What does Dad get for his retirement? Gluten free Nutella strawberry cupcakes!!

I love the holidays! Its the time of year when families come together and we are reminded of all the blessings we have. My brother came in to town (as he has for many christmas's now) and is with us for 2 weeks. I love the weeks we have together and cherish them since I know it will be many months before I see him again. 

This year he bought the kids gingerbread houses to put together. They had a great time making their little village with Uncle Josh. 

Except for Ally, who's a ham and always smiles.

We had a fantastic Christmas filled with lots of great gifts and lots of great food! 

One of the great foods is these fantastic gluten free strawberry nutella cupcakes! 

I'll start by telling you that my mom and dad came in to town today. We had a mini retirement party for my dad and in lieu of a cake I made these. My mom has celiac sprue so I had to make something that everyone could enjoy. In my hunt for good gluten free food, I've made some really gross stuff. In fact, Ally and I attempted a different cupcake recipe that was just too dense and didn't have a lot of flavor. 

SO, I decided to stick with a tried and true Ree Drummond recipe and turn it gluten free. The finished product tasted almost exactly like the original gluten filled recipe. (that is amazing by the way). I'll give you my gluten free version and also the regular recipe. 

2 sticks (1 cup) butter (I used country crock because I've run out of butter)

4 heaping tablespoons cocoa powder

1 cup hot water.

melt butter in a saucpan, whisk in cocoa powder until smooth, add water and boil for about 30 seconds then remove from heat. 

In a seperate bowl (or mixer) 

1 1/2 cup Domata Flour (this already has the xantham gum added), for the original recipe, use 2 cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1/4teaspoon salt

mix together. 

Add in the cocoa butter mixture and mix until almost all combined.

In a seperate bowl (or a big measuring cup) mx together...

1/2 cup butterilk

2  eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon baking powder.

Add this to the flour mixture.

 

At this point you can either make a cake (fill 2 9inch pans) or you can do like I did and make cupcakes.) This made 18 cupcakes, filled 3/4 of the way full with batter.

Bake at 350 for about 17 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. 

When they are cool, spread a little Nutella on top, add some mascerated strawberries. (to mascerate strawberries, hull and slice strawberries and toss with some sugar (about 1/4 cup of sugar for 2 pints of strawberries).  Top with a little Cool Whip or homemade Whipped Cream. 

For homemade whipped cream:

2 cups heavy cream

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Mix together until soft peaks form. 

If you are making these in advance, I wouldn't reccomend adding the strawberries and whip cream until right before serving. I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as we do. Thanks again, Ree Drummond for another fantastic food!! 

Gluten free slutty brownies

Since I'm slowly moving into the gluten free world, I get excited when something comes out delicious. One thing that didn't come out good ..... Gluten free French bread. They didn't rise, they barely browned, and they were dense. So back to square one for those. 

Yes, this is them fully cooked.

The other night Bradley wanted brownies....and chocolate chip cookies .....rolled together. Ha! Talk about having a sweet tooth! I only had gluten free flour in the house so I figured what the heck, I'll try a homemade brownie recipe. I don't always have good luck with brownies. Sometimes they're too fudgey, too cakey, they never turn out like the box mix. I figured if I couldn't get that beautiful flaky top with regular flour, there was no way I was going to get it with gluten free. 

I scoured the internet and came across the recipe for gluten free slutty brownies. Wonder why they're called slutty? It's because of the menaje a trois of flavor....chocolate chip cookie meets Oreo cookie meets brownie. What could be wrong with that?! My best friend sherry originally introduced me to this cookie...it's one of those that is completely addicting! 

I didn't have any Oreos but I know Walmart has gluten free ones that are less than $4 per pack. Can't tell you if they're any good or not. I'll have to try them sometime. 

Slutty brownies (recipe from zest bakery.com)

Preheat oven to 350.

Chocolate chip cookie recipe

1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temp

1/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup white sugar

1 egg

1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/4 cup gluten free flour (I used domato)

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 cup chocolate chips

Cream together butter and sugars

Add everything else, making sure to scrape sides of bowl. Place mixture in the bottom of a 9x9 greased pan. Place in fridge while you mix up brownies.

1 package gluten free Oreo like cookies (which I left out)

Brownie recipe

10 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 1/4 cup white sugar

3/4 cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 large eggs

1/2 c gluten free flour

In a medium saucepan melt butter. Once it's melted, add sugar and cocoa powder. Remove from heat.  Add salt, vanilla, and eggs. Whisk until combined. Add flour and mix well.

Remove chocolate chip dough from fridge. If your using the Oreos, layer those across the top then cover with the brownie mixture. 

Bake for 35- 40 min or until toothpick comes out clean from brownie layer. 

Chef John Besh book signing!

Yesterday I finally got to meet my cooking idol, Chef John Besh! I had it all planned out, what I was going to say, what picture I wanted taken.....it didn't work that way. 

Here's the kids waiting for him to arrive....

I love the fact that he's a born and raised southern boy. He's been married to his sweetheart for years and they have 4 kids together. I feel like I can relate to him on so many levels! 

When we got up to him, I handed him my books and introduced him to the whole family (which had him laughing.....if you can picture, "this is Ally, Amber, Andrew, Anthony, Alice,  Bradley" as he shook all of their hands. I mentioned that I was a culinary school graduate and that Ally wanted to be a chef but I don't think he heard me. Bradley then piped up and blurted out that he tried his foie gras but couldn't get into it.....Chef Besh laughed and said, "not for you, huh?" 

He then noticed Andrew in his Drew Bree's jersey. He told him "hey Drew Bree's, I'm going to need you to play good this weekend ok." Andrew just nodded his head (because he really had no clue what Chef Besh was talking about, poor kid. Andrew then asked him if he's won any cooking shows. Chef Besh laughed and said "I've won a few...." 

I then went to take a picture with him. I had so much more I wanted to say but felt rushed with the line of people behind us! I had to take a selfie....my hand was shaking and I didn't ask for another but I should have.

Alice and Bradley both took pictures.... Notice one had my eyes closed the other had his eyes closed....

I'm hoping someone can photoshop these so I can have one good picture to frame. All in all it was a great meeting. He was down to earth and seemed like someone we would hang out with. Of course, I think most people from the south are like that. Hopefully I'll meet him again in the future and get to pick his brain!

"Rustic" apple pie!

As you all may or May not know, I'm a little bit in love with chef john besh. I finally received my copy of his new cookbook on Saturday.

 By Sunday morning I had read it cover to cover. This is his 3rd cookbook. I love that each of his books has at least one "ah ha" story in it. A story that makes me stop and think and reevaluate my life as a cook. 

This particular book has some great recipes (and some I may never use but I'm glad I know). He also did this 

I love the step by step pictures he's included in some of the recipes (this is also something Ree Drummond does on her blog!) 

So for my first attempt at one of these recipes I made a sweet tart dough for an apple pie.

Basic sweet tart dough

1 stick cold butter

2 1/4 c flour (plus more for rolling)

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup milk

1 egg

1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

1 teaspoon salt

In a large mixing bowl cut the butter into the flour until the flour has the consistency of semolina. Add sugar, milk, egg, salt and mix by hand until crumbly dough is formed. Shape dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 30 min ( or freeze for later use). 

Apple pie filling

5-6 apples ( I use Fuji but you can use any kind you like). Peeled, cored, diced

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 stick butter, cut into pieces

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

(You can also add walnuts, pecans, or trade out a few of the apples for pears)

Preheat oven to 350. 

On a well floured surface roll the dough into a large oval ( a little less than 1/4 in thick).  Transfer to a baking sheet. (The dough may split, it's no biggie, just push the dough back together)

In a large bowl toss the apples with brown sugar. Add butter and toss again. Add cinnamon and lemon juice, toss again. 

Mound the fruit mix on top of the dough and wrap dough over fruit covering most of it.

 Bake until crust is golden brown (about 1 hour). 

Remove from oven and let cool a bit.

This recipe is easy and delicious! The dough is awesome! A great alternative to regular pie crust. ( it's very quick to make and tastes better than the store bought. 

I'll be making some more john besh recipes soon so keep watching!

Thanksgiving and Butternut Squash Soup!

Sorry, it's been a while since I've done a new post. With Thanksgiving and Black Friday shopping, it has been crazy here!
We had Thanksgiving dinner with Bradley's family. We had a great time with lots of good food!
Alice, Amber, my friend Machelle, and I had big plans for black Friday shopping. (Not sure why it's still called Black Friday though when we actually went out on Thanksgiving!) We got to Walmart right before 6pm and it was crazy! People were parking on the other side of the street and walking. We decided against that so headed to another Walmart. The amount of people there was crazy but I am happy to say that we got the one thing we were waiting in line for!

 

We also hit up Kirklands, Kohl's, Ulta, Best Buy, and Target....had a late dinner at Waffle House and were home by about 1:30am. I had a great time and can't wait to go again next year! (You up for it again Machelle?)

 

Now, onto the Butternut Squash Soup!

I've actually never had Butternut Squash Soup so I don't have anything to compare it to but it tasted good to me! Bradley even liked it! My friend Sherry said she  makes it and serves it with Ciabatta with Parmesan Cheese.

 

First off, take a butternut squash, cut it in half. Brush some melted butter all over and sprinkle some salt and pepper. Put it in a 425 degree oven for about an hour. This is the finished product.

Let cool enough to handle the squash and then scoop out the flesh from the skin.

 

 

1 medium granny smith apple, peeled and diced

1/2 onion, chopped

3 or 4 Basil leaves

1 tablespoon butter

 

Melt butter in saucepan and add apple, onion, and basil. Saute until soft. About 7 minutes.

 

 

 

At this point, add in the "meat" from the squash and throw out the skin.

Cook another couple of minutes then add in chicken broth, water, and a little more salt and pepper.

 

1 1/2 cup chicken broth

1 1/2 cup water

 

Bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium and let simmer about 15 minutes to let the flavors "marry" together. Break apart any large pieces of squash as you go.

Remove from heat and add in about 1/4 cup half and half.

Using an immersion blender, blend until soup is smooth. (you can also use a blender or food processor, just make sure to keep the small cap from he lid off so that the steam can escape and the main lid doesn't pop off). Taste and season with more salt and pepper as needed.

 

 

 

You can garnish this with basil pesto, pumpkin seeds, etc.

 

Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

Chocolate Chip Cookies.

These cookies are so good that they don't even last long enough for me to take a decent picture! ha!

I've used this recipe since I started baking when I was about 10. It's the one actual recipe that I know by heart!

2 1/4 cups Flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
2 sticks butter, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 package chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375.

Cream together sugars and butter, add in vanilla and eggs. Continue mixing about 2 minutes. Turn mixer to low and gently add in the baking soda and flour. Fold in chocolate chips.
Bake for about 10 min or until golden brown.

Tip: I use a melon baller to portion the dough onto the cookie sheet. Of course you can make them as big or as little as possible.

Christmas Decorations....craft time!

Alice, the kids, and I spent the last few days decorating the house for Christmas. I'm not really into Thanksgiving. Don't get me wrong, I love to eat....and I love to cook, but for some reason, this year, I'm just really ready for Christmas!
Alice is such a great Mother in Law. We went shopping and she ended up getting some great new decorations for the house (since our new house is so big, I really don't have enough to fill it.) One thing we found when we went shopping was that there are some really cheaply made decorations at ridiculous prices!!
During the course of the shopping trip, we decided to get crafty with certain things. Thanks to Pintrest, we have become a way more creative family! (If you haven't been on pintrest, you need to be!)

Here's our projects!

 

 

We bought 2 of these wreaths for $4. (from Old Time Pottery) They were plain green.  We then bought the little decorations from Hobby Lobby along with a can of spray snow. The decorations were about $6 and the spray snow was $4.  So for about $11 (because we used very little of the spray snow) we made a wreath that was selling everywhere else for at least $40!

 

 

Here's both of them. The Pointsettas were $6 at Lowes. The candy cane striped Christmas tree things were about $12 for all 3 from Old Time Pottery.

 

 

Next, Alice bought us this cute little tree from Lowes ($15, and it came in a watering stand) Ally thought it was colder than 50 degrees here yesterday. Ha!

 

 

We decided to decorate the tree and put some "presents" under it. Amber, Ally, and Andrew all helped wrap some empty boxes to put under there.

 

The finished product. I still need to put a tree topper on it. Luckily, I have enough ornaments to fill 2 full trees!

 

 

Here's my tree inside. One year I'd like to get a bigger one to fit in my big house. This tree is 99% Disney. There are 1 or 2 non Disney ornaments that the kids snuck on there. Normally, I try to fit every ornament I own on this one tree. I really need to buy another tree. ....

 

 

Here's the planter. I used some of the spray snow in it, then added some loose "snow" throughout. We had the white twinkle lights in it from Amber's 16th Birthday and I added a garland wrapped in colored lights to it.

 

 

This is our other project that Alice and Amber did. Bradley made the boxes out of chicken wire, then the girls wrapped it in lights and garland. We found decorations like this for over $50!!  (And they were smaller in size!) Since we only had to buy the garland, it cost about $15 to make both.

 

 

All of the stockings were hung by the chimney with care.....I'm hoping that next Christmas, I'll be able to add one for Elena! :-).....although Bradley may have to make a bigger mantle! ha!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Creamy Crawfish Pasta, a bowl of deliciousness!

Living in the south we have lots of seafood, fresh seafood. We love to have crab boils, shrimp boils, and crawfish boils. What I love is after the boils, I can take what is left over and turn it into another meal. (do you see a pattern with multiple meals from one thing?)  Crawfish covered in crab boil is just delicious!
So, last night, I made creamy crawfish pasta. It was AH-MAZING! Seriously! You can get crawfish tails from your freezer section at walmart as a substitute or you can even use shrimp in this dish....whatever you like.
On to the recipe!

1 lb Pasta of your choice
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, finely diced
1/2 bell pepper, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons Emerils Essence (or you can make your own, recipe to follow)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 c dry white wine (I used the yellow tail pinot grigio)
2 cups half and half or heavy cream. (if you use half and half, you may need to use a little flour or cornstarch slurry to thicken the sauce)
Juice from 1 lemon
1 lb crawfish tails

Heat oil in a saucepan, sauté onions until starting to soften then add in garlic and bell pepper. Cook until all veggies are soft. Add in emerils essence, salt, and cayenne and cook about 1 min. Add in wine and cook down until almost evaporated. Add in half and half and lemon juice. Cook until sauce is thickened some.

 

 Add in crawfish tails and cook until they are warmed through.

 Toss with cooked pasta. Sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top and serve!

 

Don't judge me....I had to use 2 different types of pasta. When I went to pull out the box of penne, I realized it was only half full so I had to mix and match! ha!

 

Another neat kitchen gadget....

 

My mom got me this last year and I love love love it! It keeps the water from ever boiling over!

It's the Kuhn Rikon Spill stopper.

 

 

Essence creole seasoning

 

2 1/2 tablespoons paprika

                                                 2 tablespoons salt
                                                 2 tablespoons garlic powder
                                                 1 tablespoon black pepper
                                                 1 tablespoon onion powder
                                                 1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
                                                 1 tablespoon dried oregano
                                                 1 tablespoon dried thyme

 

Roasted Chicken and the Thermapen

Ally is my mini chef. She likes to cook dinner for the family once a week or so. I try to just step back and only help her if she asks for it because I think the best way for her to learn it to figure it out.

 

Wednesday, she wanted to cook dinner. I already had a whole chicken that I was going to do something with so she decided to Roast it. I love making whole chickens because 1.They're cheap, 2. I can get a couple of meals out the them.
Normally when I do a whole chicken, I'll use it for enchiladas. I'll start by boiling the chicken and making a stock. I end up getting a bit of chicken stock that I freeze for later use.
Here's what Ally decided to do with the chicken....

(after rinsing off the chicken and removing the giblet bag from inside....this is important. If you don't remove it, it gets nasty inside when you cook it....trust me, I speak from experience)
Liberally salt and pepper inside the chicken cavity then fill with a lemon  sliced in half, 1/2 head of garlic, and 2 sprigs of thyme.

Tie chickens legs together and tuck under the wings.
Rub butter all over the outside of the chicken, sprinkle with salt, pepper, thyme. (I used dry thyme but you can also use fresh), cover with Bacon. I would cover with more bacon than Ally used, and I would maybe toothpick the ends of it down so it doesn't curl up like ours did.
Place in roasting dish and Roast on 425 for about an hour (or until 165 degrees inside).




I don't have any after pictures.....I'll get better at remembering, I promise.

Last Christmas my brother bought me a Thermapen. It's one of my must have kitchen tools!! If you don't have one, get one!

Today is Mickey Mouse's Birthday!

He's 85 years young today and I have to say, he looks pretty darn good for his age! :-)

 

 

Mickey and I have had some really great memories together!

 

 

My family and I love to eat with him at his numerous restaurants!

 

 

We loved seeing his home in Toon Town (before it was moved).

 

When I was younger, he let the Serrano Diamondbacks march at Disneyland for Magic Music Days. (I'm in there somewhere!)

 

 

I got to try and help my little sister pull the sword out of the stone. Never could get it out. Darn thing is really stuck in there!

 

Happy Birthday to my favorite mouse!!