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    • No Resolutions, No Regrets

      Posted at 7:00 am by Lisa Cavallari
      Jan 1st

      image

      Happy New Year everyone!  Tell me, did you eat, drink and make merry in the wee hours of the night?

      We celebrated with friends and kids galore.  I made a Buche De Noël cake with mushroom meringues.  My brother-in-law, who actually flew home from visiting family in France with my brother last night, would (hopefully) be proud.  I am such a sucker for woodland whimsy. The cake was delicious!  Not to mention gluten and nut-free.

      Buche De Noel

      Buche De Noel

      For 2015 do you set resolutions?  I like to avoid resolutions at all costs, unless they are fun or pleasant like trying a new recipe each month and drinking more wine each night.  The word resolution sounds like drastic change(s) to torture you until you finally give up and feel worse about yourself.  I am all for making small changes or tweaks, however.  This year I’d like to incorporate the following changes:

      • Revert back to using a spiral-bound planner.  My iPad has botched my schedule more than a few times this past year due to time error entry and not being able to pull up my schedule so it’s back to good old-fashioned pen and paper for this gal.
      • Organize all closets, nook, crannies and cupboards.  Not all at once, but by summer….
      • Incorporate more vegetables into our family diet.  My husband and I could also stand to eat more fruit and consume less sodium.  We love our chips, popcorn and crackers around here.  Has anyone tried Gwyneth Paltrow’s recipes from her new cookbook, It’s All Good?  The vegenaise breakfast toast with avocado sounds interesting and Kimchi too.
      • Try being a better listener with friends.  I am like a guy in this department.  I listen to women vent and want to help them so I offer some suggestions and get the look of, “Why are you talking when you should be listening?”  I promise to try to lend a sympathetic ear with ample head nodding and zero advice from now on.
      • Drink more wine.  Specifically, do not let a week pass by without consuming it.

      That’s it!  Have a very happy and healthy 2015.

       

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      Posted in Holidays | Tagged Buche De Noel, New Year 2015, No Resolutions
    • Parmesan Rounds

      Posted at 7:00 am by Lisa Cavallari
      Dec 29th

      Parmesan Rounds

      The gluttony continues…New Year’s Eve is just around the corner.  Here is a lovely appetizer that is guaranteed to be gobbled down in a matter of minutes.  It’s true, I have witnessed it firsthand countless times.  This recipe is a tried and true gem.  Betcha can’t eat just one.

      I hope your NYE is full of good food, laughter and just enough champagne to get you tipsy.  Cheers!

      Recipe courtesy of my husband’s Aunt Patti

      Parmesan Rounds

      • Servings: 10-12
      • Time: 30minutes
      • Difficulty: easy
      • Print

      Ingredients

      1 loaf Pepperidge Farm thinly sliced white bread
      2 Tb mayo
      1 8 ounce package cream cheese
      1 green onion chopped
      1/4 cup (4 TB butter), melted
      1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

      Directions

      1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a cookie cutter (or champagne glass, like me) cut bread into 1 inch rounds.

      2. Place rounds onto a baking sheet and toast for 5 minutes on one side. Flip over and toast for another 2 minutes.

      3. Combine cream cheese, mayo, butter and green onion with a hand mixer. Spoon mixture onto each toasted bread and dip into Parmesan cheese.

      4. Place the cheese rounds under the broiler until cheese is beginning to turn brown and bubbly, about 2-3 minutes. Watch carefully.

      image

      Here is the bread to use. Can be found in your bakery section.

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      Posted in Cooking | Tagged Parmesan Cream Cheese Toasts, Parmesan Rounds
    • Snickers Bars

      Posted at 7:00 am by Lisa Cavallari
      Dec 27th

       

      Snickers Bars

      Merry belated Christmas!  I hope you are enjoying a long, relaxing weekend after the frenzy of shopping, cooking, baking and planning.

      I was torn whether or not to post this recipe.  On one hand, the pictures looked terrific when I came across this recipe in Bon Appetit back in 2011, on the other, the amount of work it took to make them squelched any desire to attempt it.  For Christmas, I finally bit the bullet and went for it.  Not going to lie, these were a lot of work spread out over two days.  There is quite a bit of time for things to chill and set in between steps and the reaction they received from my husband and even myself was lukewarm.  They were good, but we both agreed it wasn’t worth the effort.  If you or someone you love dearly is a huge fan of Snickers then I say save this recipe for a special occasion, such as Valentine’s Day and knock yourself out.  Otherwise, don’t bother.

      I did all the leg work here so I feel the need to explain the steps for those of you that like a challenge.

      Recipe adapted slightly from Bon Appetit, September 2011 – chef Breanne Varela

      Snickers Bars

      • Servings: 12-18
      • Time: 1-2 days, depending on when you start
      • Difficulty: intermediate
      • Print

      Ingredients

      Base
      Nonstick spray
      3 1/2 oz. high quality milk chocolate (suggested ideas were Valrhona, Scharffen Berger or Lindt. I used Trader Joe’s baking chocolate)
      1 cup creamy peanut butter
      1/2 cup Rice Krispie’s cereal

      Peanut Nougat
      1 large egg white, room temperature
      1/8 tsp, plus 3/4 cup sugar
      3 Tb honey
      1 Tb light corn syrup
      1/2 cup toasted salted peanuts, chopped
      1/2 tsp kosher salt

      Milk Chocolate Bavarian Cream
      4 Tb whole milk, divided
      1 1/2 tsp unflavored gelatin
      1 cup chilled heavy cream, divided
      3 large egg yolks
      9 oz high-quality milk chocolate (see above), melted

      Chocolate Coating
      9 oz bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 61% cacao), chopped (I used Ghiradhelli)
      2 1/2 Tb, unsalted butter

      Special Equipment: Candy Thermometer

      Directions

      Base:

      Coat an 8x8x2 baking pan with nonstick spray, line with plastic wrap or parchment paper pressing to smooth out any wrinkles. Place chocolate in a medium bowl; set over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until chocolate is melted. Stir in peanut butter, then cereal. Press over bottom of prepared pan. Cover; chill for 1 hour in fridge.

      Peanut Nougat:

      Line another 8×8 (I only had a 9×9, but made it work) with parchment and coat with nonstick spray. Place egg white in a bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment. Beat on medium speed until frothy. Add 1/8 tsp sugar; beat until frothy. Bring honey to a boil in a saucepan. With mixer running, gradually add honey to egg white. Set aside.

      Stir 3/4 cup sugar, corn syrup, and 3 Tb water in a small saucepan over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Attach a candy thermometer to side of pan. Increase heat; boil until mixture reaches 275 degrees, 5-7 minutes. (I burned the first batch of this mixture. Keep an eye on it or it will darken too quickly.)

      Return mixer with egg white to medium speed. Gradually add syrup to egg white, allowing it to drip down the sides of the bowl. Beat until glossy and stiff, about 5 minutes. Fold in peanuts and salt. Spread nougat over prepared pan with parchment (Not the one chilling in the fridge). Spread it in an even layer and let cool for 1 hour.

      Invert nougat over base in pan; peel off parchment. Spread over base in even layer.

      Milk Chocolate Bavarian Cream

      Place 2 Tb milk in a small bowl. Sprinkle gelatin over; let stand to soften, about 10 minutes.

      Meanwhile, bring remaining 2 Tb milk and 1/4 cup cream to a simmer in a small saucepan. Whisk yolks and sugar in medium bowl; gradually whisk in hot cream mixture. Return to same pan. Stir over medium-low heat until thickened and a thermometer registers 175 degrees, about 3 minutes. Add gelatin; whisk until dissolved.

      Place melted chocolate in another medium bowl. Pour cream mixture through a strainer into chocolate; whisk until smooth.

      Beat remaining 3/4 cup chilled cream in a small bowl until soft peaks form. Fold into chocolate mixture in 2 additions. Pour Bavarian cream over nougat, spreading in an even layer. Freeze until firm, about 4 hours.

      Chocolate Coating

      Place chocolate and butter in a bowl set over medium saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted.

      Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Invert 8″ pan on a work surface; remove pan and peel off plastic/parchment. Cut into 6 slices and halve each slice. We halved them again because these bars are extremely rich. Using an offset spatula spread chocolate over top. Freeze to set, 30 minutes.

      Do ahead

      You can make these 3 days in advance and keep frozen until ready to eat. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.

       

      Looking back on this recipe I am wondering what the hell I was thinking! This is insane; especially trying it in the month of December! Oh well. I like to go big for special occasions and I learned a lot. My first time making Bavarian Cream and it was a success.

      Snickers Bars

      Here’s what you DON’T want your nougat base to look like when boiling your sugar.  Too dark.

      IMG_4078

      The result, when you do it correctly, is a fluffy, light mixture.

      IMG_4079

      Spreading out the nougat.

      IMG_4083

       

      The bars before you add the final chocolate layer.

      IMG_4084

      You know you want to try a bite.

      IMG_4088

       

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      Posted in Baking | Tagged Snickers Bars
    • Pumpkin Pecan Granola

      Posted at 8:00 am by Lisa Cavallari
      Dec 20th

      Pumpkin Pecan Granola

      Ahhh!  Christmas is just a few days away and that means only one thing…panic!  Oh, and bake.  Even if you are limping to the finish as I probably will be doing, you may have time (after Christmas) to try this recipe over winter break.  It’s a nice way to mix in some healthy food along with all of the other tempting and delicious options out there.  The spices also really add to the flavors of the season.

      Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy

      Pumpkin Pecan Granola

      • Servings: 8-10
      • Time: 1hr
      • Difficulty: easy
      • Print

      Ingredients:

      3 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
      6 Tbl flaxseed meal
      3/4 cup chopped pecans
      1 cup canned pumpkin puree
      2/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
      1/4 cup canola oil
      1 tsp vanilla extract
      1/2 tsp salt
      1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
      3/4 tsp ground ginger
      1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
      1/4 tsp ground allspice
      1/8 tsp ground cloves
      1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
      2/3 cup dried cranberries

      Directions:

      1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Toss together oats, flaxseed meal and pecans in a large bowl.

      2. Tear off 3-4 sheets of paper towels and lay on clean surface. Scoop pumpkin puree onto towels to absorb some of the moisture. Blot the top and sides of the puree as well.

      3. In a separate bowl, combine the pumpkin puree, brown sugar, honey, canola oil, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cloves until combined. Pour over oat mixture. Toss with a rubber spatula until mixture is evenly coated.

      4. Spread mixture onto a baking sheet into an even layer. Bake in oven and toss mixture every 15 minutes to ensure mixture does not stick together and bakes evenly. After a total of 45 minutes, add the pumpkin seeds and bake another 10 minutes. If more crunch is desired add 5-10 minutes more to the final cooking time. Toss in dried cranberries, allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container.

      Pumpkin Pecan Granola

      Thanks to G for the inspiration on this one.  I was munching on the granola you gave us last year for Christmas well into the good part of January.

       

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      Posted in Baking, Holidays | Tagged Pumkin Granola, Pumpkin Pecan Granola, Spiced Granola
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