You may not know this, but I LOVE to cook! Below are some of my favorite recipes that I thought you might enjoy!Welcome to my kitchen!
Let me know what you think...
Bon appetit :)
-Lexi
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Let me know what you think...
Bon appetit :)
-Lexi
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Happy National Chocolate Chip Day!
May 15, 2012
I don’t think I ever realized there were so many special days set aside to honor particular foods. As it turns out, today is National Chocolate Chip Day! I have to thank to wonderful world of Twitter for alerting me to these very special occasions! Out of all of the foods that deserve a holiday, I would say the chocolate chip is definitely one of them. They’re not only for cookies after all! Check out this recipe for healthy Banana-Split Pancakes (with chocolate chips!)
-Lexi
Banana-Split Pancakes
Ingredients
1/3 cup Flour
3/4 tsp Baking Powder
1/8 plus 1/16 tsp salt
1 packet Stevia or 1 tbsp Sugar
Handful chocolate chips
4 chopped cherries or strawberries
1/2 medium banana
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup Milk
1 tbsp coconut or veg oil, or 1 more tbsp milk of choicePreparation
Combine banana, berries and wet ingredients in a bowl
In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients and stir
Preheat a greased or oiled pan to medium, then pour wet ingredients into dry and stir to combine.
Drop 5-6 dollops onto pan once it’s hot, and cook on medium-low. Flip once per pancake.
Simple and delicious! My favorite kind of recipe!
If you have any great recipes you think I should try/feature on the site, let me know!
Yummy recipe brought to you from ChocolateCoveredKatie.com!
Category Entrees, Home, Recipes | Tags: chocolate chip,Lexi,Lexi Ainsworth,national chocolate chip day,recipe | No Comments
Happy Cinco De Mayo!
May 4, 2012
Cinco De Mayo is tomorrow inspiring me to search of an authentic Mexican dish. Along the way I found this adorable festive cookie and couldn’t resist posting! I’m off to find the perfect cookie cutter so I can try to have these completed by tomorrow!
-Lexi
Piñata Sugar Cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter
1 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
5 cups flour
1 tablespoon vanilla
Mini M&M candies
1/2 cup powdered sugar (frosting)
2 teaspoons milk (frosting)Preparation
1. Cream sugars with butter. Beat in eggs and add oil. Combine dry ingredients together, and then gradually add them to the mixture. Mix in vanilla and almond extract.
2. Split dough into five, even-sized balls and one smaller ball (this will be the black one). Add food coloring to each of the dough balls until desired color is achieved. Gel food coloring gives you more intense colors than liquid.
3. Use a container the same approximate width of your donkey/burro piñata cookie cutter, and line it with plastic food wrap. Split all of your colored dough balls in half (except the black) and begin layering the dough in the container, starting with the black dough on the bottom. Alternate the colors so that you end up with two layers of each color by the time you’re done.
4. Cover the layered dough and freeze for four hours or overnight.
5. Remove the dough from the container and cut into slices, approximately 1/4-inch wide. Place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake them at 350 degrees F for 12 minutes.
6. Immediately after you take them out of the oven, use your burro piñata cookie cutter to cut the cookie shapes. Working in sets of three, be sure to cut two burro piñata cookies in one direction and the flip the cookie cutter to create a cookie in the opposite direction. This way you can hide the baked, bottom sides.
7. For the middle cookies in each set, cut off the ears and legs, and cut out the center where the M&Ms will go. Work quickly and then let them cool on the baking sheet before you move them and remove the excess, outer cookie.
8. To assemble, take the first piñata cookie and lay it upside down so that the baked bottom is facing up. Outline the center of the piñata body with a “frosting glue” mixture of milk and powdered sugar.
9. Put the middle cookie on top of the frosting glue and add the M&Ms to the open center. Put another outline of frosting glue on the middle cookie and place the opposite-cut piñata cookie on top. Let these sit and harden for at least 30 minutes.
And voila! The perfect Piñata cookie!
Thanks to Sandra at SheKnows.com for this great idea!
Category Desserts, Home, Recipes | Tags: Lexi | No Comments
Pan-Fried Pumpkin Gnocchi with Brown Butter Sage
April 26, 2012
I’ve been finding so many amazing recipes on Pinterest but this one really grabbed my attention! Check out this recipe for Pan-Fried Pumpkin Gnocchi with Brown Butter Sage. Sound delicious right? Trying this ASAP! Let me know if you do, and how it turns out!
-Lexi
Pan-Fried Pumpkin Gnocchi with Brown Butter Sage
Ingredients
1/2 cup skim milk ricotta
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup freshly grated parmegiano reggiano
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon lemon zest (use a microplane grater) (plus extra reserved for garnishing)
1 teaspoon kosher salt (or 1/2 tsp table salt)
1 cup all purpose flour, sifted plus more for dusting (see sifting tip above)
3 tablespoons butter, divided
2 tablespoon olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons good quality balsamic vinegar
3 sprigs fresh sage, plus more for garnish
shaved parmegiano reggiano for serving (use vegetable peeler)Preparation
Preheat oven to 300F
1. Combine ricotta, pumpkin parmagiano, yolk, zest and salt in large bowl. Mix well. Sprinkle half of the flour on the mixture, gently turn with spatula a few times to incorporate. Dump mixture on clean, lightly floured countertop or you can still do this in the bowl. Sprinkle remaining flour on top of the mixture. Gently knead with your fingertips, just bringing together the mixture until flour is incorporated through. This only should take a minute or two. Any longer and you will be over-kneading.
2. Dust a clean, dry surface with a generous sprinkling of flour. Divide dough into 4 parts. Take one part and roll into a long, 1″ diameter log. Cut gnocchi into 1″ pieces.
3. Heat a large frying pan or saute pan with just 1 tablespoon of the butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil. When hot, add a few gnocchi – enough to cover surface but not touch each other. Fry on medium heat for 1-2 minutes, turn and fry for another 1-2 minutes. Remove gnocchi, place on large baking sheet to put into oven to keep warm. Repeat with rest of gnocchi.
4. When all gnocchi is finished, discard butter/oil in pan and clean pan with paper towel. Heat pan on medium heat and when hot, add the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and the remaining tablespoon of olive oil. When hot, add the fresh sage. Let the sage brown and sizzle (but not burn) for a couple of minutes until very fragrant. Remove the sage and discard if you want (or keep it in to eat — as many people in the comments below like to do!) To the pan, add the balsamic vinegar and whisk. Let simmer on low for 1 minute and pour over the gnocchi.
5. Serve with shaved parmegiano reggiano and a sage leaf for garnish.
Courtesy of SteamyKitchen.com
Category Entrees, Home, Recipes | Tags: Brown Butter Sage,Lexi,Lexi Ainsworth,Pan-Fried Pumpkin Gnocchi,recipe,recipes | No Comments
Passover Granola
April 6, 2012
I am excited to be spending the holiday in NYC celebrating with Passover with a traditional Seder dinner. Though the focus is on the dinner portion of the holiday, I began thinking about the other meals. So began my search for a healthy Passover breakfast/snack. I haven’t tried this yet, but it looks amazing. I can’t wait to whip up a batch this weekend!
Passover Granola
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups matzah farfel*
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup unsweetened ground or shredded coconut
2 teaspoons cinnamon
pinch salt (omit the salt if using gluten-free matzah since it is salted)
3 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons oil
1 cup assorted dried fruit, cut into small piecesPreparation
Preheat the oven to 325.
Combine the matzah farfel, nuts, coconut, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Stir until well mixed.
Combine the honey and brown sugar in a small pan and gently heat until the honey is very liquifies. Whisk until the sugar is dissolved. (This can also be done in the microwave. Microwave on high for 30 seconds then whisk well.) Whisk in the oil.
Pour the honey mixture over the farfel mixture and stir until well combined.
Pour the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, stirring frequently to keep it from burning. It will be slightly golden when it is done but not yet crispy. (It crisps as it cools) Remove from the oven and stir in the dried fruit.
*For gluten-free and non-gebrotz granola use Yehudah Gluten-Free Matzah-Style Squares broken into farfel sized pieces. 1 1/2 cups is approximately 3 sheets.
Eat with milk, sprinkle on yogurt or just snack on it by the handful! Let me know if you try it!
-Lexi
Recipe inspired by Shoshana / Couldn’t Be Parve
Category Appetizers, Home, Recipes | Tags: breakfast,granola,Lexi,Lexi Ainsworth,matzah,passover,recipe,sedar | No Comments
Soda Bread & Smoked Salmon
March 15, 2012
I’m feeling inspired by St. Patrick’s Day, so I went on the hunt for some traditional Irish faire. Irish Soda Bread immediately came to mind. I found this great healthy recipe for Soda Bread that pairs perfectly with smoked salmon, which is apparently quite popular in Ireland. The result? Delicious!
-Lexi
Brown Soda Bread
Ingredients
- Cooking spray
- 11 1/4 ounces whole-wheat flour (about 2 1/2 cups)
- 2 1/4 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1/2 cup)
- 1/2 cup steel-cut oats (such as McCann’s)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon wheat germ
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups low-fat buttermilk
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
Preparation
- 1. Preheat oven to 325°.
- 2. Coat a 9 x 5–inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Line the pan with parchment paper, and coat with cooking spray.
- 3. Weigh or lightly spoon flours into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine flours and next 6 ingredients (through salt). Combine buttermilk and egg; add to flour mixture. Stir just until combined.
- 4. Spoon the mixture into prepared pan. Bake at 325° for 1 hour and 5 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Invert bread onto a wire rack; cool completely. Remove parchment; slice bread into 12 slices.
Pairs with…
Smoked Salmon with Tangy Horseradish Sauce
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup organic canola mayonnaise (such as Spectrum)
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
- 1 tablespoon whole-grain Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 12 slices Brown Soda Bread
- 12 thin slices smoked salmon (about 8 ounces)
- Fresh dill sprigs (optional)
Preparation
- 1. Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl, stirring well.
- 2. Place 2 slices Brown Soda Bread on each of 6 plates; top each slice with 1 salmon slice and about 1 teaspoon sauce. Garnish with dill, if desired.
Margaret M. Johnson
Category Entrees, Home, Recipes | Tags: irish,Lexi,Lexi Ainsworth,recipe,salmon,soda bread,st. patrick's day | No Comments
