Top Ten Recipes of 2012

Happy Holidays, imaginary internet friends! And congratulations on surviving the end of the world. Now I’m off to Barnes and Noble to demand a refund for my Mayan wall calendar. Wish me luck!

In the meantime, I hope you’ll take another look at the 10 most popular recipes I shared this year.

S’mores Fried Ice Cream with Chipotle Chocolate Sauce

Asparagus Lasagna with Pancetta, Goat Cheese, and Lemon

Baked Churros with Cinnamon Ice Cream and Dulce de Leche

Loaded Baked Potato Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Cinnamon Roll Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Homemade Oatmeal Cream Pies

Toffee Cashew Cookies

Chicken Pot Pie Soup with Pie Crust Crackers

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese Sandwich

And the most popular recipe of 2012:

Pepperoni Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Here’s to a delicious (and gooey) new year!

Blueberry Lemon Mini Scones

I’m a sucker for miniature food.

Bite-sized morsels taste better, somehow, and these mini-scones are no exception.

The recipe is remarkably similar to my cranberry orange scone recipe, but these are improved by, well, tininess.

If captioned cat photos on the internet were edible, they’d taste like blueberry lemon mini scones.

They’re just so cute. I want to hug them with my teeth.

Continue reading for the Blueberry Lemon Mini Scones recipe

English Muffin and Blackberry Jam Grilled Cheese Sandwich

In honor of National Grilled Cheese Month, I’m posting a different grilled cheese sandwich every single day through the month of April. You’re welcome.

Do you remember that vacation you took to Provence, when you lounged in the sun with your lover, picnicking on creamy cheese, a fresh, crisp baguette, and a glass of regional wine? No?

Yeah, me neither. But I imagine that such a perfect, sunny picnic tastes an awful lot like this grilled cheese sandwich. No, I’m not even kidding. (OK, maybe a little.)

I split the English muffin with a fork and flipped it inside out to grill the cut side to a perfect golden crunch. The jam swirled into the melted provolone to make a gooey, sticky sauce. Bon appetit!

Sausage and Waffles Grilled Cheese Sandwich

In honor of National Grilled Cheese Month, I’m posting a different grilled cheese sandwich every single day through the month of April. You’re welcome.

This sandwich was a great idea. I mean, who doesn’t love breakfast for dinner? Sausage links and waffles with maple syrup – this sandwich had everything going for it. Until I actually made it.

It turned out, um, odd. The combination of syrup and cream cheese tasted weird, almost curdled. And the waffles never crisped up – they got a little soggy. Based on this experiment, I think I’m going to abandon the chicken and waffles grilled cheese sandwich idea. Sorry, the South.

Cinnamon Roll Grilled Cheese Sandwich

In honor of National Grilled Cheese Month, I’m posting a different grilled cheese sandwich every single day through the month of April. You’re welcome.

One day I dreamed that I could bring together a cinnamon roll and a grilled cheese sandwich. The resulting Frankenbreakfast was everything I dreamed it would be, and more.

Dense, eggy challah bread was an excellent choice to duplicate the sweetness and pillowy texture of a cinnamon roll. And oh, the filling! Warm, sweet, gooey cinnamon perfection. The Neufchatel gave it a lovely tang, like cream cheese frosting. And the brown sugar melted right into the cheese for a silky smooth consistency.

Is it breakfast? Is it dessert? Does it matter? Make. This. Sandwich.

Prosciutto, Leek, and Swiss Chard Quiche

I think it’s time I came to terms with a disappointing truth: I am not a homemade pie crust person. Wait! Let me finish! As much as I admire those patient bakers who make pie crust by hand, for me, it’s just not worth it.

Other than the cheddar crust for Tenessa’s apple bacon birthday pie, I’ve yet to make a pie crust that rivals the texture or flavor of the ready-made, roll-out crusts you buy in the dairy department. And it’s cheap – refrigerated pie crust bought on sale (on double coupon day) is next to free, and can be stashed in the freezer until a proper pie-portunity presents itself.

I’m glad I tried making pie crust from scratch, and I can file it away with other things I’ve done once, and don’t really feel compelled to do again like camping, or folding the laundry.

If you want to make a pie crust with your own two hands, there are thousands of recipes just a Google away. But this savory, rich, and fluffy quiche will do just fine in a store-bought crust.

I first made it for Mom and Handsome Greg last April, back when I had a job, as part of a luxurious farewell-to-winter brunch. I’ve since adapted it as a recessipe fit for an unemployed lady’s budget that’s exactly the same, but with onions for the leeks. And frozen spinach for the chard. And nothing for the prosciutto. So, yeah. It’s nearly identical.

Continue reading for the Prosciutto, Leek, and Swiss Chard Quiche recipe

Banana Walnut Muffins

I despise banana-flavored candy. Laffy Taffy, Runts, popsicles, Lifesavers, Now and Laters, jelly beans, Dum Dums, Pez, Dubble Bubble, Starburst – I will ALWAYS toss out the banana flavored ones.

When I was a kid, my banana-flavor loathing prejudiced me to all things banana. I thought I hated bananas, and by extension, any foods baked with bananas. And so I turned up my nose at banana bread, banana cream pie, banana pudding, and sadly, banana muffins.

Thankfully, I came around to baked banana goodness on a family vacation to Toledo when my great grandma tricked me into eating zucchini bread. “Here, have a piece,” she said, with a sly smile. Wildly suspicious, my sister and I asked what was in it. “Oh, just try it. I promise you’ll like it.” And she was right – it was delicious.

That zucchini was my gateway bread. The next morning when she offered me a piece of her freshly baked banana bread, I tried it without first scrutinizing the list of ingredients, and I finally realized what I’d been missing.

While I can’t imagine duplicating my great grandma’s magical banana bread, I think I’ve found a pretty darn good banana muffin recipe. I tried to make them a little more heart-healthy than your average muffin, subbing a bit of wheat flour for some of the AP, and a bit of heart-healthy spread for some of the butter. They came out delicious – sweet and moist and buttery – and they didn’t taste like health food at all.

Continue reading for the Banana Walnut Muffins recipe

Blue Umbrella Bake Sale!

Blue Umbrella Productions is hosting an ongoing bake sale to help raise money for our summer musical, Those Were the Days: A Tribute to Television Themes. I’ll be taking and fulfilling orders Girl-Scout style, plus filling any special requests (like scones for Mother’s Day!) until rehearsals begin in June.

I’ve got a menu of both sweet and savory treats to choose from posted below. Email info@blueumbrellaproductions.com to place an order for pick up or delivery. (Twin Cities only. $10 minimum on orders outside of the Banks Building.)

Menu

Popcorn with Truffle Salt
Fresh, fluffy popcorn is tossed with aromatic, savory truffle salt for a luxurious movie-night upgrade.

3 cups: $1.75
6 cups: $3

Lemon Meltaways
These bite-size, buttery lemon shortbread cookies will melt in your mouth.

Half dozen for $2.75
Dozen for $5

Coconut Macaroons
Crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside, light as a cloud, with coconutty goodness all the way through.

Half dozen for $4.25
Dozen for $8

Snickerdoodles with Cinnamon Chips
Classic snickerdoodles (sugar cookies rolled in cinnamon sugar) get an extra boost of flavor with creamy cinnamon chips.

Half dozen for $5.50
Dozen for $10

Homemade “Oreos”
They’re bigger, they’re better, and they’re baked fresh with no mystery ingredients.

Half dozen for $8
Dozen for $15

Oatmeal Cream Pies
A grown-up version of the classic treat – the cookies are rich and spiced, and the creamy filling is not overly sweet.

Half dozen for $8
Dozen for $15

Mini Strawberry Hand Pies
Light, flaky butter crust filled with sweet strawberry jam.

Half dozen for $8
Dozen for $15

Sweet and Spicy Candied Nuts
Crunchy almonds and pecans baked in a party-perfect blend of cinnamon, sugar, and a pinch of cayenne.

4 oz. for $4
8 oz. for $7.50
12 oz. for $11
1 lb. for $14.50

Duck Fat Home Fries

If I weren’t way behind on posting, you’d have had this recipe months ago. I made these delightful potatoes for my Mom’s birthday dinner (her birthday is in November, y’all), and I feel just terrible that I’ve kept the (ridiculously simple) recipe from you for so long.

I like to par-bake the potatoes whole in the oven, then cut them up and pan-fry them quickly in duck fat. This keeps them light and fluffy on the inside, and crispy golden on the outside. A quick toss with chopped parsley brings a perfect bite of freshness.

Better late than never!

Continue reading for the Duck Fat Home Fries recipe

cranberry orange scones

Let’s see a show of hands: who here is having a craptastic week? (I’m operating under the assumption that anyone reads my blog.)

Sometimes getting out of bed is a challenge, when you know you’re facing a putrid garbage fart of a day.

Based on the weather alone, I’d say at least a few folks out there need a pick-me-up first thing.

Starting off the work day with a cocktail is generally not advisable, so I suggest, as an alternative, a freshly-baked scone.

The dough can be rolled, cut, and frozen in advance, then thawed and baked in about 20 minutes as needed.

These cranberry orange reasons-to-live are not too sweet, and not too tart.

They’re softer and fluffier than regular hard, dry, crumbly scones. Which is fine by me.

If you’re truly inconsolable, and even warm, buttery baked goods can’t salvage the day, perhaps Professor Meowington can bring you a little comfort:

Do you need a hug?

Recipe below the fold