Archive for March 2008

« Older Entries

New York Egg Cream Soda

March 31, 2008 | Author Leah Q. Art Designer
This is a classic breakfast drink I order when I am at the diner or when I am aching for something chocolaty and it’s not that bad for you either…really…and contrary to non-believers, there is NO egg in egg creams sodas…recipe is from the late 1800′s so I am sure there are no mistakes in this one rofl……

Ingredients:
  • One extra large glass
  • 2 ounces of chocolate syrup – I use Nestles (no fat) – or more
  • 5 ounces milk (skim to whole milk ok)
  • 5 ounces seltzer – freshly open is best
  • 1 fork/whisk to stir

Directions

  1. In one large glass, pour milk till halfway up glass.
  2. Add chocolate syrup to make extra chocolaty.
  3. With fork or whisk, stir well till combined.
  4. Open fresh bottle of seltzer.
  5. While stirring ‘chocolated’ milk with fork or whisk all the while, add seltzer to fill glass to 1/2 inch below rim.
  6. Continue to stir till combined.
  7. Bubbles in seltzer will continue to form (like champagne) after you have
    finished stirring and will appear like the head on a properly poured
    beer.
  8. Serve it up to one closest to you.
  9. Note: I have use this as a hangover cure in the past when I used to drink- it’s like a yoohoo gone soda, and no I will not tell you how often I have hangovers….but I will tell you
    that I usually make this at least 2x a month for the fun of it for a dessert drink when I really need chocolate but do not wish the extra pounds of say a chocolate pound cake – lol.

Technorati Tags: , , ,

Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , | No Comments »

Creamy Chocolate Almond Butter Cream Frosting Recipe

March 31, 2008 | Author Leah Q. Art Designer
Who doesn’t love chocolate – This unexpected twist on milk chocolate frosting has almond extract as flavoring adding a delightful “adult-touch” to the frosting – perfect to use as decorating frosting too. Keeps really well and can be used as the “insides of mock truffles” See comments below for the how to on mock truffles.…

Ingredients
  • 1 box (1 pound) of confectioners sugar sifted roughly 3-1/2 cups
  • 1/2 cup butter at room temperature (1 stick) (margarine will make a much softer frosting not great for decorating)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 3/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
  • 4-5 tablespoons liquid – milk preferred – but water works great too.
  • 2/3 cups cocoa (I’ve tried the 3 oz squares of melted unsweetened chocolate
    - but really prefer the dried cocoa to melted chocolate which made a
    mess and screwed up the proportions of liquid measurements)
  • Equipment needed: Mixmaster such as kitchen-aid or hand mixer. Couple of bowls.
    Sieve to sift sugar, One cake readying themselves to be covered with
    delicious-tasting chocolate frosting and peeps to lick the beaters
    (yourself included, of course)

Directions

  1. Sift confectioners sugar and sift one more time with the cocoa powder and salt. – Set aside temporarily.
  2. Take butter and place in mixing bowl, whip till lighter in color maybe 2-3 minutes.
  3. Take and add about 1/3 third of powered sugar which now has the sifted cocoa
    powder in it, to the mixing bowl. Start mixer slowly at first to avoid
    sugar cloud coming up from out of the bowl with all that powdered sugar.
  4. Increase speed to incorporate well, stop mixer on occasion to scrape sides down
    with spatula to ensure all butter is incorporated into frosting.
  5. Add additional third of powered sugar along with 2 tablespoons of milk or
    liquid of your choice. Start mixer again to incorporate.
  6. Add last third of powdered sugar, and two tablespoons of remaining milk.
    Start mixer again slowly at first with each addition of powdered sugar,
    scraping bowl as necessary.
  7. If frosting is too stiff for you, you can then add the additional one tablespoon of milk
    at a time (or liquid you chose to use) – be sure to mix well at high
    speed to create the creamy texture this frosting is known for.
  8. Grab that cake and start frosting away!
  9. Want to learn about the mock truffles? See comments below…
  10. Enjoy! – This recipe is part of my holiday jelly roll cake that was a huge success this last Christmas holiday.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , ,


Mock Truffles:

You can make these when you are in a jam and even have some leftover frosting if you made the recipe above.

Get frosting cold by chilling it in the refrigerator, and using a little melon scoop, roll a ball of it with your hands, moving quickly. Then roll balls into sifted confectioner’s sugar or straight cocoa powder. Let put back into fridge until ready to serve. These melt in your mouth – and are so decadent.

Posted in desserts | Tags: , , , | No Comments »

How to Make Homemade Jerk Seasoning

March 31, 2008 | Author Leah Q. Art Designer
There are both dry rubs and and wet rubs known as as jerk marinades to use in your cooking. And like Gumbo from the South, each person may have their own version of what makes up their jerk seasoning. But the primary ingredients include allspice (Jamaican pimento) and Scotch bonnet peppers (among the hottest peppers on the Scoville scale). Other ingredients include cloves, cinnamon, scallions, nutmeg, thyme, garlic, which are mixed together to form a marinade which is rubbed onto pork, chicken, or fish. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , | No Comments »

Quick Shrimp Hoisin or Shrimp with Cashews

March 30, 2008 | Author Leah Q. Art Designer

Easy and quick and oh so tasty, I had to share this concoction I made last night. The colors are bright, the food healthy – serve it up with cilantro basmati rice as shown in photo. You could easily grill or sautee shrimp as well which I had originally intended to, but ended up stir frying them – the shrimp were extra juicy and bursted with amazing flavors when bitten into – now that’s what I am talking about!…


Ingredients
  • 5 jumbo shrimp per person – with shells still on, yet de-veined and cleaned. – Available this way as frozen in bags and per pound in your fish section as the store. (I went with the frozen and pick your own – they are already cleaned, deveined and can easily be thawed quickly in cold water which is what I did) – these shrimp satisfy super-picky people with their freshness – as they are cleaned and frozen basically right on the boat.
  • 1 large red sweet bell pepper
  • 1 large onion, cut up into large slices
  • 3 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 tablespoons fresh minced cilantro
  • 2 scallions chopped
  • 1 cup or more of snap peas
  • 1/2 cup cashews (optional)
  • red chili flakes (optional)
  • ***For marinade:
  • Juice and zest of one lemon
  • salt & pepper
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 or 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce (available in the Asian section of your grocery store – I prefer Kikomen’ Hoisin Sauce) – really makes the dish!
  • 1-2 tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon or more of sesame oil – really makes the dish!
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • ******
  • ***Cooked rice ready to serve since this dish cooks up quite quickly.

Directions

  1. Take shrimp and quick thaw if frozen in cold water, rinsing water every so often. Once thawed, drain well and pat dry shrimp well with paper towels.
  2. In bowl, place juice and zest of one lemon, hoisin sauce, olive oil, good amount of salt and fresh cracked pepper, soy sauce, sugar and sesame oil. Stir ingredients in bowl till incorporated.
  3. Place now dried shrimp into bowl to marinade for at least 10 minutes and up to 2 hours for extra full flavor – stir on occasion to ensure all shrimp are covered with marinade.
  4. ***At this point, you can take shrimp outside to grill or with a little oil and butter in pan and sautee in your skillet, but the following directions is for stir frying with the remaining ingredients.
  5. Get your wok super hot.
  6. While wok is getting hot, cut up your red pepper, rinse your snap peas and cut up your onion.
  7. Carefully add your wok oil or vegetable oil – 2 tablespoons and slowly tilt your wok so that oil bastes the bottom of your wok. I used stir fry oil flavored with garlic and ginger and added a little sesame oil to the mix.
  8. Carefully add onions and peppers to your wok, since some splattering may occur due to the hot oil. Stir frequently.
  9. Add some salt and pepper and if you would like, some red chili flakes.
  10. Once onions and peppers cook for three minutes, add shrimp.
  11. Since shrimp are jumbo, get them to be at the bottom, while pushing onion and peppers aside. Turn shrimp over when one side of shrimp is pink.
  12. Add scallions, garlic and snap peas to wok. Continue cooking till shrimp are cooked (hey take one out and taste-test it like I did and you’ll know you are ready!)
  13. You may want to add 1 teaspoon sugar, additional soy sauce, hoisin sauce or sesame sauce which I did with fantastic results.
  14. Add fresh cilantro and optional cashews just before serving.
  15. Serve immediately with your rice or other chosen side.
  16. I served mine up with my ‘basmati oh so nice rice’ with extra minced cilantro and minced scallions added at the last moment and stirred into rice just before serving. But this would also go very well over pasta or Chinese noodles. Enjoy!

Posted in chinese dinner ideas | Tags: , , , , , | No Comments »

Warm Bacon Salad Dressing-Vinaigrette

March 29, 2008 | Author Leah Q. Art Designer
Who doesn’t love bacon? Ok there are a few of you out there, but for so many of us, it’s a delectable tidbit we indulge in every so often.

This easy to make and oh so delicious warm bacon salad dressing I perfected after craving and recreating it from a local fave restaurant. This one does not call for cornstarch as I have seen elsewhere – I have made this one for years…It’s a simple twist on my Balsamic Salad Dressing – this one obviously goes great over spinach salad...but any fresh looking salad greens will do.

Remember to allow the dressing to cool slightly, so that you don’t unintentionally wilt your salad greens.

Ingredients:

  • 1 pound bacon – thick sliced is best

  • 1 small onion-diced or minced/or three shallots minced

  • 1 teaspoon dry mustard

  • 1 tablespoon grainy dijon mustard

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

  • 1 cup olive oil

  • 1/3-1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

  • Juice of one lemon (2-3 tablespoons)

  • 3 cloves garlic – minced

  • 3 tablespoons honey

  • 5 tablespoons mayonnaise

  • ****Equipment Needed:

  • Skillet, bowls, whisk, slotted spoon, One naked salad needing awesomely homemade warm bacon salad dressing

Directions:

  1. The first trick when making this salad dressing dish, is not to overcook your bacon nor cook it too fast.

  2. Slice up bacon into 3/4″ inch pieces

  3. In skillet, and add one tablespoon of olive oil into cold skillet.

  4. Place cold bacon in cold skillet.

  5. Turn on heat to medium – and let bacon slowly crisp on.

  6. If bacon fat, while cooking, is spattering onto your stove top, you are cooking the bacon too fast. Cooking bacon on medium and not high heat is best.

  7. Stir on occasion to turn bacon pieces over so they can brown evenly.

  8. While bacon is cooking, dice up onions and mince garlic.

  9. In separate bowl, add minced garlic, mayonnaise, mustard, honey and salt and pepper. Measure vinegars and add to bowl.

  10. With whisk, stir to incorporate well.

  11. Slowly with stirring with whisk, add olive oil very slowly stirring all the while to make an emulsion. Using a blender might make this step easier for some.

  12. Once bacon is crisp and cooked, using a slotted spoon, remove bacon and set aside allowing it to drain over some paper towels placed on top of a bowl.

  13. Remove most of bacon fat, reserving roughly three tablespoons of bacon in skillet.

  14. Wipe sides of skillet of any dripped bacon fat before returning to stove.

  15. Keeping heat on a medium to medium-low, add onions and let become translucent – maybe five minutes time.

  16. Turn heat off. Slowly add vinegar and oil mixture, the skillet will still be hot and mixture may bubble on you.

  17. Turn heat back on and let simmer (not boil) for three minutes.

  18. Let hot dressing cool 5-10 minutes before adding to salads, in case you do not wish to “cook” or wilt your salad greens – it will still be warm.

  19. Right before using salad dressing, add your bacon back to the salad dressing. And voila, add over your favorite salad.

Enjoy!

Technorati Tags: , ,

Posted in how to make, Recipe, spinach salad ideas | Tags: , , , | No Comments »
« Older Entries
Get a Free Chapter of my Cookbook before Anyone Else with Signing up for my Newsletter.
* indicates required

Designed by Leah Quinn.