I’m usually terrible at desserts, unless it’s something insanely simple, like strawberry shortcake. Luckily, simple doesn’t mean unimpressive. All you need to make these cute, instagram-worthy little strawberry shortcake stacks are a few pantry staples and the season’s best strawberries. So skip the over sugared candy-bar-stuffed-into-cake-topped-with-ice-cream-and-drizzled-with-chocolate-syrup type of over the top desserts that are all the rage right now, grab a pound of fresh strawberries, and make a dessert that is truly worth bragging about. Let those gorgeous strawberries do their thing and enjoy them while they’re here!

For the cake part of these shortcakes I actually just took my favorite 5-ingredient freezer biscuits, added a bit more sugar to make them dessert-like, and shaped them into a more rustic round shape. They worked perfectly for the strawberry shortcakes because of their super tender crumb that absorbed the strawberry syrup like a champ.

And since I already had heavy whipping cream to make the biscuits, I decided to go ahead and make my own whipped cream, too. If you’ve never make your own whipped cream, you’ve got to give it a try. It’s surprisingly easy and tastes so much better than what you get in the tub or can. You can do it by hand with a whisk, or use a mixer if you don’t feel like working your triceps. Either way it takes all but three minutes.

This recipe did make 8 biscuits and I think the strawberries and cream are only enough for about six, so save the extra two biscuits to top with butter and jam for breakfast. You can thank me later.

Strawberry Shortcake

Step by Step Photos

Start by rinsing one pound of fresh strawberries. Remove the stem and leaves by scooping them out with a spoon (this wastes less than just slicing off the top of the strawberries). Slice each strawberry into about four slices.

Place the sliced strawberries in a bowl and add 2 Tbsp sugar. Stir them together, then set them aside. The sugar will draw the juice out of the strawberries as they sit and create a strawberry syrup. You’ll want to stir the strawberries occasionally as you are preparing the rest of the dish.

Next, start making the biscuits. Begin preheating the oven to 400ºF. In a bowl, stir together 2.5 cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp salt, 2 Tbsp sugar, and baking powder. Once they’re evenly combined, pour in 2 cups heavy whipping cream.

Stir until a sticky ball of dough forms and there is no more dry flour left on the bottom of the bowl.

Dust your hands with flour, then divide the dough into eight pieces. Roughly shape the dough into rounds. You want them to be fairly thick. Place them on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper.

Bake them in the preheated oven for about 25 minutes, or until they are lightly golden brown. Let them sit for a few minutes, or until they are cool enough to handle.

While the biscuits are baking, make the vanilla whipped cream. In a glass or metal bowl, combine 1 cup heavy whipping cream with 2 Tbsp sugar and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Vigorously whisk by hand or use a mixer to whisk until soft peaks form. Soft peaks are when you pull the whisk out and it forms a peak that slouches over to the side instead of standing straight up. It is possible to over whisk the cream and make it “break” or separate, so don’t go too far. 

Carefully slice the biscuits in half (they’re very tender and crumbly, so take care).

See how much juice has come out of the strawberries as they sat? That syrupy juice is key.

Place a layer of strawberry slices and some of that delicious strawberry syrup on the bottom of each biscuit.

Next, add a generous dollop of that vanilla whipped cream…

Add the top half of the biscuit, another dollop of whipped cream, maybe another strawberry slice or two, and one last spoonful of that strawberry syrup. And NOW you can dive in. ;)

 

The post Strawberry Shortcake appeared first on Budget Bytes.

*This post was created in partnership with DeLallo Foods. They began as a small Italian grocery store in Pennsylvania and now they carry hundreds of beautiful products that inspired my recipe today.

 

The town where my parents live is so small I tell people not to blink while they drive through. It’s just over an hour outside of Seattle but it feels a world away, yet somehow in this small strip of a town it is a food lovers paradise. There’s a bread baker at the end of the street who makes the fluffiest loaf of potato bread and a cocoa nib shortbread crusted in turbinado sugar. Next to that a specialty food store with picnic tables out back for sipping rosè in the sun.

My first stop in town is at Tweets. A small eclectic building with hundreds of potted plants scattered outside and a dark wood interior with the front wall completely open if the sun is shining. They are only open on the weekends so I have to plan my visits to my parent’s house accordingly. Every time I visit I always order the Torta Rustica. It’s a towering stack of meats, cheeses, potatoes, roasted peppers and herbs all held together by a buttery puff pastry crust. It’s indulgent and special and definitely not a bad idea to cut the richness with a piquant green salad on the side. One slice of that tart is worth the drive.

This pizza is my homage to this special dish. Not nearly as complicated or time consuming to make at the classic Torta Rustica as I use mostly packaged ingredients to make a dish that comes together quickly. To make this even more over-the-top you could layer the toppings even more to build up its thickness. I imagine this would bake quite well in a springform pan as well.

To fight against a soggy bottom crust I preheat my cast iron pan and build the pizza while the crust starts to brown.  

My classic homemade granola recipe gets a fruity twist: with triple blueberry goodness! Blueberry jam, dried blueberries, and freeze-dried blueberries to be exact, plus homemade blueberry yogurt clusters that take this granola from ordinary to extraordinary!

Talk about a unique granola: lightly sweetened with maple syrup and tossed with blueberry jam and ground up freeze-dried blueberries and baked until toasty and golden brown. It’s seriously my new favorite granola, I love sprinkling it on yogurt in the morning or munching on handfuls in the afternoon (where the subtle sweetness is enough to satisfy the afternoon cravings).

I seriously packed all the blueberry flavor I could manage into one flavorful granola. The basic recipe is adapted from my favorite granola recipe (very similar to the one we included in our book as a side recipe for our amazing granola chocolate chip cookies.)

It’s a recipe I’ve modified before, previously transforming it into toasted almond & chocolate granola and spicy gingerbread granola, but this time, I went all in with the fruit.

The granola base is pretty classic, with toasted oats, dried coconut, sunflower seeds, sliced almonds and pecans (though you can mix up the nuts pretty much anyway you like). Toss the oats-n-stuff with a warm mixture of maple syrup, blueberry jam (if you’re using a homemade blueberry jam that’s particularly chunky, I recommend puréeing it first), vegetable oil and a splash of vanilla, then stir until the mixture is completely coated. Oh, and a generous pinch of sea salt!

Bake the granola until it’s golden brown, stirring well every 10 to 15 minutes (the edges tend to cook faster than the middle, and you want it to cook evenly).

But how do I know when it’s done? Well, the granola will have a slight purple tint from the jam when it goes in the oven; when it’s completely toasted the color will have baked out entirely (which bummed me out a bit, but if you think about it, it’s like a color-indicator of doneness, like those toothbrushes that turn white when they need to be replaced). When fully baked, the granola should feel completely dry without any hint of moisture.

I found this particular granola takes a bit longer to bake, I think because of the added moisture from the jam. Whereas the gingerbread granola was done in 30 to 45 minutes, this one took upwards of 50 to 60 minutes. I accidentally underbaked one batch in an effort to preserve some of the purple tint, and it wasn’t very crunchy at all (and let’s face it, less-than-crunchy granola is less-than-ideal). But keep your eyes on it, especially in the last 15 minutes or so – you want it deep golden brown, but it’ll still burn quite easily if you’re not paying attention.

(more…)

Last week, I polled my Instagram followers to find out what cocktail they would be most excited about double fisting for the margarita week celebration that is now upon us. The toss up was between fresh ginger margaritas or rosé margaritas, and although the race was tight, it turns out y’all are a bunch of basic, summer water-loving fools like me. Rosé margaritas FTW!

Now I know being “basic” gets a bad rap, but let me clarify by saying that there is no shame in loving things that are universally good. Rosé wine is so delicious and refreshing that I’m fine to chalk it up among the masses of other Americanized favorites. If yoga pants, La Croix, and sharing photos of your coffee on Instagram can continue to find a home in today’s society then certainly we can all make a little room for the most aesthetically pleasing wine of this millennium, right?

As it turns out, rosé and the classic margarita are a match made in heaven. I got the idea for this beverage from another cult favorite, Jeni Britton Bauer’s Jeni’s Ice Creams. She recently sent me one of their newest flavors, “Frosé” sorbet, and she recommended topping a scoop with a tequila floater. Booze and dessert? I was sold.

It only took a few tries and a couple of tipsy Tuesdays to land a recipe for these rosé margaritas. I found that a restrained pour of tequila, a generous amount of lime, and just enough simple syrup could combine with a half serving of rosé to make a beverage that reads equal parts wine and marg. Truly, this combo is one serving at all future summer bashes.

Making rosé margaritas is simple! Combine one ounce each of lime juice and tequila with an ounce and a half of simple syrup in a tall shaker. Fill with ice and shake, shake, shake, until the mixture is seriously icy. Pour the contents of the shaker into a salt-rimmed glass and top with four (yes, four) ounces of your favorite rosé wine. I’d recommend one that isn’t too sweet so that the cocktail is balanced. Give the drink a stir and TA-DA! Rosé margarita heaven. 

This recipe can easily be batched for a crowd. I’d recommend doing the math and shaking the tequila, lime juice, and simple syrup in a large beverage Tupperware. Pour the contents into a large pitcher, stir in the appropriate amount of wine, and serve immediately. I’m not saying you’re going to be everyone’s new BFF, but let’s just assume this to be another universal truth. If you make these rosé margaritas, they will come. 

Happy Margarita Week to you all and special thanks to Kate of Hola Jalapeno! She’s known in these parts for hosting the most KILLER marg party, so be sure to check out her site for a massive amount of other thirsty bloggers who are sharing lime and tequila-infused treats this week. Happy Monday to you and happy drinking!

If you like these rosé margaritas you should check out:

Pinot Ritas

Honey Basil Margaritas

Grapefruit “Tejitos”

Sparkling Margaritas 

Grapefruit Moscow Mules

 

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Buy Clotilde's latest book, The French Market Cookbook!

• We’ve had an eerily summer-like month of April, with cherry blossoms and lilac and wisteria blooming everywhere, unending afternoons at the park, and blissful dinners on sidewalk terraces.

• I have been to see the exhibition Dutch Artists in Paris, which ends on May 13, and L.O.V.E.D. it. My favorite part was seeing the paintings Van Gogh painted of Montmartre when he lived on rue Lepic, behind a handsome blue door I always point out with relish on my Montmartre tours. And now, based on the view he painted from his apartment, I’ve even figured out which window he was looking out from!

• This month, I also want to recommend a little store I love called Sept Cinq, which sells clothing and accessories all created by Paris-based designers. I especially like the jewellery from BDM Studio, and got myself a ring I adore.

Meet me at these events!

I will be presenting my new cookbook Tasting Paris at these two events. Please come meet me if you can!

Paris, France: Tuesday, May 15, 2018, 7:30pm
Talk and book signing at the American Library in Paris, 10 rue du Général Camou, 75007 Paris, M° Ecole Militaire, +33 (0)1 53 59 12 60.
The event is free and public; a suggested donation of 10€ will help support the Library’s programming.
Tasting Paris will be available for purchase.

Dallas, Texas: Saturday, June 2, 2018, 7pm
Book signing at Interabang Books, 10720 Preston Rd. Ste. 1009B, Dallas, TX 75230, (214) 484 4289.
The event is free and public.
Tasting Paris will be available for purchase.

A Montmartre shirt designed by yours truly

Would you like to wear a shirt that celebrates the beauty and charm of Montmartre in a unique, hand-drawn way? I have just the shirt for you, available for men, women, and children, with an illustration I drew inspired by my beloved neighborhood.

Learn French before your next trip!

If you have plans to visit France in the near future (or just daydreaming about it!), working on your French is such a great way to prepare for your trip. I have partnered with Frantastique, a fun and well-crafted online French course, to offer you your first month free, no strings attached.

The courses are delivered by email daily, you can customize them to your level and preferences, and that one free month should give you a good idea of what it would be like to learn or improve your French over a longer period of time. Are you in?

The post Best of April appeared first on Chocolate & Zucchini.

Slow Cooker Mexican Street Corn Dip is a delicious and easy appetizer to serve at a party.

This Mexican Street Corn Dip is cooked entirely in the slow cooker.  The ingredients for the dip are quickly mixed in the blender and then transferred to the slow cooker.

1 1/2 hours on high or 2 to 3 hours on low.  That’s all the time you need to cook the dip and get it all nice and warm and toasty.

You can certainly leave it in the slow cooker and serve it up that way, but I prefer to transfer it to a bowl.  It will cool down if you move it to a bowl, of course, but this dip is super tasty at room temperature too.

It’s suggested that you add some extra goodies to the top of the dip for serving: chopped green onions, crumbled Cotija cheese and a sprinkle of chili powder.  I highly recommend that you follow that suggestion.

Use sturdy chips for dipping because you’ll want to get as much of this good stuff as possible on your chips!  This dip is completely addicting.  It’s rich.  It’s cheesy.  And it has a ton of great flavor.  It’s my new favorite!

This recipe comes from a cookbook called, Holiday Slow Cooker: 100 Incredible and Festive Recipes for Every Celebration by Leigh Anne Wilkes.  Celebrations included in the book are Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s Eve, Valentine’s Day, Chinese New Year, Easter, Cinco de Mayo and 4th of July.  I love to have cookbooks like this at hand since I enjoy entertaining during the holidays.  And using a slow cooker is a bonus- it makes entertaining so much easier!

Here are a few recipes in the book (all slow cooker recipes) that have caught my eye:  Herbed Turkey Breast, Santa Maria Style Pot Roast, Chicken Parmesan Soup, Lemon- Garlic Chicken Pasta, Mongolian Beef, Lemon Pull-Apart Biscuits, Salsa Verde Carnitas, Bacon Mac and Cheese, Overnight Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal and Buffalo Chicken Meatballs.

If you love slow cooker recipes as much as me, you might enjoy my Slow Cooker Carnitas Burritos or my Slow Cooker Cider Ham.  These Slow Cooker Ribs are a good choice for dinner too.

Disclosure:  There are Amazon affiliate links included within this post.  I was given a review copy of this book and was given permission to share a recipe from the book with RecipeGirl readers.  All opinions shared are my own.

The post Slow Cooker Mexican Street Corn Dip appeared first on RecipeGirl.

Macadamia nuts and white chocolate are a match made in heaven as far as I’m concerned. Macadamia nuts can go well with a wide variety of ingredients, of course, but their buttery nuttiness pairs perfectly with the creamy vanilla of white chocolate. Anyone who has eaten a good white chocolate macadamia nut cookie can confirm this, as it is one of the most popular ways to use macadamia nuts in the kitchen. As good as they are, those cookies aren’t the only option for baking with macadamia nuts and these Macadamia Nut White Chocolate Tea Cakes are a great way to start expanding your repertoire.

The tea cakes are similar to cupcakes, but they’re a touch sweeter than your average cupcake and don’t need any frosting to finish them off. These start with a batter made with ground macadamia nuts. You can grind them into meal – just like almond meal or flour – in your food processor in just a few seconds. I recommend starting with toasted macadamia nuts (they’re most often sold toasted), since they have a greater depth of flavor than untoasted nuts, but both will work. The ground nuts are combined with flour, sugar, eggs and vanilla to make the rest of the batter. White chocolate chips are folded in before baking.

I didn’t include any chopped nuts in the cake batter because I really like the soft, fluffy texture of the cakes and didn’t want the nuts to take away from it. You get a tremendous amount of macadamia nut flavor – more than you might expect from such a mild nut – in these that you don’t really need extra nuts, though I did sprinkle a few on top for looks. The white chocolate, in contrast, assimilates well into the batter, adding sweetness in every bite. As always, be sure to use real white chocolate that is made with only cocoa butter and not other vegetable fats.

The finished cakes area ready to eat as soon as they have cooled. They can be baked with or without paper liners, though the liners will make them a bit easier to get out of the pan by preventing any sticking. They’re tender and flavorful, with just the right balance of sweetness and nuttiness that you might expect to find in a white chocolate macadamia nut cookie!

Macadamia Nut White Chocolate Tea Cakes
3/4 cup ground, toasted macadamia nuts
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
1 tbsp milk
4 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
2/3 cup white chocolate chips
2 tbsp chopped macadamia nuts, for topping (toasted or untoasted)

Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin pan or line with paper liners.
In a large bowl, whisk together ground macadamia nuts, flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add in eggs and milk. Whisk until all ingredients are well-combined. Add in melted butter and whisk until completely incorporated. Stir in white chocolate chips.
Divide batter evenly into prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle with chopped macadamia nuts.
Bake for 18-21 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cakes comes out clean and the tops of the cakes spring back when lightly pressed. Run a knife around the edge of the cakes, if not using paper liners, and turn them out onto wire racks to cool completely.

Makes 12.

The post Macadamia Nut White Chocolate Tea Cakes appeared first on Baking Bites.

Okay, so this is definitely the least pretty meal prep I’ve ever made and I almost didn’t post it, but I’m genuinely excited to be eating this Black Bean and Avocado Enchilada Meal Prep this week, so I set my vanity aside so you could enjoy it too. It may not be pretty, but it’s too good not to share. It would be rude for me to keep this gem of a recipe combo to myself. 

I first made these vegan Black Bean and Avocado Enchiladas back in 2013 and they’ve been a huge hit with everyone who has tried them ever since. The weather is warming up and the sun is shining, so I’ve really been craving the type of bright fresh flavors that fill these enchiladas. I paired them a really simple side, my Cumin Lime Roasted Sweet Potatoes, which match the enchiladas in the light and fresh flavor. This entire assembly was really easy, and I think many of you will love this combo just as much as I do.

I did run into a little logistical error, which led to the less than pretty appearance of my meal prep: the tortillas I used were too long for my meal prep containers! So keep that in mind when you’re tortilla shopping, LOL.

Black Bean and Avocado Enchilada Meal Prep

This Meal Prep Includes (4 servings):

Black Bean and Avocado Enchiladas: $7.23

Cumin Lime Roasted Sweet Potatoes: $3.01

Total Cost (4 servings + leftovers): $10.24

Cost per meal: $2.20

Cost of leftovers (2 enchiladas): $1.45

The containers pictured in the photos are the Pyrex 3-cup rectangular storage container with lid.

Notes:

• If you’re texture sensitive, this one might not be for you. Both of these recipes do tend to get a bit soft as they are stored in the refrigerator (fortunately, this is something I actually need with my new braces!). Using corn tortillas and toasting them slightly before assembling your enchiladas can help combat the softness.
• Both of these recipes require using the oven, but at different temperatures, so this is how my workflow went:
  • Prep sweet potatoes, start roasting them at 425ºF
  • Make sauce for enchiladas, set that aside
  • Stir sweet potatoes (roasting halfway point)
  • Assemble Enchiladas
  • Sweet potatoes finish as enchiladas are being assembled, remove them from the oven, turn oven down to 350ºF
  • Bake Enchiladas
  • Divide and package sweet potatoes while Enchiladas are baking
  • Add baked enchiladas to containers, then refrigerate.
• I did not squeeze the lime over the sweet potatoes after they baked, instead I added the wedges to each container so I could add the lime juice after reheating and just before eating. It tastes best when that tart juice is just sitting on top of the sweet potatoes and hasn’t really soaked in.
• There are two enchiladas left over. Will you have difficulty not wasting these? I won’t. They’ll 100% get eaten, whether I tack an extra enchilada onto one of the meals, or just decide to eat enchiladas twice in one day (yeah, I like them that much). Now if you absolutely need to, these can be frozen, but I’d list their freezer-friendliness at about 6. They probably won’t taste quite so bright and scrumptious, but will certainly be edible.

I hope you guys aren’t turned off by the appearance of this meal prep and give it a try! I swear it’s DEEEEELISH! :)

The post Black Bean and Avocado Enchilada Meal Prep appeared first on Budget Bytes.

There are a lot of chana masala recipes out there that are perfectly good, but this is the chana masala you should make tonight. It's what I want when I order chana masala in a restaurant. It's what I look for when I dive into a beautiful thali plate.

Chana masala the wildly popular dish from the Indian subcontinent made of chickpeas (chana) simmered in a feisty, spice-forward tomato sauce. It's one of those gateway preparations that introduce people to the food of India and Pakistan, and I've enjoyed versions of it all over the world. I've had it in Bangkok, I've had it in Rome, I've had it in Jodhpur, and I've had it in Istanbul. I've formed strong opinions, and there were a number of variables I wanted to (finally) get right for a go-to version I would make regularly in my own kitchen. It has taken me a while to crack the code!

Chana masala varies from region to region, across borders, and from cook to cook. This is the version of chana masala I hope for and crave when I order it at a restaurant. What you tend to get in a restaurant is often overly oily, sadly seasoned, boring. This is not that. This is a Technicolor version of chana masala. It's spicy, racy, and balanced. There's kick from cayenne, serrano, and chana masala powder. There's a bit of sour from the tomatoes, from the mango powder and pomegranate seeds in the chana masala powder.

As I was working on this recipe there were a number of things I wanted to focus on. First, I wanted to get the flavor and texture right (of course). Texture is really important, and my favorite chana masalas often lack clear definition between the chickpeas and the sauce, in a good way. They have this third thing going on, a crumbled texture of sorts, which I learned is from broken up chickpeas. You'll see that reflected here.

Second, I think one of the things that intimidates people about cooking Indian, or Pakistani, or Sri Lankan food at home is those long ingredient lists (so many good-for-you spices). I've written this recipe so you'll have enough of the simmer sauce for two meals. One for now, one to freeze for later. Double that and you've got four meals...

Which chickpeas to use? The answer is simple, whatever you have on hand. If you have chickpeas you've cooked from dried (like these turmeric soaked chickpeas), use those. If it's a Wednesday night, and all you have is canned chickpeas, go for it! Either way, your chana masala will be delicious.

Thick or thin: Some chana masala is thin and soupy, other times it is thick, and more cohesive. It's all a matter of personal preference - I tend to like mine somewhere in the middle.

Chana masala powder: You need to source good chana masala powder. It matters (meaning, don't leave it out), and you're not going to make it at home - it has mango powder, ground pomegranate seeds, dried musk melon, and a long list of other wonderful but challenging to source ingredients. I've been using this MDH chana masala powder, and I like it. Spicy! Tangy! Good sprinkled on all sorts of things.

Pair with: Eat chana masala with rice, eat it with flat bread, eat as a component in a thali plate, eat it spooned over your favorite grains. I love it with a simple side of cauliflower, and often I'll throw in a handful of shredded kale or spinach, to get my greens in - a perfect one dish meal.

Hope you love this recipe!

Continue reading A Really Good Chana Masala...