Organics and GMOs

It's been a while since my last post - but here I go. My posts are centered around food - cupcakes, easy dinners and the like. I saw an interview the other day about Prop 37 in California. This is basically a law that would require companies to put a label on their food if it has been genetically modified in any way. They don't have to stop selling it or stop messing with it - they just have to let the consumer know. I am all for this - AND if you listen to the facts about GMOs (genetically modified foods), you might think again about buying organic or all natural foods next time you are at the grocery store.

Just Google Proposition 37 and read about it and, by all means, read both sides - Don't just limit yourself to one side of the argument. There are pros and cons on both ends - but, wouldn't you rather be educated about it?

Birthday Enchiladas

So I asked my sweet husband what he wanted for dinner on his birthday - I was expecting him to pick out something extravagant, but he didn't. He wanted enchiladas. My enchiladas are not as heavy on the red sauce as a lot of dishes are, but they are pretty good, nonetheless. Give yourself some time to make these - it can take around 45 minutes to get these bad boys together. See my notes at the bottom before you get started...

Ingredients:

1 to 1 1/2 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts

8 oz cream cheese, cubed

2 Tbsp sour cream

1 can Rotel, drained

8 Flour tortillas (at least 8")

2 cups shredded cheese

Southwestern seasoning

Salt and pepper to taste

Olive Oil

Enchilada/Taco Sauce (OPTIONAL)

Preheat oven to 375. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and add chicken and a few drops of olive oil, cook til done. Remove the chicken form pot and cut up into small pieces. The chicken will kind of shred apart as you cut it - this is a good thing! In a medium saucepan heat Rotel, cream cheese, sour cream, salt, pepper and southwestern seasoning to taste (don't skimp too much or they won't have enough flavor). You want to get this good and creamy. Add 1 cup of the shredded cheese and then the chicken. Stir together. This is your filling. Spray or grease a 13X9 cooking dish. Spoon mixture into the middle of tortillas then roll up and place in dish seam side down. Top with a thin layer of enchilada sauce if you want (I don't) and then sprinkle the remaining cup of shredded cheese over the top. Bake for about 20 minutes or until the cheese is melty and brown around the edges.

*Notes: I boil the chicken because it shreds it up a little. It makes the filling less chunky. I use HOT Rotel, but we like stuff SPICY. If you doubt how much spice you can handle - go for the original first. I use Mrs. Dash southwestern seasonings, but Emeril and McCormick make good ones as well. You can also do the lighter version of this by buying the healthier tortillas, reduced fat cream cheese, lite sour cream, and reduced fat shredded cheese (I use the Mexican blend). I, personally, have discovered that I like leaving out the enchilada sauce - they are flavorful enough without it. These are awesome with chips and salsa!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Makes 12

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

2 tbsp dark cocoa powder

1 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup butter

1 egg

2 tbsp water

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp red food coloring

1/2 cup fat free milk

1 tsp white distilled vinegar

1 tsp baking soda

Frosting of your choice

1. Set oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit. Line standard muffin tins with cupcake liners.

2. Combine flour, cocoa powder and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Whisk in the egg followed by the water, vanilla extract and food coloring.

4. Alternate adding the flour mixture and milk until fully incorporated.

5. Add the baking soda to the vinegar in a separate container, then pour into the batter. Fold in to incorporate but do not over mix.

6. Fill each cupcake cup two thirds full and bake at 350 degrees F for ten minutes. Rotate and bake another 15 minutes until a tooth pick inserted in the middle of each comes out clean. Cool for at least an hour before frosting.

(Frosting with Cream Cheese icing is the best flavor combo with these, although Dark Chocolate is also VERY good.)

Chocolate Caramel Heath Cupcakes

Chocolate Caramel Heath Cupcakes - SIGH. If you like caramel, then these are yummy. They are filled with caramel sauce right after coming out of the oven - it kind of saturates the chocolate cake. Also, using a little sea salt gives them that sweet/salty combo that I, for one, love.

Super Bowl Cupcakes

The great thing about these little tasties is that you can make any flavor cupcake and any color icing to go along with your favorite team - In this case, mint chocolate cupcakes and green icing GO PACK!
The footballs are Andes mints which go along very well if you are doing the mint cupcakes. Just cut them with kitchen scissors and pipe little stitches. These aren't too neat - I was kind of in a hurry last night!

The Perfect Meal

My sweet husband took me over to Biltmore Estate around our anniversary and I got to eat at my FAVORITE restaurant. The Bistro on Biltmore Estate is beyond good. If you go to Biltmore...ever... make sure you take the time to eat at this place. It is over by the Winery.
I had, quite possibly, the most perfect meal there this last time. I started off with Calamari with Olive Salad and Chive Aioli. Then, I had the trout. I cannot go to this place without getting the Creme Brulee because it is the BEST brulee around.
(the pics are not great - they are from my crappy Blackberry - GO DROID!)

You can check out their full menu here...

New Orleans - YUM!

While back I went to New Orleans and I have to say - they have fantastic food. Fried pickles - which I love dearly - are everywhere down there, and they're not gross like they are around here. The other thing I love about anywhere near the ocean is the abundance of oysters. Give me a dozen, raw on the half shell, please...

The Perfect Oyster Pile:

• Set the oyster on a cracker
• Top with a bit of horseradish
• Sprinkle with a drop or four of Tabasco sauce
• Top off with salt and pepper

Follow up with a good Bloody Mary and you have food perfection.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am really picky when it comes to chocolate chip cookies. I hate them if they are too crunchy - I like "cakey" cookies. I came across a recipe a while back that used vanilla pudding mix to keep the cookies soft. I incorporated that into my own cookie recipe and have officially found my CCC. Try it out, I promise they are ridiculously good. Another great thing - they stay soft for a few days as long as you keep them tightly sealed up.

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 (3.5 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugars. Add pudding mix, eggs and vanilla. Combine flour and baking soda; add to creamed mixture and blend. Fold in chocolate chips.
3. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned. I personally, take mine out closer to 10. As I said, I like them soft.
   

Easiest Candy Ever

If you like pretzels and chocolate - then this is a big, fat winner. It's ridiculously easy. Set your oven to 250 degrees. Spread out mini pretzel twists on a baking sheet. Pick a flavor of hersheys kisses (I used regular milk chocolate and hugs) and set on top of the pretzel. Stick them in the oven for about 5 minutes. They will still look the same but they will be very "melty". Take an M&M and press down into the center of the kiss. Spread them on wax paper and let cool completely. That's it.

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

I had only made cinnamon rolls once before this and I had never made them the real-deal way using yeast. I have to say that anything that uses yeast is time-consuming. ESPECIALLY if you make them in the winter and your house is not very warm - seems to take forever! I added pecans to this batch, but I am sure they are just as good without.

Black & Pink

One of my best friends, Kristi, had to give a wedding shower for her cousin. I was stoked when she asked me to do the cupcakes. Another plus - she didn't care what I did as long as they were cute. The colors of the wedding were black and pink, so that was my starting point. I bought some ribbon and Kristi picked up these bouquets of little pink flowers. Once I checked to make sure that it wasn't toxic to put artificial flowers on cake - I went to work. They ended up pretty cute!
(The cupcakes are chocolate fudge with mint buttercream).

Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes?

My oldest brother LOVES pineapple upside-down cake. SO, for a get-together I knew he would be at, I thought I would try making it in cupcake form.
This was the finished project... The key was to fill the bottom of the tin with crushed pineapple and a cherry and pour the cake batter on top. You have to let them cool completely before inverting the pan to get them out. The result was actually better than I had hoped for. Oh yeah, and they taste AWESOME!

My First Mint Chocolate Cupcake

I first tried my version of mint chocolate cupcakes about a year and a half ago. I made a dark chocolate fudge cupcake with ganache swirl and topped it with mint buttercream icing. Andes mints are the perfect topper for a mint cupcake. The other little thingy there is a fondant swirl. These were pretty good for my first go-round.