry for 2-3 minutes before adding the soy sauce, sugar, and basil. Stir in the rice.


3. Push the mixture to one side of the wok and add the eggs to the bottom. Stir until lightly set before combinging the rice mixture.

4. Heat the remaining oil in another wok and saute the onions until crispy and brown. Serve the rice topped with the onions.

Sweet & Sour Chicken (Serves 4-6)

Ingredients

1lb lean chicken meat, cubed
5 tbsp vegetable or peanut oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp finely chopped fresh gingerroot
1 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1 onion, coarsely chopped
1 carrot, finely sliced
1tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp finely chopped scallion

Marinade

2 tsp light soy sauce
1 tsp Shaoxing rice wine
pinch of white pepper
1/2 tsp salt
dash of sesame oil

Sauce

8 tbsp rice vinegar
4 tbsp sugar
2 tsp light soy sauce
6 tbsp ketchup

1. Place all the marinade ingredients in a bowl
and marinate chicken pieces for at least 20 minutes



2. To prepare the sauce, heat the vinegar in a pan and add the sugar, light soy sauce, and tomato ketchup. Stir to dissolve the sugar, then set aside.



3. In a preheated wok, heat 3 tablespoons of the oil and stir-fry the chicken until it starts to turn golden brown. Remove and set aside.

4. In the clean wok, heat the remaining oil and cook the garlic and gingerroot until fragrant. Add the vegetables and cook for 2 minutes. Add the chicken and cook for 1 minute. Finally add the sauce and sesame oil, then stir in the scallion and serve.

Prepared and Posted by Edit Issagholian

Banana Bread

Banana Bread

Bananas and I have never really been a good mix especially when I was younger. However, now in my mid 20's I have grown to enjoy the taste of bananas. I guess with age your taste buds develop too. Well, with that said I got this recipe from my old co-worker Blair and loved it! Hope you like it too!

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
7 large ripe bananas, mashed
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 eggs, slightly beaten
3 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda

Makes two loaves of banana bread.

Directions

1. Cream the butter and sugar. Blend in the bananas, vanilla and   eggs.

2. Whisk together the dry ingredients.

3. Add to the bread mixture and mix until just combined. Pour into two greased 9x5 inch loaf pans.

4. Bake at 350F. Check on the bread after 35 minutes (it may take up to 60 minutes). Banana bread is done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool the banana bread in the pan for 10 minutes then cool completely on a wire rack. Enjoy!!!

Posted by Alina Manning

Nectarine Pound Cake

So I gave in and used the oven. I just miss baking too much! At work, we have a client who gets "fruit of the month" from Harry & David and they always provide a recipe card along with the fruit. This month, he decided to give us the fruit so I took two nectarines and the recipe. The recipe is actually quite simple and easy and doesn't take very long to prepare. Sweat on...

Ingredients

2 nectarines

2 tbsp. all-purpose flour

2 tbsp. brown sugar, packed

3/4 cup butter or margarine (I prefer magarine)

1 cup white sugar

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. vanilla

8 oz. non-fat lemon yogurt

1 egg

1 egg white

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 F. Grease a 10 inch. bundt pan and dust with flour (Make sure to grease and flour well or else the nectarines will stick to the pan).

 Blend 2 tbsp. flour and brown sugar together; add nectarines and toss until well coated. Place the mixture in the bottom of the pan.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and white sugar. Blend in flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the vanilla, yogurt, egg, and egg white; beat for 3 minutes at medium speed.







Pour the batter over the nectarines and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the cake and cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Invert onto a wire rack and cool completely before serving. Serves 6-8.

Recipe courtesy of Harry & David

Made by Edit Issagholian