Chocolate Souffle

The other night I was craving gooey chocolate cake but didn’t want to make a huge dessert that would taunt me for a week, so I found this recipe on foodtv.com. It is light and rich and cakey all at the same time and the best part is that it only makes two good sized portions or four small portions.

 

 

Recipe:

3 tablespoons granulated sugar, divided

2 1/2 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate

1 large egg, separated

2 large egg whites

1 tablespoon heavy cream*

1 teaspoon all-purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon salt

confectioner’s sugar for dusting (optional)

Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 375°F. Lightly coat two 10-ounce ramekins with cooking spray; coat the insides of each with 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar.

Place chocolate in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on Medium, stirring every 20 seconds, until melted, 1 to 2 minutes.

Whisk egg yolk and cream in a medium bowl until combined. Whisk in the chocolate until smooth, then whisk in flour and cinnamon until incorporated.

Beat egg whites and salt in a medium bowl with an electric mixeron high speed until soft peaks form. Beat in the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in four additions, until stiff, glossy peaks form.

Using a rubber spatula, gently fold half the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture until fairly smooth; then gently fold this combined mixture back into the remaining egg whites until no white streaks remain. Divide between the prepared ramekins and place on a baking sheet. Bake until puffed and firm to the touch, 18 to 22 minutes. Dust with confectioners’ sugar, if desired. Serve immediately.

No Microwave? Place chopped chocolate in the top of a double boiler over hot, but not boiling water. Gently stir until almost melted. Remove from the heat and stir until the chocolate melts completely.

 

*If you don’t have heavy cream, use a tablespoon of milk with a small slice of butter

 

Next time you are craving something rich that won’t bring you down, try this recipe.

 

 

Homemade Sausage Rolls

A few days ago we found a near by British grocery, however, they were out of their sausage rolls, which if you have not tried an English sausage roll or pasty, they are lovely meat filled pies. When I first heard of them, I was a bit hesitant to try them (especially after watching Sweeney Todd ), but I have to say they are delish!  Anyway, since the store was out of them, we decided to make our own. We even made our own sausage by grinding up pork with the meat grinder attachment for the mixer. Here are some pics:

 

Recipe:

1 package puff pastry sheets

egg wash with 1-2 eggs and milk

8 sausages (or 1 pound pork if making your own sausages)

Take the puff pastry sheets out of the box and let sit at room temperature until defrosted or soft enough to work with.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cut each pastry sheet in to quarters or the size of the sausages.

Place a sausage in the center of each quarter.

Brush one edge of the pastry with egg wash.

Roll the pastry over the sausage and seal. Place on greased baking sheet (or if you prefer you can bake the rolls on a wire rack over the baking sheet). Repeat for remaining rolls.

Cut 2-3 slits in each roll. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

 

Homemade Sausages:

1 lb ground pork (you can buy it already ground, or grind it yourself as we did)

1-2 cloves garlic

2 teaspoon allspice

1 teaspoon salt

Combine all ingredients and form into a shape that will fit in your pastry.

If you are using this method for the sausage rolls, place the raw meat in the pastry, you do not need to cook the sausages before using in the roll.

 

Sausage rolls are easy and fun to make and the kids will love them!

Chinese BBQ Pork

This is a recipe from Cook’s Illustrated Magazine. This was surprisingly easy and came out fantastic!

Recipe:

1 four pound boneless pork shoulder roast cut into 8 strips and excess fat removed

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup soy sauce

6 tablespoons hoison sauce

1/4 cup dry sherry

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1 teaspoon five-spice powder

1 tablespoon sesame oil

2 tablespoons grated fresh ginger

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 cup ketchup

1/3 cup honey

Prick pork 10 to 12 times and place in a plastic bag.

Combine sugar, soy sauce, hoisin, sherry, pepper, five-spice powder, sesame oil, ginger and garlic in medium bowl.

Measure out 1/2 cup of the marinade and set aside. Pour remaining marinade in plastic bag with the pork. Press out as much air as possible and place bag in refrigerator 30 minutes to 4 hours.

Pour reserved marinade in a sauce pan with ketchup and honey. Cook the glaze over medium heat until syrupy and reduced to 1 cup, 4 to 6 minutes.

Preheat oven at 300 degrees with an oven rack in the middle position. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and set a wire rack in the pan; spray the foil and the rack with nonstick cooking spray.

Remove the pork from the marinade, letting any excess drip off, and place it on the wire rack. Pour 1/4 cup water into the bottom of the pan. Cover the pan with heavy-duty foil, crimping the edges tightly to seal.

Cook pork for 20 minutes. Remove foil and continue to cook until the edges begin to brown, 40 to 45 minutes.

Turn on the broiler. Broil the pork until evenly carmelized, 7 to 9 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and brush the pork with half of the glaze; broil until deep mahogany color, 3 to 5 minutes.

Flip the meat and broil until the other side caramelizes, 7 to 9 minutes.

Brush the meat with the remaining glze and continue to broil until the second side is deep mahogany, 3 to 5 minutes.

Cool for at least 10 minutes, cut into strips and serve.

For extra tips, see the recipe in Cook’s Illustrated Magazine. Enjoy!

Out for Sushi!

A couple weeks ago we decided to try a new Chinese/Sushi restaurant for happy hour.  Their rolls were so lovely, I just had to share.

love seeing Sushi places with creative rolls that nobody else has. Since I typically only eat the veggie rolls or salmon, if it’s cooked, that usually limits my options a bit, so it is nice to see places that offer a diverse menu. This restaurant is one of those. I got a tempura sweet potato roll (above) and a tempura salmon roll (below). They both have cream cheese as well, so I get extra protein, yay!

Steak Stir Fry

This is a great recipe when you have veggies you need to use up or just have odds and ends in the fridge. It is also a great one-dish recipe for nights when you are crunched for time. You can do a big batch for your family or individual stir fries if you have picky eaters.

On this particular occasion, I used beef, broccoli, baby corn, and bean sprouts. This is also great with the oh-so-wonderful portobello mushroom (you know how much I love them ) or chicken for the protein. For the starch, you can use noodles or rice. If I use noodles, I usually use angel hair pasta or store bought chow mien noodles. You can find them in the Asian section of the store.

Recipe:

To start, mix up your sauce in a bowl. I typically use soy sauce, teriyaki or hoison sauce, ginger, and some water to dilute the sauces. (you really can use any herbs or spices you would like, or if you don’t feel very adventurous, I sometimes use the stir fry powder sauce from the grocery store.

Once your liquid is ready, heat up some olive oil with minced garlic and onion if you choose.

Add your protein and cook until outside is done.

Next add your veggies. Stir frequently until your veggies are cooked the way you like them. Add your sauce mix and cook an additional minute or so.

If you are using noodles, add them to the pan until they absorb the sauce. If you prefer rice, you can serve over the rice.

Note: this is a quick stir fry, it shouldn’t take more than five minutes or so from start to finish which is why it’s important to have your sauce and veggies prepared before you start cooking.

Update and Almond Milk

Hi all, it’s been a while since I last posted, I know. Well, I said I would post a recipe for almond milk, but I’m still working on that. The batch I made tasted a bit watered down and I added coconut oil, which overpowered the flavor. So, I’m still working on this and will provide a recipe when I get it perfected.

Here is a picture of the one I made just for fun:

I used a regular milk bottle to store it in. As you can see, it looks beautiful and creamy! It just didn’t taste beautiful or creamy.

Thank you so much for reading! Stay posted for new upcoming recipes and ideas!

~Kandi

Raw Mocha Pudding

I have a HUGE sweet tooth! This is one of the things that I have been fighting with in my pursuit of a healthy lifestyle. I love chocolate and ice cream and brownies and can hardly go a day without something sweet. But all is not lost, for I have found a solution!

One of the things that really impressed me about raw food is that everything is nutritious and has tons of minerals and vitamins. In one of Ani Phyo’s videos, she made mention of this, she doesn’t want to put anything in her body that doesn’t have nutritional value. What a great concept! Really, your body is going to make use of whatever you put in it, whether that’s a good thing or not, so why not eat the most valuable foods possible?

This is why I decided to turn my sweet tooth in to a nutritional opportunity with raw food desserts. (A little disclaimer though, you still have to be careful with the amount you consume since most raw dessert dishes are made up of nuts, avocado and coconut, which are all rich in fat and energy, but it’s good fat and whole foods instead of processed sugar and flours.)

In the past I made a raw pumpkin pie and a raw apple pie and both were out of this world! Tonight, I tried a mocha pudding, again from Matthew Kenney’s book, “Everyday Raw“. The base is made of coconut meat and cocoa powder and he uses agave and maple syrup for sweeteners. This is incredibly rich and the hint of coconut is wonderful!

Next time you have a craving for sweets, give raw food a try!

Portobello Saute

I know, I know, this is my third portobello post in less than three weeks. I just can’t say enough about how amazing this veggie is! Loaded with protein and nutrients and very filling and satisfying. This particular recipe is from Zuzana on Body Rock, here is a link to her video: http://www.bodyrock.tv/2010/07/30/pasta-with-portobello-mushroom-recipe/

For my version, I used asparagus and broccoli instead of a bell pepper and angel hair pasta, other than that it is pretty much the same. I sautéed my mushrooms for a few minutes by themselves then added the other veggies (the asparagus was uncooked when I added to the mushroom) and cooked on low another ten minutes or so while the pasta cooked.

De-lish!

Home Made Granola

So, I wanted some granola for a mid-morning snack. When I went to write it on my shopping list, I thought “why not make my own out of my super cool raw cook book instead?”. And that’s  just what I did! Above is a picture of it in my dehydrator. The smell coming from my dehydrator right now is incredible! I can’t believe I have to wait two days for it to dry before I can have some! I did, however, sneak a sample and it is sooo good!! If you are inclined at all, I would really suggest trying some home made granola. If you don’t have a dehydrator, you can easily use your oven at a low temperature or even put it in the sun on a warm day.

This particular recipe uses maple syrup, apples, nuts, raisins, cranberries and loads of cinnamon. I got it from “Everyday Raw” by Matthew Kenney and the recipe is Citrus Maple Granola. I love this book, it has big colorful pictures, the ingredients aren’t so rare you have to by them online, and the book is laid out in an easy to read way.

I am by no means a raw foodie, but I do like to integrate some of the recipes and food in my diet. This is definitely going to be a staple in my cabinet!

Tomorrow I will be making some almond milk to go with it so I will post that in the next couple of days with granola updates.

Puppy Time!

Have to share pics of my precious boy! He loves pillows as most whippets do.