Homemade Easter Eggs

One thing for certain. Holly and I are deeply rooted in family traditions, particularly during the holidays. Easter is no exception to the myriad of traditions we like to carry on from generation to generation. One of Holly's favorite Easter treats has always been a peanut butter egg. She has many stories from her youth of inhaling these left and right. Combining her love of store bought Reese's Peanut Butter Eggs, with my passion of making most everything from scratch, we decided to start a new tradition of making homemade peanut butter eggs in tempered chocolate. Growing up, my family always made candy at Christmas time. Lots of flavored fondants were hand formed, hand dipped and beautifully packaged. I've carried on that tradition with Holly for our family. Additionally at Easter my Mom and her mother use to make divinity and marshmallow eggs to dip in tempered chocolate and share with the family. Since it's way to humid to make divinity in Seattle, trust me I've tried several times, we started our tradition of peanut butter fondant eggs and peppermint fondant eggs to share with friends and family for Easter.



Some good 60% dark chocolate has been melting overnight, and is ready for tempering. Right alongside that, is a batch of peanut butter fondant and a batch of peppermint fondant to roll out and shape.



Me pausing for a photo-op to take a pic of our production line in our kitchen. Hand cut, rolled out, then shaped. Holly putting some finishing touches on the "egg" shapes of our rolled out fondant.



Letting the fondant eggs dry and get a slight crust. I've learned from practice that they dip easier this way. And the tempered chocolate adheres and doesn't flow off.



All the finished eggs hand dipped, allowed to dry, and packaged up in foils. Glossy carrot orange foil for the peanut butter fondant eggs, and a pretty aqua foil for the peppermint eggs. Good Easter colors! Homemade eggs, and a continued Craven tradition have been adjusted slightly for Holly and I to carry on in our household, and with our daughter someday. Time to share these with our friends and neighbors.

Smokey Spicy Hummus

Nothing beats good from scratch hummus. I've been whirling up a batch each week for work, to enjoy with raw vegetables. It's been fun playing around with different flavors. Here is one of my recipes with smoked paprika and cayenne that tastes good with the traditional lemon and cumin. Super easy and a cinch in your food processor.

Dan's Smoked Paprika Hummus

1 15oz Can Garbanzo Beans
1 15oz Can Cannellini Beans
¼ C Tahini Paste
3 Cloves Garlic
1 Lg Lemon, Zested & Juiced
1 TBS Ground Cumin
½ Tsp Cayenne Pepper
1 Tsp Smoked Paprika
Salt & Pepper to Taste
½ to ¾ Cup Olive Oil

Rinse beans. Place in food processor with all remaining ingredients. Mix to combine and check seasonings. Pulse again and add enough olive oil to desired consistency. Serve with veggies or grilled flat bread wedges.

Is it spring yet?

According to the calendar it's spring, but it doesn't really feel like the weatherman is on board. In spite of the cold the flowers have been making an appearance all around our neighborhood. I've seen a lot of daffodils blooming, pansy's being planted and trees full of blossoms.

Dan noticed that the cherry trees on the University of Washington campus were in bloom so we thought we'd go on a picnic with friends. Unfortunately it was way too cold to eat outside, so we ended up just going for a walk. Apparently everyone else in Seattle had the same idea! We saw at least 2 wedding parties and hundreds of people posing in front of and in the trees.





We tried to get our friends son to interact with "nature", but he wasn't really into it. Here is Dan setting a good example for Miles.




It may have been cold and overcast, but you could still see the fluffy flowers and smell their sweet scent, plus it just felt good to be outside. The sights and smells of this time of year always feels like a fresh new start, I love spring.

Drunken Potato Salad

When I cook, I like to cook healthy. I made a massive commitment to myself to eat healthy, be healthy, exercise a lot, and be happy. Watching myself change has been a invigorating and addicting thing to do. I cook with organic ingredients in everything. conventional ingredients are the exception to the rule. Recently, I made this lightened up potato salad for a side with pulled pork, and my home canned sugar-free BBQ sauce. Most potato salads are mayonnaise based. This is olive oil and wine based, and much lighter than traditional potato salads.

Dan's Drunken Potato Salad

5 Pounds Red Potatoes, cooked, partially cooled and rough chopped
1/2 C White Wine
1/2 to 3/4 C Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Bulbs Garlic, roasted and cooled
1 Large Lemon, zested and juiced
3 T Fresh Rosemary, chopped
3 T Fresh Dill, chopped
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. slice bulbs of garlic in half and liberally coat with olive oil, salt and pepper. Wrap in foil and roast in oven for 60-70 minutes, until soft and caramelized. Remove and allow to cool.

Boil potatoes until fork tender, remove from water and allow to cool enough to be able to handle. When cool enough to handle, rough chop and place in a bowl. Meanwhile prepare dressing by extracting (squishing) out all the caramelized garlic pulp. Add that to the wine, olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, fresh herbs and salt and pepper. Mix until thoroughly combined. Pour dressing over warm potatoes and allow them to absorb and soak up the wine/oil mixture and fresh herbs. Serve at room temperate. Can be made a day in advance, but bring to room temp for several hours before serving.

Nostalgic Casserole Comfort Food

When I try new recipes, I always follow the recipe exactly once before I make any adjustments or changes to it. I really like the down to earth comfort recipes from "The Pioneer Woman" blog. Holly came across this recipe last Friday, and we decided to try it for dinner. The casserole was reminiscent of meals I had growing up prepared by my Mother, so that was a nice bit of nostalgia mixed into my time in the kitchen on Sunday. Having made this once, I will definitely be making some adjustments. The base flavor was great, but I feel like it needs much more spice or herbs. Instead of using just tomato sauce, next time I'll use my bottled marinara. And besides just chopped green onion in the sour cream / cottage cheese mixture, I'll use some fresh herbs and probably caramelize some sweet onion or shallot.



Sour Cream Noodle Bake
Recipe Courtesy: The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

1-¼ pound Ground Chuck
1 can 15-ounces Tomato Sauce
½ teaspoons Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
8 ounces, weight Egg Noodles
½ cups Sour Cream
1-¼ cup Small Curd Cottage Cheese
½ cups Sliced Green Onions (less To Taste)
1 cup Grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown ground chuck in a large skillet. Drain fat, then add tomato sauce. 1/2 teaspoon salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Stir, then simmer while you prepare the other ingredients. Cook egg noodles until al dente. Drain and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine sour cream and cottage cheese. Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Add to noodles and stir. Add green onions and stir. To assemble, add half of the noodles to a baking dish. Top with half the meat mixture, then sprinkle on half the grated cheddar. Repeat with noodles, meat, then a final layer of cheese. Bake for 20 minutes, or until all cheese is melted. Serve with crusty French bread.



Instead of regular egg noodles, I used whole wheat egg noodles for extra protein. It was a nice comfort meal on Sunday. I served this up with a nice tossed green salad, and some left over toasted soda bread we made on St. Patrick's Day.

Sky-High Savory Biscuits

One thing Holly and I enjoy together, among many things, is good from scratch food. We also have a lot of talented friends as well, who enjoy cooking as much as we do. This past weekend at my birthday party, was no exception. So many people brought over some really good culinary creations. Our friend Julie made these and some orange infused honey butter to accompany. She made half a batch following this recipe, and made half a batch with some chopped fresh herbs in them. Yum!

Julie's Sky-High Biscuits

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
3/4 cup cold butter
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk

Sift dry ingredients together; cut in butter. Stir in egg and milk; knead to combine. Roll out and cut. Bake at 450F for 12-15 minutes. Makes 20.

Bacony-Chocolate Yumminess...!

For my birthday I took a much needed "comp" day at stayed home and cooked up a bunch of savory and sweet treats to share with my friends. For one of the desserts, I made these Cooks Illustrated devils food cupcakes. I then made a batch of my salted caramel butter cream frosting. That recipe is also on our blog under a separate "Recipes-Desserts" post, and topped them all off with some crispy bacon. They were pretty tasty if I do say so myself...



Cook's Illustrated Devils Food Cupcakes

4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
1/3 cup (1 ounce) Dutch-processed cocoa
¾ cup hot coffee
¾ cup (4 1/8 ounces) bread flour
¾ cup (5 1/4 ounces) granulated sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
½ cup sour cream
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard-size muffin pan (cups have ½-cup capacity) with baking-cup liners. Place chocolate and cocoa in medium bowl. Pour hot coffee over mixture and whisk until smooth. Set in refrigerator to cool completely, about 20 minutes. Whisk flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.

2. Whisk oil, eggs, vinegar, sour cream and vanilla into cooled chocolate-cocoa mixture until smooth. Add flour mixture and whisk until smooth.

3. Divide batter evenly among muffin pan cups. Bake until cupcakes are set and just firm to touch, 17 to 19 minutes. Cool cupcakes in muffin pan on wire rack until cool enough to handle, about 10 minutes. Carefully lift each cupcake from muffin pan and set on wire rack. Cool to room temperature before frosting, about 1 hour.

B-Day Bash!

Last week was Dan's birthday which we celebrated over 3 days. On his actual birthday morning while Dan was getting ready I put up this great little banner I found to surprise him when he came downstairs. They are letter pressed circles with a fun ribbon linking them all together. I picked this up because it reminded me of birthday's growing up in my family, we always had a "Happy Birthday" banner hanging on the window and balloons swirling from the ceiling fan.




That night we stuck to our regular routine with working out at the gym since we planned to celebrate on the weekend instead. Friday night we had friends over for an appetizer party. Dan took the day off work and cooked up a storm. He made hand pies from a Williamsburg recipe which are virginia ham, ground sirloin and traditional spices in a pie dough. They are super yummy!



He also made mediterranean shrimp salad, stuffed in endive on a tray with other chopped veggies and pastry cups filled with a moroccan couscous salad.




The best part of all the food though were the cupcakes, Dan made devil's food with salted caramel frosting topped with bacon and banana-walnut cupcakes with maple cream cheese, butter cream frosting topped with walnuts. YUMMERS!




I wanted to color coordinate the drinks and straws, with flowers etc. Orange being Dan's favorite color was the obvious choice.



Dan got lots of fun cards from family and friends.



All our friends brought appetizers to share, which were equally as yummy. We have amazingly thoughtful and talented friends.

Saturday Dan and I went out to Bick's Broadview Grill for dinner and to see a movie, Unknown. It was a great flick and a fun evening. Our big birthday celebration for this year though is going to be seeing Mary Poppins in May which is why we didn't do gifts this year.

It was a fun way to celebrate the birth of my amazing sweet husband.
Love you babe!

Yvonne's Rosemary Cashews

This past weekend we had a lot of birthday celebrations for my "Big-36!" I took a comp day on Friday and stayed home and cooked up a slew of appetizers and desserts to share with a bunch of friends Friday evening. In addition to what I made, our friends also brought over some appetizers to share. Yvonne's Rosemary Cashews were super tasty! She gave us some of the leftovers, and we ended up smuggling these into the movies (via Holly's purse) on Saturday night! :) I plan to make these to have on hand to sprinkle over salads and such. Excellent flavor combination.

Rosemary Cashews

1 lb roasted cashews (I used 50% salt already-roasted Trader Joe's brand)
2 TB minced fresh rosemary
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp light brown sugar
1 TB kosher salt
1 TB unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spread cashews out on sheet pan and toast in oven until warm, about 5 minutes. In large bowl, combine rosemary, cayenne, sugar, salt and butter. Thoroughly toss the warm cashews with the spiced butter. Bake about 5 more minutes. Serve warm.

10 things I learned in Leavenworth

1. An ugly illegible script means you're in Bavaria
2. A fake Bavarian town is JUST like the real thing
3. A ping-pong ball can be a lethal weapon
4. A two year old is better at ping-pong than I am
5. Ugly puzzles are just as fun as pretty ones
6. They have super ants that can withstand freezing temperatures
7. Vegetables are frozen, THEN cooked for maximum texture and taste appeal
8. A two year old thinks everything is theirs
9. "Just around the corner" means more than a few country blocks, which means over a mile
10. No one likes purple snow pants

Jokes aside, it was a fun trip. We learned that the reason we like to go away on trips is for the company and the scenery, not necessarily the quality food or shopping opportunities. We found a great cabin like home to rent on a nice quiet country street. It was the perfect place to chill out, relax, watch movies, and go for long walks (in frigid temperatures).





The house was beautiful with a nicely stocked kitchen, wood burning stove, ping-pong and foosball table...and ants. That was really the only downside to the entire place.



The town was kind of boring, but we did spend some time there...mostly mocking the place (what we do best). Luckily the weather was so beautiful we could do a lot of walking to keep us occupied.






We walked quite a few country blocks to Sleeping Lady Lodge from our place. It is a nice resort with various cabins to stay in and public art sprinkled throughout the forest. Unfortunately we were too late for brunch and too early for dinner so we walked our few country blocks back to the house.





This is my favorite picture from the trip.



A very nice and much needed getaway.

Kiva: Loans That Change Lives

I really like the not-profit, Kiva. A micro-financier, who specializes in small business lending to individuals in developing countries struggling to get ahead. Having spent so many of my professional years in finance and banking, I've often seen how the small business proprietor is often overlooked. By contributing tax deductible funds to an investment pool, with Kiva, you are able to join other donors and help women and minority businesses start up. Getting the livelihood they need in financing to get ahead in life, and to provide for themselves and their families. With any loan, or financing option you run a risk, same as with a bank. However, I am pleased to report that Holly and I have just successfully finished receiving payback on our third Kiva loan. We've helped a young father in Croatia, start up a shoe company. We've also helped an older woman set up a purse making business in El Salvador, after her husband was lost unexpectedly. And, we've also helped a young woman in her 20s start up her nutrition and diet consulting business in Panama. All of these small business proprietors are on their feet, and now able to provide for their own livelihood. I'd recommend everyone take a look at this program, and assist. As Americans we live in a land of plenty. Much more so, than anyone else on the planet. Sharing your resources with those who need it, is the right thing to do. And as you get paid back, you can turn around and help someone else in need. You control how much you are putting on the table.

Espresso Infused Sugar-Free BBQ Sauce

I love good BBQ, and I love healthy and lightened up versions of good BBQ. I've been making a refined sugar free version of BBQ sauce for a few years now. I recently ran out, so it was time to brew up another batch for the pantry. What I love about this recipe of mine, is that I can make this completely to my liking. Mixing up spices, sweetening the whole batch with organic honey. Making this very healthy, yet still complex with flavor.



Caramelizing the sweet red peppers, onions, garlic and chili flakes.



Adding dry mustard, Chinese 5-spice, smoked paprika, lots of espresso, bay leaves and a myriad of other spices.



Incorporating the organic tomato paste.



Adding soy sauce, liquid smoke, Tabasco and a small amount of unsulfured molasses.



After the cook down, all purred with my immersion blender, and a second cook down to get this all to ketchup consistency.



Water bath processing the first seven pints.



Post processing, cooling and ensuring the lids seal.



Holly's beautiful custom designed labels for all my canning projects. She always puts a nice touch on everything with her savvy design sense.

This batch yielded 9 pints of BBQ sauce. I water bath processed 7 pints for long term storage, and put two in the fridge. Looking forward to making some pulled pork sandwiches this weekend, with some healthy southern sides.

Balsamic Onion Marmalade Yumminess

Many of you have asked me for my onion marmalade recipe. This is a fantastic savory jam that is great on crackers with goat cheese, a base for pizza, and as a spread for sandwiches. I found this recipe on a blog a year or so ago, and made it with my own variations and adjustments to make it water bath processing (canning) stable. It's fantastic to keep on hand.






Dan's Balsamic Onion Marmalade

4 lbs onions (sliced thin)
6 shallots (sliced thin)
3 slices bacon or pancetta (thick cut)
6 sprigs fresh thyme
2 cups sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 cups red wine
1 cup balsamic vinegar
2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 pkgs liquid pectin

Directions:

1. Place a large, non-reactive pan over medium-low heat. Add the bacon and render the fat. Once the bacon has crisped, remove.

2. Turn up the heat to high to medium-high, add the onions, salt, thyme and olive oil. Stir to make sure the onions are coated with the oil and bacon fat. Cook covered with a tight lid for about 20 minutes. Remove thyme stems. Continue to cook stirring every 5 to 10 minutes until the onions begin to turn golden brown.

3. Add the sugar, brown sugar, red wine, and balsamic vinegar. Cook over medium heat until vicious. To test if it’s the right consistency, dribble a bit of the reduction on a plate and it still liquid, but slowly slips down the plate after it cools briefly. I also look to for doneness by dragging a spoon against the bottom of the pot. If it leaves a long valley, then its done. WARNING: Do not walk away from this once it begins to get close. There is enough sugar in this that it can burn and create sugar concrete on the bottom of your pan.

4. Remove from heat and stir in liquid pectin. Return to heat and boil for one minute. Ladle into prepared glass jars and water bath process for 20 minutes.

NOTES:

This marmalade keeps in the fridge well for at least 2 months, once a jar is opened. Some of the fat may become solid at the top after water bath processing, simply scrape it off and dispose of it. Additionally, if the marmalade become too thick, reheat in the microwave for 30 seconds and I find it spreads very easily.

Radish & Ginger Tea Sandwiches

I'm definitely in the mood for a light and refreshing tea sandwich of some sort this weekend. I plan to do some more canning, and use up the last of my 55# of apples, and make one more big vat of unsweetened applesauce. I'm also out of my sugar free BBQ sauce. I need to make a few more bottles of that, so I can slow roast some pulled pork and have my sauce and a bunch of healthy southern sides. Looks like I need to plan a dinner party in the next few weekends, and invite some people over to help consume the "Good Eats!"

We first had these tea sandwiches a year ago. I just stumbled across the recipe from Epicurious again in my old email archive. At a party, these hit the spot with lots of fresh fruit. Sounds like a nice Sunday afternoon light dinner again while I can.

Radish-Chive Tea Sandwiches with Sesame and Ginger

4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
3 tablespoons minced chives, divided
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
3/4 teaspoon grated peeled fresh ginger
1/4 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
16 1/4-inch-thick baguette slices
10 radishes, thinly sliced

Mix butter, 2 tablespoons chives, sesame seeds, ginger, and oil in small bowl; season with salt and pepper. Spread butter mixture over each bread slice. Top with radishes, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with remaining chives and fleur de sel, if desired.

My Moroccan Spiced Preserved Lemons

When I see a fantastic deal on quality, fresh, top level organic produce, I can't resist the urge to purchase. This past weekend was no exception. I was able to pick up a load of fresh, organic lemons at Whole Foods grocery shopping on Saturday. I love the taste of preserved lemons, however they are spendy to purchase pre-made. With such a deal on bags of organic lemons, I decided to make my own batch of preserved lemons to use when I cook healthy middle eastern and Moroccan food.



Prepping the lemons after they have been washed. Getting the pickling salt, quart sized canning jar and other aspects ready. I decided to really hone in on some middle eastern inspired pantry spices.



Bay leaf, cinnamon stick, whole peppercorns, whole allspice, cloves and whole fennel was what I ultimately decided upon. These flavor combinations are typical in tagines, lamb stews and other side dishes.



Another angle.



Each lemon was trimmed on the ends, and sliced into six wedges before they were generously sprinkled with canning salt to start the preservation process.



Salted lemon wedges, sitting at room temp before they are packed into the canning jar.



Packed in the jar, with lots of fresh lemon juice. It now sits in my kitchen in a sunny window for 30 days, then can be used as needed.



I ensured I the spices were visible to add to the aesthetic beauty of home canned / processed food. This will make several tasty additions over the next six months to my stews, tagines or other middle eastern side dishes.

Dan's Preserved Moroccan Lemons

5 to 6 lemons
1/4 cup salt, more if desired

SPICE MIXTURE:

1 cinnamon stick
3 cloves
6 coriander seeds
6 fennel seeds
6 cumin seeds
4 black peppercorns
1 Large Turkish bay leaf
Freshly squeezed lemon juice, if necessary

EQUIPMENT:

Shallow bowl
Quart canning jar

Slice each lemon into six to eight wedges depending on the size of the lemon. Place in shallow bowl. Sprinkle salt liberally on the exposed flesh. Meanwhile, place 1 tablespoon salt on the bottom of the clean & sterilized quart mason jar. Pack in the salted lemon wedges and push them down, extracting the juices and layering with the spices.

Continue to press the lemons down to release their juices and to make room for the remaining lemons. If the juice released from the squashed fruit does not cover them, add freshly squeezed lemon juice. Do not use chemically produced lemon juice or water, only use fresh squeezed lemon juice. Leave some air space before sealing the jar.

Let the lemons ripen in a warm place, such as your kitchen window for at least 30 days. Shaking the jar each day to distribute the salt and juice. To use, rinse the lemons, as needed, under running water, removing and discarding the pulp, if desired. There is no need to refrigerate after opening. Preserved lemons will keep up to a year, and the pickling juice can be used two or three times over the course of a year.