Do Not Try: Garlic Cream Cheese Omelet

Ok, this is my first posting of Do Not Try. No picture, which is probably for the best, because it looked really yummy. And the idea sounded yummy. It just didn't taste yummy. At all. I decided to post it so 1) you know I'm not perfect (haha) and 2) you never try it yourself. So here's the recipe:

Do Not Make a Garlic Cream Cheese Omelet
Does not Make One Omelet


Do not use these Ingredients:
1 dash olive oil
1 green onion
3 eggs
2 dashes pepper
2 dashes garlic powder
6 dollops cream cheese

Do not begin Preparation:
Do not heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Do not chop the green onion and add to the pan. Do not mix the eggs with the remaining ingredients and pour over lightly-browned onion. Do not stir gently to fully incorporate onion and cream cheese and fluff up the eggs. Do not let the eggs settle and brown on the bottom. Do not flip the omelet over to brown the other side before removing to a plate.

Do not Enjoy!

Perfect Brownies

They say you can't improve perfection, and when I first made these brownies according to the recipe at How to Cook Like Your Grandmother, I didn't believe they could get any better. But today I noticed the cinnamon sitting innocently on the counter and I thought to myself "Hmmmmmmm cinnamon...." Now, I'm a huge cinnamon lover, but if you're not a fan, feel free to leave it out. One important thing about this recipe that is mentioned on the original is to make sure you use good-quality chocolate. The chocolate is the flavour here, so why not try to make it the best it can be? Ghirardelli is a good choice for both the cocoa and the chips. And for those of you who just make box brownies because cooking from scratch is "too difficult and time-consuming", this recipe is no more difficult than the box. All you need are the ingredients, a bowl, a spoon, and a metal pan, same as a box mix. Except much, much tastier.

Perfect Brownies
Preheat oven to 325° - Makes 1 pan of brownies

Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa powder
2 T. cinnamon
3/4 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 c. butter, melted
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Preparation:
Mix all ingredients together. Pour into a lightly-greased 13x9inch pan. Cook for 20 minutes or until a fork comes out clean.

That's it. Easy enough for you? I like to mix the dry ingredients first, then add the wet ones, but I don't think it's necessary. Also, lining the pan with parchment (NOT wax) paper or tin foil allows for easy removal and very quick clean-up. Be careful when testing for done-ness with a fork, if it stabs a chocolate chip it will look messy. Oh, and don't forget to lick the bowl... brownie batter is scrumptious (though beware the raw eggs...).

Enjoy!


---Try this Meal!---


*Original recipe

Garlic Toast

This is a really easy recipe, as long as you make sure not to over-spice or over-saturate with oil.

Garlic Toast

Makes about 12 toasts

Ingredients:

1 French baguette
olive oil
garlic powder
onion salt
dried basil

Preparation:
Slice the baguette into 2" pieces. Use a pastry brush to coat the tops in olive oil. Sprinkle on the spices, being wary of the onion salt (I put a bit too much on mine, still yummy, but quite salty). The best way to do this is to pour the spice in your hand and use your fingers to sprinkle it. Pouring directly from the spice jar is a good way to get way too much.
Set oven to Broil, making sure the top rack is as high as it can go. Place bread on rack and watch carefully while they toast. Rotate as necessary to ensure they all get evenly browned.

Enjoy!


---Try this Meal!---

Rainbow Pasta

Ok, this recipe is made completely from scratch. Basically the knowledge of how to do this came from me watching my mother cook "clean-out-the-fridge" pasta dishes. But frankly, I think it's just the 1/4 Italian heritage coming out. Pasta is in my blood. I apologize in advance for the sketchiness of this recipe, but I didn't measure anything. Sometimes you just have to go with it. And actually, this can be modified to include whatever vegetables you have lying around. A bit of portobello mushroom or some broccoli florets would compliment it well.

Rainbow Pasta
Makes: Enough.

Ingredients:
thin spaghetti or bowtie pasta
1 splash of olive oil
2 garlic cloves
3 green onions
1 zuchinni
1 yellow squash
1 dash of salt
1 dash of pepper
2 dashes dried basil
1 pinch oregano
1 can of sliced black olives
1/4 c. julienned sun-dried tomatoes in oil
mozzarella or parmesan cheese (or both!)

Preparation:
In a medium skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Dice the garlic cloves and add to the oil. Chop the onions, going all the way to about four inches from the end, add to the garlic. Let simmer for a little bit and enjoy one of the best scents in the world. Meanwhile, thinly slice the zucchini and squash. Add to the pan and stir to coat in oil. Add another splash of oil if necessary. Sprinkle on seasonings. Let cook for a while, and get started cooking the pasta according to package directions. Once the zucchini and squash are soft to the touch (try eating one, but be careful, they're hot!), drain the black olives and sun-dried tomatoes and add to the pan.
Once the pasta is al dente, drain it and place in a large bowl. Top with the veggie mixture and your choice of cheese.

Enjoy!




---Try this meal!---

Meal Deal: Rainbow Pasta, Garlic Toast and Perfect Brownies

Just came up with a new feature here today: Pairing food together to form a meal. It basically happened because, well, I made dinner, so of course it all goes together. :) It's kind of funny, really, I've spent the past week or so collecting recipes and putting them altogether in a nice little recipe box, and really could not wait to try some of them. But then I got the opportunity to cook for some friends of mine, and suddenly none of the recipes I had sounded very good. I don't like following directions... I like creating. So after work today I browsed around the grocery store and put together the following dishes:

Rainbow Pasta

Garlic Bread

Perfect Brownies

(click the links to access the recipes)

Now to clean up the kitchen >,>

Vanilla Pudding Crêpes

I do make things that aren't desserty or sweet. I really do. But recently, I guess I've had a baking/sweet tooth that will not go away. Which is ok, because it's turning into some really yummy food. Inspired by one of my new favorite shows (MasterChef), I wanted to cook something with vanilla. One of my all-time favorites is home made vanilla pudding, but I felt that was too simple, and could be compiled with something else to make something even more fabulous. So here you go, Vanilla Pudding Crêpes. I was quite surprised with the pudding recipe I chose... it only took about 15 minutes or less to cook. I'm used to stirring for about an hour or so for pudding, but this one is really quick. Still tastes amazing, too!

Vanilla Pudding Crêpes

Makes 6-8 crêpes

Crêpe Ingredients:

1/2 c. milk

2/3 c. water

1/4 c. butter, melted

1 T. vanilla

1 c. flour

1 T sugar

1/4 t. salt

1 T. vegetable oil

Pudding Ingredients:

2 c. milk

1/2 c. sugar

3 T. cornstarch

1/4 t. salt

1 t. vanilla

1 T. butter

Fruit for topping (bananas, strawberries, blueberries, etc)

Powdered sugar

Preparation:

Basically what we're going to do here is make the crêpe batter and stick it in the fridge to set while the pudding is made. Got it? Ok, let's go.

Working off the crêpe ingredient list: In a medium bowl, mix together milk, water, melted butter, and vanilla. In a small bowl thoroughly mix flour, sugar, and salt. Whisk flour mixture into milk mixture until batter is smooth. Cover and place in the fridge.

Now working from the pudding ingredients: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat the milk until bubbles form at the edges. In a bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Pour into hot milk, a little at a time, stirring to dissolve. Continue to cook and stir until mixture thickens enough to coat the back of a metal spoon. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla and butter. Place in the fridge to set.

(You can go ahead and finish the crêpes now, or let the pudding and batter set for about an hour or so. It all depends on the consistency you're looking for. I tried it both ways, since I had one right away and then made some for my parents [and myself] later.)

When ready, heat a medium frying pan to medium hot, adding just a tiny bit of oil. Pour in enough batter to thinly coat the bottom of the pan. You should have to swirl the pan around to get the batter to the edges. This takes a little work, and you might have a couple really gimpy crêpes before you get the knack. Cook the crêpe until the edges are crispy and golden, then flip to cook the other side until lightly browned.

Remove directly to a plate. Place pudding down the middle of the crêpe, and top with sliced or mashed fruit. Quickly fold in the sides before the crêpe has time to settle, creating a wrap. Top with powdered sugar.

Enjoy!

*Original crêpe recipe

*Original pudding recipe

Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

This recipe is not modified, really. But it's translated for American convenience. My friend Sara introduced me last night to the Good Mood Food Blog. I instantly fell in love (with the food, of course >.>) and couldn't wait to try one of his fabulous recipes. These bagels instantly caught my eye. I had always heard that bagels were difficult to make, but the recipe, while somewhat time-consuming and multi-faceted, did not seem as challenging as I'd presumed it would be. Actually, since the recipe was listed in grams and milligrams and called for the strange request of "strong flour", the most difficult part was figuring out what was meant. I got a bit of help from my sister, who has had experience with european recipes, and was soon ready to begin.

And they turned out fabulously. They are possibly the most wonderful bagels I have ever had. Give them a try, it's totally worth it.

Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

Preheat oven to 375° - Makes a baker's dozen

Ingredients:

4+ c. bread flour

1 1/2 c. lukewarm water

1 packet active dry yeast

3 T. sugar

1 T. cinnamon

3/4 c. raisins

1 beaten egg

Preparation:

Spread the raisins out and make sure that all the stems have been removed, then place in a bowl of boiling water and soak for 30 minutes.

Put the flour in a large bowl and make a deep well in the center with a spoon. Pour the water, yeast, and sugar into the well and let sit for 6-8 minutes or until it becomes thick and frothy. Add the cinnamon and salt. Use the spoon to slowly incorporate the flour into the yeast and water mix until you form a dough. Add up to half a cup more flour if needed. Turn the dough out on to a floured surface and knead in the raisins. Continue kneading for 4-5 minutes until the dough becomes smooth and elastic. Grease the mixing bowl, place the dough in and cover with a damp cloth. Leave in a warm place for 30 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Punch the dough down and separate into 13 equal pieces. Form each piece into a circle. Place on wax paper and cover with the damp cloth. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 375°

Bring a large pot of water to boil, then lower the heat to a medium-low and drop in about four bagels, making sure they're not crowded. Cook the bagels for a minute on either side, turning with a spoon. Drain the bagels and place on a floured baking sheet. Brush with a little beaten egg and put in the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

I had to put the bagels on two different cookie sheets, and placed one on the top and one on the bottom rack of the oven. I switched them halfway through and they turned out just fine.

I did have a bit of trouble removing the bagels from the pans, so I would consider lightly greasing the pan, using cornmeal, or just making sure the pan is really floured.

Enjoy!

*Original recipe

Black Forest Cupcakes - Vegan!

I decided to look up eggless cupcakes, as I am trying to find recipes I will be able to shrink for a project in the future. Eggs, especially when there's only one egg, limit the amount of changes you can make to a recipe, unless you're willing to waste half or more of an egg. I had not previously been aware of using vinegar as an egg substitute, but quickly realized that there are several vegan sites out there that utilize this technique. I was thrilled, as the whole powdered egg substitute thing kind of freaks me out. Anyway, long story short, I found a chocolate cupcake recipe that sounded scrumptious, and went from there. It's quite an easy "dump and stir" recipe, no crazy techniques required. Here is my edited recipe

Black Forest Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350° - Makes 1 Dozen

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. flour

1 c. granulated sugar

1 t. baking soda

1 t. salt

1/3 c. cocoa powder (the better quality of the cocoa, the better they will taste!)

1 T. instant coffee

1/2 c. oil

1 c. water

1 t. vanilla extract

1 T. vinegar

24 maraschino cherries

24 chocolate chips*

12 cupcake liners

Preparation:

Mix dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients all at once and mix until moist and well blended.

Place the cupcake liners in the depressions of a cupcake pan. Fill each liner 1/3 full of batter.

Remove the cherries from their juice and carefully insert one chocolate chip inside each cherry. Drop two cherries into each cupcake, and add remaining batter, not allowing them to exceed 2/3 full.

Bake at 350° for 18-22 minutes or until an inserted fork comes out clean. Leave cupcakes in pan for five minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool. Cool completely before frosting.

Best-Ever White Icing

Ingredients:

4 c. confectioners' sugar

1 c. shortening

2 T. water

1 t. vanilla extract

1/3 c. chocolate chips*, optional

Preparation:

In a large bowl, combine sugar, shortening, water and vanilla. Beat on low speed to combine, then on medium-high for five minutes to ensure smoothness. Add additional water if needed. Stir in 10-12 drops liquid food coloring, if desired. Smooth over cupcakes.

Place chocolate chips in a plastic bag. Microwave for 30 seconds. Knead the bag, and microwave for additional time if not liquified. Snip a corner of the bag and pipe onto the frosted cupcakes in a zig-zag design.

Enjoy!

*Note, to make this truly vegan, you should make sure the chocolate chips used do not have milk/milkfat in them, or just skip them, as they're optional.

*Original cupcake recipe

*Original icing recipe