Santa cupcakes

I found these in an old magazine. First, I have a confession to make: the cupcakes are made from a cake mix. I know, I know, the horror! But I wanted to make something fun for the kids so I focused on the decorating (and yes, frosting was from scratch.)

It was a team effort. 

Pre-nose.

Some Santas were not as well-groomed as others. 

Synchronized Santas. 

Sufganiot

In case you needed any more convincing that being Jewish is awesome, the traditional Hannukah dessert is a jelly filled doughnut called Sufgania (Sufganiot is plural). I have never attempted making this treasure, but I was inspired this year by Alissa's sufganiot, which were amazing. It took me two tries, but I eventually got it right. Sadly, these little doughnuts do not stay fresh long. By 8 pm that day they weren't nearly as soft and moist. But it was worth it while it lasted. 

The dough smells amazing and is a blast to play with.

I used this instrument of torture, a Flavor Injector from Target, to fill the doughnuts. 

Powdered sugar? Yes please. 

Happy Thanksgiving- The Holiday of 1000 Points

Marcoux Corner provided the background music for my day of baking. 

Many bananas gave their lives for an ultra-moist banana nut bread.

Like chocolate and peanut butter baby, some things are meant to be

So purty

Seriously, isn't she lovely? 

This, not as pretty, but yummy none-the-less

My first upside down cake. Cranberry, of course.

So not home-made

But they baked up nicely and were a big hit.

Pie from Key's.

Pear and Cranberry Crisp

Finally! I managed to snap a few pictures of my new favorite dessert, the Weight Watchers Pear Cranberry Crisp. You will never make another crisp again.

Pear Cranberry Crisp
(Adapted from Weight Watchers Healthy Cooking Basics)

1/2 cup plus 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking or old-fashioned oats (not instant)
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
4 tbsp cold, unsalted butter, diced
1 tsp water
3 pounds (about 4 medium sized) pears, peeled and thinly sliced
3/4 cup fresh cranberries
1 tsp grated ginger
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray 7x11 inch baking dish with nonstick, butter-flavored spray.

To make topping, combine 1/2 cup flour, oats, 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, and salt in medium bowl. Add butter and pinch with your fingers to form coarse crumbs. Sprinkle with water and firmly press mixture to form larger clumps.

Combine pears, cranberries, remaining 1/4 cup sugar (I used less, about an 1/8 cup), 2 tbsp flour, ginger, and vanilla in a large bowl, mix well. Transfer to baking dish and sprinkle topping evenly over fruit. Bake 55 minutes until golden brown and filling is bubbling.

Pasta and Beef Bake

There has certainly been a theme of comfort food at my house. Tonight's dish, a Weight Watchers recipe of baked pasta smothered in tomato sauce, ground beef and cheese. Now don't you feel warmer already?

You can always forget all about counting points and add a glass of beautiful red wine and a slice or four of fresh baked bread. Better yet, top the bread with butter, garlic and cheese, and throw it in the oven for a few minutes. Sigh...

Italian Beef and Pasta Bake
(Adapted from Weight Watchers Healthy Cooking Basics)

1 pkg. whole wheat spaghetti
1 Lb. lean ground beef (7% fat or less)
1 large onion, chopped
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 (28 oz) can whole tomatoes
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried basil
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x13 glass baking dish with nonstick spray (I used olive oil flavor).

Cook pasta as directed on package. Drain and transfer to large bowl.

Meanwhile, cook beef, onion, and garlic in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until beef is browned, about 8 minutes. Stir in tomatoes, oregano, basil, salt and pepper. Simmer, stirring and smashing down tomatoes occasionally for about 15 minutes, until sauce thickens slightly.

Stir beef mixture, ricotta, and 1/2 cup of mozzarella into the pasta. Transfer to baking dish and sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup of mozzarella if desired. Bake until heated through, about 20 minutes.

Roughly 7 points for 1 1/4 cups.

NOTE: Next time I plan on using penne (per the original recipe) or ziti instead of spaghetti and crushed tomatoes instead of whole or diced. I think that will make for a thicker sauce that will work better with the pasta.

Grandma's Chicken Soup

My mom has been making this soup ever since I can remember. Now that he's retired, my dad makes it, and it's slightly different, but equally wonderful. I've been making it my way as an adult. We all have put our own twists on this classic recipe, so there are no measurements, just a general list of ingredients. Add your own favorite veggies and spices, and enjoy with crusty bread or cheesy crackers.

Family Recipe Chicken Soup

Any bone-in chicken parts (I prefer thighs or breasts)
1 Tbsp (or one cube) Chicken bouillon (I only use Osem Chicken Style Consomme)
Vegetables such as carrots, onions, and celery, cut into bite size pieces
Black pepper to taste
Paprika to taste
Garlic powder to taste
A few sprigs of fresh parsley

In a large stock pot, boil chicken pieces in water for about 5 minutes. Remove from water and let cool (just enough so you can remove the skin.) Meantime, wash out the pot. Remove skin from chicken and return to pot. Add veggies, spices, bouillon and parsley. Cover with water, cover pot, and return to boil.

Lower heat to medium low and continue to simmer for about an hour. The soup will get a golden color and be ready to eat right away. But it's even better the next day...and the next...

Growing up in Israel, it was practically illegal to eat chicken soup without "shkedim," tiny croutons made especially for soup by Osem. Here in Minnesota they are a precious commodity, so we always stock up when we find them. Lunds or Byerly's are a good bet, as is Fishman's Kosher Deli in St. Louis Park.

Happy Sunday

Seriously, is there a better way to start a snowy Sunday?

I think not.

Cider-Braised Beef

It's cold out. It's going to snow. A lot. Sounds like a good night for some serious comfort food, Weight Watchers style.

On tonight's menu: Cider-Braised Beef with Root Vegetables

(adapted from Weight Watcher's Healthy Cooking Basics)

2 pounds beef bottom round roast, trimmed
salt
black pepper
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup unsweetened apple cider
1 cup dry red wine
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into chunks
3 carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
2 onions, cut into wedges
2 tsp dried thyme

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper to taste. Heat oil in dutch oven over medium high heat. Add beef and sear on all sides, about 8 minutes. Add cider and wine and garlic, and bring to boil. Cover, transfer pot to oven, and bake for 1 hour, turning once halfway through.

Stir in vegetables and thyme. Cover and bake until beef and vegetables are tender, about 2 hours. Transfer beef to cutting board and let cool for about 10 minutes. Cut into 16 slices and serve with vegetables and broth.

Please note: I did not include Point Value here because I tweaked the recipe and don't want to get in trouble with the powers that be at Weight Watchers. Let's just say that a serving of one slice of beef with a half cup of vegetables and broth (like in the photo above) is roughly 5 points.

Skinny AND tasty

I have a new favorite web site. It is called Gina's Skinny Recipes and it is fabulous. She has lovely recipes and includes point values for each. I have made several items and all have been successful.

Right now I have this banana bread baking in the oven. Can you smell it?

In other Weight Watchers news, I have now hit goal, which is exciting. I can't brag much, since I only lost 12 pounds, but I guess it is 12 pounds less than I weighed six weeks ago.

To celebrate, I bought a Weight Watchers cookbook, Healthy Cooking Basics. I had been resisting it, but it was half off, so what-the-heck. So far, I've made three recipes, two were glorious, one, the spinach with pine nuts, tasted like leather. I will say I have never been a big cooked spinach fan, unless it's surrounded by crust, eggs, cheese, and lots of butter, so it was an uphill battle.

This quinoa with butternut squash and cranberries was divine. My family also raved about the pear and cranberry crisp, but we devoured it all so quickly, I never got a picture of it.

Weight Watchers

Sigh. Yep, I am doing WW, along with the rest of the world, apparently.

This is my new favorite lunch: a WW English muffin. Half is topped with an egg white scramble with green peppers, spinach, mushrooms and onions, while the other half has peanut butter and the teensiest dab of honey.

I miss Fair food :(

Comfort food

On a recent cold, rainy day, Millie and I made short bread cookies (with sprinkles, of course) and chicken soup. Really, what else do you need on a cruddy fall day? 

More fair food

Don't let the small number of photos fool you, I just keep forgetting to take pictures! Must be because I am too excited about the food. Not pictured: deep fried pickles, mint lemonade, turkey sandwich, cherry float, quesadilla, walleye cakes,key lime pie on a stick, fudge puppy, and an elephant ear.

There is no better way to start a day at the fair than with a pair of cream-filled zeppoles. This is zeppoles order number two this year



and Strawberry and Rhubarb sundae number three.

Fair food

Deep fried Reese's Cups. Of course.

Pizza on the grill

My first successful attempt at grilling pizza. Previous attempts ended up with the bottom looking like charcoal and tasting like what I can only imagine charcoal tastes like, but this pizza was delightful. Fresh mozzarella, fresh basil (thanks Sarah!), onion and and tomato sauce. Simple and summery.

Cupcakes

I give up. The perfect recipe for moist, home-baked cupcakes continues to elude me. I now know that paying $4 for a Sprinkles cupcake is justifiable because it is nearly impossible to replicate that kind of soft, fluffy goodness at home.

Alas, my festive cupcakes turned out dry but cute. The kids didn't seem to mind.

Strawberries

Saturday, despite being under the weather and in pain from my first ever sports injury, Millie and I went strawberry picking in an effort to stay out of the way of Tony and his motley crew as they built our new deck. We went to Natura Farms outside of Forrest Lake. They also grow many veggies and herbs, along with other berries and fruit. We got the last of the raspberries they had left, along with a few nice stalks of rhubarb and of course, our ice cream bucket (almost, due to an unexpected potty break) full of strawberries.

On the way home we stopped at a cute little log cabiny place and had a lovely lunch together, just me and my girl.

Years ago, when I was working at MCAD, my biggest treat was running to the French Meadow and getting a latte and their strawberry rhubarb muffin. I haven't seen them anywhere else since. Mine turned out smaller then the gigantic ones at the French Meadow, but equally delicious, if I may say so myself.

Next will be bars, made with quick cooking oats. If they turn out I will deliver them to the neighbors who helped with our mighty deck yesterday.

Birthday Ice Cream

Today, my dear husband turned 40 years old. Yep, the big 4-0. The least a man deserves when turning 40 is their very own birthday ice cream. He hasn't had any yet, so I cannot report his reaction, but I tasted it (just barely, I promise) last night and can honestly say it was delish. But I may be biased.

I started with David Lebovitz's vanilla ice cream (which on its own is divine) and added crumbled mini oreos a couple of minutes before it was done.

Tony's Oreo Cookies Ice Cream.

On a side note, we went to the Anchor for dinner, which specializes in Fish 'n Chips (thanks again Alissa for watching Millie!). It was very good, but I am paying dearly for it. Three hours later, my stomach hurts so badly I may never be able to look at a fried fish again. Just typing that made me throw up in my mouth a little bit.

Chicken Pot Pie

I've used this recipe for the filling before and topped it with store bought crust (as the recipe recommends). This time, I got a bit full of myself and decided to try the "real" thing. So off to smittenkitchen.com I went. For my very first try and home-made pie crust, I would say this was not a complete failure.

Recipe for "easy" pie crust from smittenkitchen.com.

I knew pretty much right away that this particular attempt was not going to be a glowing success. I had huge lumps of butter, instead of the "tiny flecks" Smitten Kitchen raves about. This, of course, led to shiny butter puddles on top of my baked crust. This is not always a bad thing, but it did make the crust a bit chewy, kind of the consistency of naan. Again, not necessarily a bad thing. The filling, as always, was delicious. It is delicately laced with fresh thyme, and how can that be bad?

The biggest problem is that now I have a huge pan of it, with dinner plans for the next two nights. Leftovers anyone?

Pretty, it wasn't.

Tomato Butter Sauce

Tomato Sauce with Butter and Onion
It sounded like a good idea in the early afternoon, when it was pouring rain and getting progressively more dreadful outside. A simple, hearty dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, topped with a tomato butter sauce. It's a recipe I've wanted to try for a while, compliments of my favorite kitchenista, Smitten Kitchen.

Two hours later, in my now-sun-filled kitchen, with two burners and the oven running, it was hot and steamy, and not in a good way. But I soldiered on. The house smelled amazing- butter, onion and tomatoes. Add Trader Joe's garlic bread to the mix and you get the picture. Sun be damned, we were having this rainy day dinner regardless.

And it was gooooooooooood.

The sauce is crazy simple. Three ingredients, maybe a shake of salt. It's very, very sweet, so if you prefer it more savory, you might want to cut down on the yellow onion or add salt and pepper. I also made meatballs (not so simple, but worth it) and my newest obsession: arugula salad with pecorino, olive oil, lemon zest and toasted almonds (thanks Chef Steven!)