Honey Lime Shredded Chicken Panini with Lime Butter and Pepper Jack Cheese

What a long post title, huh? But this sandwich is a killer.

I had some lime butter left over from steak sandwiches I made yesterday as well as some day-old ciabatta bread, and thought that this would be an excellent night to try out a new honey-lime chicken recipe that I had been mulling in my mind for a few days.

First of all, I picked off about a third of the pan of honey-lime chicken before it made it onto the sandwiches... which I do not regret. When mixed with the pepper jack and lime butter, however, the flavors are even more pronounced and delicious.

Ok. NOT the most glamorous-looking sandwich I've ever made... but hungry company cut this photoshoot short and this is the best I can offer. Note that one hungry sandwich-monger added turkey bacon to his sandwich.

Honey-Lime Shredded Chicken, Pepper Jack and Lime Butter Panini

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts shredded or cut into very small pieces

1/2 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon honey

juice of 2/3 of one lime

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon Old Bay Herb & Garlic seasoning

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

lime zest

juice of 1/3 of one lime

4 slices ciabatta bread

2 slices pepper jack cheese

Directions:

1. Combine soy sauce, honey, juice of 2/3 of one lime, 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon Old Bay Herb & Garlic seasoning and two chicken breasts in a small covered bowl or a Ziploc bag. Marinate for at least one hour, preferably overnight.

2. Combined 4 tablespoons unsalted softened butter, 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, roughly 1/4 teaspoon lime zest and the juice of 1/3 of one lime. Refrigerate until needed.

3. Sautee shredded chicken until browned and fragrant. Set aside.

4. Lightly butter both sides of all 4 slices of ciabatta bread with lime butter. In a saucepan over medium heat, toast the buttered ciabatta bread until crisp. 

5. Add more lime butter to taste -- I added about another 3/4 tablespoon per sandwich -- as well as one slice of pepper jack cheese and cooked honey-lime chicken. Return panini to heat so that the butter and cheese may melt.

6. Serve immediately and hot.

Enjoy your small slice of summer in the wintry weather!

--Alyssa

Gruyere and Pepper Jack Rigati Pasta

Who doesn't love some serious carbs on a snowy December day? This girl loves them. There was too much sleet on the ground to make it to Panera for their famous (my favorite) commercial mac & cheese, so I decided to make some of my own.

You can use any small-shell pasta you like in this dish, but I chose rigati shell pasta because the cheese sauce tends to get sucked up into the shell -- yumm. And you want as much cheesy goodness in every bite as you can handle.

Well, hellooooo there beautiful.

Ingredients:

2 cups rotini or other small shell dry pasta

1 cup whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup shredded pepper jack cheese

1/3 cup shredded Gruyere cheese

1/4 teaspoon ground peppercorn

1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional: for a spicy kick)

Parmesan, for dusting

Directions:

1. Bring whole milk and heavy cream to a simmer on a stovetop. Add rotini pasta when milk and cream have begun to bubble and steam, and reduce heat.

2. Cook pasta on low heat for 15 minutes. After fifteen minutes, add in shredded cheeses, ground peppercorn, and, if desired, paprika. Stirring occasionally, cook pasta for five more minutes or until cheese is melted and a thick sauce is formed. Add a small amount of milk if the sauce is too thick for your taste.

3. Serve immediately and enjoy hot!

Happy wintering to you and yours!

--Alyssa

Baked Cheesy Kosher Sausage Balls

Sausage balls are my absolute favorite Christmas food. But who wants all that grease in their digestive system? Not me, no ma'am. Also, for this Jewess, there's always the sinking feeling that the hostess is trying to sneak some pork off on you.

"Oh, yeah, this is absolutely.... kosher..."

How many times have I heard that?

Well, these sausage balls are both baked and absolutely kosher. And they are just divine. I had two for breakfast, and when hot, they are absolutely divine. The outside is crunchy and cheesy and the inside is meaty and slightly gooey with the cheddar. Yumm.

Don't you want one?

Baked Kosher Cheesy Sausage Balls

Ingredients

½ pound kosher sausage, cooked and crumbled
1 cup all purpose flour
¾ cup cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon minced garlic
½ cup whole milk
shredded cheddar cheese for topping

Directions
1. Mix dry ingredients well, and slowly add in milk. Mix until dough is sticky and well-combined. Add cheese and ground, cooked sausage. 
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease a cookie tray. Using a cookie scoop, scoop dough onto the cookie sheet. (I got five large or eight smallish biscuits.)
3. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top of dough. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Happy breakfast, y'all.

--Alyssa

Hawaiian Marinated Chicken With Pineapple Salsa

I came across the recipe for this marinade on Pinterest recently and it is definitely a keeper. I have been looking for a Hawaiian marinade, and this is the best by far that I have tried. The recipe called for pineapple juice, so I decided to grill some of the leftover pineapple in the marinade to serve over the chicken as a salsa.

Hawaiian Marinated Chicken With Pineapple Salsa

Ingredients

Two raw chicken breasts

1/3 cup unsweetened pineapple juice

¼ cup low-sodium teriyaki sauce

¼ cup ketchup

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground ginger

½ cup diced pineapple, drained

Directions

1. Mix all sauce ingredients in a large Ziploc bag until combined.
2. Trim chicken of all fat and membranes. Cut deep slits roughly ¼ inch apart all across the chicken breasts to allow the marinade to penetrate.
3. Add the chicken breasts to the Ziploc bag. Marinade the chicken for at least two hours.
4. Preheat a pan over medium heat for several minutes. Remove chicken from marinade and slightly brown each side of the chicken in the pan, roughly one minute per side.
5. Remove the pan from the eye and reduce the heat. Pour remaining marinade over the chicken and return the pan to the eye when the eye has cooled to low heat. Cover chicken and allow to cook over low heat for eight to ten minutes.
6. Flip chicken and allow the other side to cook over low heat for eight to ten minutes. Check to make sure that the chicken is fully cooked. Remove to serving plates and pour most of the remaining sauce over the chicken.
7. Pour drained pineapple into the sauce remaining in the pan. Cook over high heat until coated in sauce and browned slightly.
8. Serve immediately. 

Happy eating!

--Alyssa

Cheddar Biscuits and Steak-Marinated Chicken

My family doesn't know how lucky they are. It hasn't quite hit them yet that they only have two more weeks of homecooked meals before I retreat to Birmingham for another year of college and they break out the bagged salad and take-out menus.

I have been attempting to re-create the sweet, cheesy biscuits at Jim & Nick's BBQ in Birmingham for several months, and although these are different in size and texture, they are delicious, and I might even prefer them over the biscuits at Jim & Nick's. (Heresy? Perhaps.) These were definitely a winner. I ate two within thirty minutes of their exit from the oven, and sliced one in half to toast as sandwich bread later that night. This recipe is definitely a winner.

The marinade I used on this chicken is somewhat of a show-stopper. I habitually use it as a steak marinade for steak salads-- the marinade that drips off the steak and into the greens makes an excellent, healthier dressing alternative. I promise that it is just as delicious on chicken.

I served the cheddar biscuits and steak-marinated chicken with some Mexican corn. In order to cut the butter used and add some spice, I added the juice of one half of a lime, 1 1/2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning, and 1 tablespoon of butter to the cooked corn and served it immediately.

Cheddar Biscuits

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour

¾ cup cheddar cheese, shredded

2 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon minced garlic

½ cup whole milk

shredded cheddar cheese for topping

Directions

1. Mix dry ingredients well, and slowly add in milk. Mix until dough is sticky and well-combined.
2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease a cookie tray. Using a cookie scoop, scoop dough onto the cookie sheet. (I got five large or eight smallish biscuits.)
3. Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top of dough. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

Steak-Marinaded Chicken

Ingredients

2 raw chicken breasts

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup olive oil

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce

1 ½ tablespoons garlic

2 tablespoons dried basil

1 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/4 teaspoon chipotle seasoning

Directions

1. Trim raw chicken breasts of any fat and membranes. Cut deep slits roughly ¼ inch apart all along the chicken breasts.
2. Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a large Ziploc bag and add the chicken breasts. Marinade the chicken for at least two hours.
3. Preheat a pan over medium heat for several minutes. Remove chicken from marinade and slightly brown each side of the chicken in the pan, roughly one minute per side.
4. Remove the pan from the eye and reduce the heat. Pour remaining marinade over the chicken and return the pan to the eye when the eye has cooled to low heat. Cover chicken and allow to cook over low heat for eight to ten minutes.
5. Flip chicken and allow the other side to cook over low heat for eight to ten minutes. Check to make sure that the chicken is fully cooked. Serve immediately.

Happy summer eating, y'all. 

--Alyssa

Texas Yeast Rolls With Cinnamon Honey Butter

One of my favorite memories of the hot, lazy summers I spent with family in Austin, Texas is devouring the hot, buttery, made-from-scratch yeast rolls that came like rabbits from the oven of my Great Aunt Vera Kate.

This recipe produces rolls that are fluffier and less time-consuming, but equally fantastic. I serve this recipe with a fluffy, sweet cinnamon honey butter that smacks of the butter served at my mother's favorite restaurant, J Alexanders.

Ooey, gooey and delicious. Look at that wonderful drippy butter.

Texas Yeast Rolls

Ingredients

2 ¼ tablespoons (1 packet) active dry yeast

¼ cup warm water

1 cup whole milk, scalded and cooled to lukewarm

1 ½ tablespoons melted butter, cooled

¼ cup granulated sugar

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 whole egg

1 teaspoon salt

Melted butter for basting

Directions:

1. Mix yeast with warm water and let sit for roughly 10 minutes, or until frothy.
2. Add milk, butter, sugar, egg and salt. Mix well.
3. Add in flour one cup at a time. Mix well. Allow batter to sit 10-15 minutes to allow for easier kneading.
4. Knead dough until smooth and satiny. Remove dough to a greased bowl and let sit in a warm place for roughly one hour, or until doubled in size.
5. Gently flatten dough with a rolling pin on a hard, floured surface until ¼ to ½ inch in height. Shape dough to desired shape. (I shaped mine into a large rectangle and cut the dough with a sharp knife into eight pieces.)
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a cookie pan. Allow rolls to rise on the baking sheet for roughly thirty minutes.
7. Bake rolls for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately baste with butter and serve.

Cinnamon Honey Butter

Ingredients

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature

¼ cup confectioner's sugar

¼ cup honey

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Using a hand mixer, blend the ingredients together until smooth.
   
   
   
   
   Happy summer eating, y'all.
   
   
   --Alyssa

Chai Tea Lattes or Christmas in a Cup

It's July and the broiling sun has taken it's toll on the grass and on my determined, motivated self. Goodbye internship, goodbye organization, goodbye productivity. Just imagine the scene from Gone with the Wind when all the womenfolk have headed upstairs for a nap. That's me in the summer. I'm no Scarlet O'Hara about to declare her undying devotion to Ashley Wilkes. I'm upstairs lying down with the fan on high. The dog days aren't over yet. However, that doesn't mean that I can't put the air conditioning on 64 and pretend it's Christmas with a nice hot chai latte. Begone sore throats and headaches! Bonjour to Christmas in a cup.

Ingredients

Lipton loose tea

1/2 teaspoon all spice

1 teaspoon ginger

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups milk

1/4 cup to 1/2 of heavy whipping cream

1 to 2 teaspoons vanilla

Directions

1. Use a coffee maker and fill your filter with enough lipton tea for 3 (use the directions on the back of the tea container). Add the all spice, ginger, and cinnamon.

2. While the tea is brewing, mix brown sugar, milk, whipping cream, and vanilla in a small saucepan and heat until sugar is completely dissolved. Thoroughly heat the mixture but don't bring it to a boil.

3. Pour milk mixture evenly in 3 cups and add the tea!

4. Add whipped cream, if desired!

-Cara

A Day In the Life: Creamy Chicken Parmesan with Linguini, Chocolate Meringue Bark and Honey BBQ Boneless Chicken Bites

Ever wonder what a day in the life of a Mademoiselle Miam blogger is like? (Since our only followers are my other blog and Cara's mom, the answer is likely a resounding "no," but you shall soon know regardless.) Today yielded some wonderful recipes, and I am excited to shamelessly promote them here with you.


A Day In the Life of Alyssa, a Mademoiselles Miam Blogger


9AM At this point it is necessary to prepare for work and feed my hungry family. This includes Perfect Buttermilk Pancakes and cat food for Polly.

(This is Polly. She made it roughly one foot from the door before deciding to take a nap in the sun.)

10 AM means work. While TAing freshman composition at my local college, I am of course planning a wonderful lunch for my mother. (Creamy chicken and carbs trumps grammar any day.)


2 PM means Creamy Chicken Parmesan.

THIS.

I lent a neighbor my last can of crushed tomatoes this week (welcome to the South), so I decided to satisfy my Chicken Parmesan craving with my favorite cream sauce and some linguini noodles.

Creamy Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients

2 chicken breasts

2 tablespoons minced garlic

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon poultry seasoning

1 teaspoon cumin

Breadcrumbs

Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon cajun seasoning

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1/4 teaspoon thyme

1/4 teaspoon garlic & herb seasoning (I use Old Bay brand)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon ground peppercorn

shredded parmesan cheese

linguini noodles

Directions:

1. Marinate chicken breasts in minced garlic, olive oil, poultry seasoning and cumin for several hours. Cut slits in the chicken to allow penetrative marinating.
2. Coat in breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. Preheat oven to 425.
3. Cook breaded chicken for 25-30 minutes or until browned, flipping chicken halfway through the baking process in order to assure even baking.
   4. Cook linguini noodles according to package directions.
   5. Combine heavy cream, paprika, cajun seasoning, cumin, thyme, garlic & herb seasoning, salt, ground peppercorn and parmesan cheese in a small pan over medium heat until thickened and combined.
   6. Serve noodles coated in cream sauce. Serve breaded chicken atop linguini noodles, lightly coated in cream sauce.

3 PM: I finish Willa Cather's Death Comes For the Archbishop, begin a short study of Robert Browning's poetry, and write write write. Check out my poetry blog, She Writes, to satisfy your literary cravings. (Shameless self-promotion? Check.)


6 PM: Everyone's getting restless in the July heat, so I decide to whip up some cookies.

Chocolate Meringue Bark Cookies. Behold. 

These cookies are thin and bark-like, and although the edges are crisp and chewy like a good meringue, they remain soft and gooey and chocolate-doughy on the inside. Enjoy with milk.

Chocolate Meringue Bark Cookies

Ingredients:

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup organic cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 egg whites

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Stir dry ingredients together. Add egg whites one at a time and blend on low with an electric mixer.

3. Add vanilla and then turn the electric mixer on high for two minutes or until the batter forms soft peaks.

4. Spoon batter onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes. (Makes ten cookies.)

8PM: Okay, so to be honest, after the meringue bark cookies, no one was hungry for a very long time. (I'm a terrible caretaker. I know.) But eventually the crowd begins to claw for dinner. I'm craving salad (who craves salad? I do. It's weird.), but the family is hungry for chicken. I compromise and serve a salad with these Honey BBQ Boneless Chicken Bites that have been marinating in the refrigerator all day.

Instagram gave this a slightly 70's style green-yellow glare. Apologies.

The key to these chicken bites is to marinate them all day. The flavors they soak up perfectly complement the flavors of the honey BBQ sauce and the crispness of the breadcrumbs. Also, they are BAKED, so they are much healthier than the fried breaded boneless bites you will find at your local Buffalo Wild Wings.

Honey BBQ Boneless Chicken Bites

Ingredients:

2 boneless chicken breasts

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon Cajun seasoning

½ teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon Chipotle seasoning

¾ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ cup honey

1 tablespoon cider vinegar

Panko bread crumbs

1/3 cup BBQ Sauce

 2 tablespoons honey

slurry of 1 teaspoon corn starch and 2 tablespoons water

Directions: 

1. Cube the boneless chicken breasts. Marinate in minced garlic, cajun seasoning, onion powder, chipotle seasoning, cumin, kosher salt, and 1/4 cup honey all day.

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Coat marinated chicken cubes in Panko breadcrumbs and arrange on a well-oiled pan or baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, flip each chicken piece, and bake for another 10 minutes. Broil on low for two minutes on each side of the chicken after it is thoroughly cooked to crisp the breadcrumbs, but be careful that the coating does not blacken or burn.

3. Combine BBQ sauce, 2 tablespoons honey and cornstarch slurry in a small pan over low heat. Whisk constantly. It should bubble and thicken. Be careful not to burn the honey! Thicken to your taste.

4. Coat the crispy chicken pieces with the sauce and enjoy.

An excellent day in the life of this Mademoiselle Miam blogger. Poetry and very good food-- that's what life is all about. 

Happy eating!

--Alyssa

Cheesecake Brownie Bites

What's better than fresh chewy brownie bites? Fresh chewy CHEESECAKE brownie bites. I found a variant of this recipe on Pinterest a few days ago, and upon discovering a near-expiration package of cream cheese in my refrigerator, decided that today was the day to give it a go. Prepackaged sweets were a childhood taboo in my household: I spent many elementary school lunches attempting to trade spiced granola and carrot sticks for Hostess brownie bites and Twinkies. In retrospect, my mother's military-strict nutrition standards were admirable; but despite my rigorously healthy upbringing, I still haven't quite overcome the spike in saliva upon passing the Hostess aisle in my local Publix.

As always, the solution evokes vibes of the 1950's-era antifeminism that I work so delicately to avoid: bake your own.

Well, hello, lovely.

Cheesecake Brownie Bites

Ingredients:

For the brownie batter:
4 large eggs
1¼ cups baking cocoa
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 Tablespoon instant espresso powder, mixed with 2 teaspoons water
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2¼ cups sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
1½ cups all-purpose flour

For the cheesecake filling:
1 (8-oz.) package cream cheese, softened
3 Tablespoons sugar
1 large egg yolk

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, baking cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso mixed with water, and vanilla until well combined.

3. Stir in the sugar and melted butter until well combined, then stir in the flour. (A firm rubber spatula works best.) Set brownie batter aside.

4. In a separate bowl, prepare the cheesecake filling by stirring together the cream cheese, sugar and egg yolk until well combined. Transfer the mixture to a pastry bag or plastic bag.

5. Grease a non-stick mini-muffin pan with cooking spray or butter and then spoon a tablespoon of brownie batter into the greased cups. Pipe a generous amount of cheesecake filling atop the brownie batter, and then top off each cup with an additional teaspoon of brownie batter. If desired, use a toothpick to mix the cheesecake filling with the brownie mix for a marble effect (as I have done.)

6. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

7. Let the brownie bites cool for 10 minutes in the pan before eating.

Happy summer eating!

--Alyssa

Explosive Steak Tips With Buttery Noodles

This is absolutely hands down Handsome Boyfriend's favorite dish that I make. Yesterday he had a small fiesta in front of my refrigerator upon discovering a container of these in leftover form. When Handsome Boyfriend exults over leftovers, there are only two options: his parents are out of town and he is out of ramen, or it is a seriously excellent dish. (Hint: in this case it's the latter.)

The star player in this dish is the Pickapeppa sauce. It is moderately easy to find. Although Walmart does not usually carry it, it can be find at both BiLo and Publix stores.

I used roughly 1 lb of sirloin tips in this recipe, but any type of steak will work as long as it is sliced into cubes in order to soak up all the wonderful flavor in the sauce.

Sirloin Tips With Buttery Noodles

Ingredients:

1 lb sirloin steak tips

1/2 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/3 cup Pickapeppa sauce

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon garlic & herb seasoning (I use Old Bay brand)

Egg noodles

Directions:

1. Pan-sear sirloin steak tips in olive oil until browned and fragrant.

2. Add Worcestershire sauce, Pickapeppa sauce, soy sauce and garlic & herb seasoning to the pan and reduce heat to low.

3. Allow steak to simmer in the sauce while the egg noodles cook according to the package directions.

4. Butter cooked noodles. Serve sirloin tips and sauce over buttered noodles.

Happy summer eating, y'all.

--Alyssa

Bacon Wrapped Chipotle Chicken

Handsome Boyfriend LOVES bacon. He loves bacon so much that his last two Christmas presents have included bacon-flavored hot cocoa and chocolate-covered bacon candy, respectively (Cara's hometown of Paducah, KY is home to a surprising amount of touristy bacon paraphernalia.) This is a problem for a boy who is seriously dating a seriously kosher Jewish girl.

Star-spangled healthy appetizers.

I have discovered a wonderful compromise: turkey bacon. Today I decided to experiment with a bacon-inclusive appetizer for an approaching dock party, and this is what appeared: spiced sugar turkey-bacon covered chicken.

BAM.

I am not ashamed to admit that I ate every single one of these.

Happy eating, y'all.

Turkey Bacon Wrapped Chipotle Chicken

Ingredients

Two chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes

3 slices turkey bacon, cut into thirds

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons chipotle seasoning

2 tablespoons honey

1/8 teaspoon cumin

pinch of salt

Directions

1. Combine sugar, chipotle seasoning, honey, cumin and salt in a large bag with 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Coat chicken in mixture and marinate in refrigerator for at least two hours.
2. Wrap a baking sheet in aluminum foil. Place slices of chicken evenly on baking sheet. Wrap one piece of turkey bacon around each piece of chicken, securing it with a toothpick.
3. Pour the remainder of the sauce in the bag over the chicken.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes or until chicken is done and bacon is crispy.
   
   
   (Hint: I definitely recommend lining the baking sheet with aluminum foil to speed up the cleanup process. The sugary honey gets a little blackened in the oven.)
   
   
   --Alyssa

Blueberry Buttermilk Tea Cake

I could write a thesis on the marvels of buttermilk. It may be the holy grail of ingredients. If the recipe calls for buttermilk, you are guaranteed culinary success and satisfied tummies. Lately I've been using so much buttermilk that I've been tempted to use the real deal (right out of a carton). I usually use a powdered butter milk that you mix with water (and my taste buds tell me there can't possibly be a difference), but I've used buttermilk in three recipes this week (Oreo Cake, Snickerdoodle Muffins, and now this one), so I think I can safely assume that my carton of buttermilk won't go to waste.

Ingredients:
1 stick of butter, softened
3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons of sugar (plus additional tablespoon for sprinkling)
1 egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups of all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 teaspoon of kosher salt
2 cups of fresh blueberries, rinsed and drained
1/2 cup of buttermilk
*2 teaspoons of lemon zest is optional. I didn't have any lemons at 7:30 this fine evening and I decided against making my 2nd grocery trip in one day (unacceptable, the check-out ladies already think I'm a freak for going daily).

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Soften butter in the microwave and cream with sugar. Use a blender.
3. Add eggs and vanilla and continue to blend.
4. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt alternatively with the buttermilk.
5. Gently fold in the blueberries. *GENTLY, blueberries are prone to break and splatter all over your nice batter
6. Spray an 8 x 8 pan with non-stick baking spray and pour batter into prepared pan.
7. Sprinkle the top of the batter with 1to 1 1/2 tablespoons of sugar.
8. Pop in the oven for about 35 minutes, probably more like 37 or 40. Mine was a little underdone but still divine.

This cake will melt in your mouth and disappear before you know it! I made it with the intention of eating it Friday and Saturday morning. There may possibly be enough for breakfast tomorrow due to the zealous appreciation of my mom and sisters.

-Cara

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

Spice up the summer with some creamy chipotle dressing over a Mexican style salad. This stuff is golden as far as salads go. I realize my last post was also a salad but that just goes to show how salads are the epitome of summer eating in this family. Tonight's dinner was almost a family affair. It took three of us to get this one on the table--not because it's difficult (because it isn't ), rather because we were all hobbling around after an intense all body workout (sitting down isn't an option because it would take a small crane to get us back on our feet). However, enough of the woes of a desperate fitness fraud. Grab your cutting board and start chopping!

Ingredients:

Dressing

2/3 cup light sour cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon minced chipotle chile, canned in adobe sauce (look in the Mexican section of the grocery)

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped (maybe less since cilantro is rather strong)

4 teaspoons fresh lime juice (a little less than 1 medium lime)

Salad

1 (15 ounce) can of black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (8 3/4 ounce) can of no-salt-added whole-kernel corn, rinsed and drained

4 cups of lettuce (shredded or at least in small bites)

2 cups of skinless, bone-less chicken breast, cubed

1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup of avocados, peeled and diced

1/3 cup of vertically sliced red onion

Directions:

1. Cook chicken in skillet on medium-high heat with 1 tablespoon of butter.

2. Shred lettuce into large bowl.

3. Add tomatoes, avocados, red onion, black beans, and corn.

4. Begin dressing in separate bowl with sour cream.

5. Add minced chipotle chile, cumin, chili powder, and salt.

6. Squeeze the lime and add correct measurement to dressing.

7. Add freshly chopped cilantro.

8. Toss salad with dressing.

Enjoy la cena!

-Cara

Boston Creme Cupcakes

Today was a busy day in my house with visits from the physical therapist, home health nurse, and two of my voice students. I decided to send them away heavier with a sweet creation I have been craving since winter: Boston Creme Pie. I fell in love with these pastries in Boston a few years back and have been searching for a suitable, less-complicated substitute ever since.


It seems that cupcakes are the answer. No complicated pastry-dough maneuvers here, no ma'am.


I'm enjoying a taste of my beloved Boston here in the mountains of East Tennessee. Here, my friends, it is.

Hello, beautiful.

The trick to these cupcakes is that the pastry cream melts into the sweet yellow cake, making a super-moist, super-creamy glob of deliciousness. It is hard to please me with cakes, and I am hooked.

Here's the recipe (modified from America's Test Kitchen):

Boston Creme Cupcakes

Ingredients:

PASTRY CREAM
1⅓ cups heavy cream
3 large egg yolks
⅓ cup (2⅓ ounces) sugar
Pinch salt
4 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 2 pieces
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

CUPCAKES
1¾ cups (8¾ ounces) all-purpose flour
1 cup (7 ounces) sugar
1½ teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces and softened
3 large eggs, room temperature
¾ cup whole milk, room temperature
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

GLAZE
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
⅔ cup heavy cream
¼ cup light corn syrup
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. FOR THE PASTRY CREAM: Bring the cream to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks, sugar, and salt together in a medium bowl, then whisk in the cornstarch until pale yellow and thick, about 30 seconds.

2. Slowly whisk the hot cream into the egg mixture to temper, then return the mixture to the saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick and glossy, about 1½ minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl, press plastic wrap directly on the surface, and refrigerate until chilled and set, about 2 hours.

3. FOR THE CUPCAKES: Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 12-cup muffin tin.

4. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer on medium-low speed, beat the butter into the flour mixture, one piece at a time, about 30 seconds. Continue to beat the mixture until it resembles moist crumbs, 1 to 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until combined, about 30 seconds. Beat in the milk and vanilla, then increase the mixer speed to medium and beat the batter until smooth, light, and fluffy, 1 to 3 minutes.

5. Using a greased ⅓-cup measure, portion the batter into each muffin cup (about three-quarters full; do not overfill). Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the tin halfway through baking. Let the cupcakes cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

6. FOR THE GLAZE: Microwave all of the ingredients together, whisking often, until melted and smooth, 1 to 2 minutes. Let the glaze cool, uncovered, until it is thickened but pourable, about 20 minutes.

7. Cut around the inside edge of the top of each cupcake, removing a cone-shaped piece from each cupcake, and fill with 2 tablespoons of pastry cream. Trim and replace the cupcake top and set each cupcake on a wire rack over a parchment-lined baking sheet (for easy cleanup). Pour the glaze over the cupcakes, letting it run down the sides. Refrigerate the cupcakes until the glaze has set, about 10 minutes, before serving.

Here's a picture of the cut-off top and the inserted cream. Next, I just popped that top right back over the cream and glazed the cupcake.

Happy baking, y'all!


--Alyssa