It's finally January 31st. Hooray for making it through the seemingly longest month of the year! For me this month was long and cold but mostly restful and rejuvenating. The last half of 2012 was such a whirlwind for me and my family that January was a much needed 'down' month for us. Besides playing taxi-mom and going to the grocery store I practically became a shut-in during January! I'm proud to say that my month of rest and dedication has netted some great results! I'm down 7 pounds and up to 4-mile "long runs" and I feel great! I've been SO GOOD about Weight Watchers until....well, until this cake! Stupid cake. I mean, awesome cake. No, cake-that-broke-my-resolve. Er....healthy, tasty, not-too-sweet cake. Ugh....DELICIOUS CAKE! I'm still craving veggies and citrus so when I came across this recipe on Pinterest I knew I had to make it soon. It's moist and slightly tangy and I managed to work it into my Weigh Watchers plan. One piece...yes. Two, three and four pieces...not so much. *sigh* Oh well. Weight Watchers is great, but I love cooking, baking and food too much to commit to it much longer. It gave me a great jump start to the new year and Half Marathon training so we're all good! Carrot Zucchini Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes 24 pieces For the cake 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 2 eggs, slightly beaten 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed 1/2 cup canola oil 1/4 cup honey 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups shredded carrot 1 cup shredded zucchini 1/2 cup chopped pecans For the frosting 8 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese 1 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon lemon zest (about 1 lemon) 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice **Tip: Zest your lemons while they are whole, before juicing. It is MUCH easier this way! Preheat oven to 350° F. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, ground ginger and baking soda. Stir with a whisk. Set aside. In a large bowl combine the eggs, brown sugar, canola oil, honey and vanilla extract. Fold in carrots, zucchini and pecans. Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients. Stir until just combined. Pour batter into an ungreased 13x9 baking pan. Bake for 25 or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool completely in the pan before frosting. Once the cake is completely cooled make the frosting. In the bowl of a stand mixer combine cream cheese, powdered sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice. Beat until light and fluffy. Spread the frosting over the cooled cake. Cut into 24 pieces.
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In 1998 I spent 15 days in Rome, Italy visiting my mom's aunt and uncle - Zia and Zio. The food, or 'magic' created in Zia Lucia's kitchen inspired me in so many ways. I was fortunate enough to take my now-husband back with my family in 2001 for 10 days. Zia Lucia's cooking was still out of this world and now Mike could finally understand just what it was that we all loved about her, them, Rome...all of it! Though I didn't get to cook with her I will forever be influenced by the love she put into every single creation she brought out of that kitchen. The simple "Italian Orange" as I like to call it, is a perfect example of how she can put together a fantastic tasting dish out of things you already have just sitting around your kitchen. At first I'm sure this combination sounds a bit odd do you, but TRUST ME! It's so delicious, refreshing and healthy! You'll make it again and again. I've been enjoying it at home for so long and decided it just wasn't fair to keep this little gem to myself, so today I'm sharing it with you! The Italian Orange Serves 1 1 orange, peeled and segmented 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil Sprinkle of sea salt, I use Fleur de Sel Place the segmented orange in a bowl, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with sea salt. Enjoy! Source
Zia Lucia's original In continuing on with my healthy/citrus craving lately, today I'm sharing with you Orange Cranberry Muffins. When I was on Weight Watchers back in 2011 I had an urge to bake something (shocking, I know!) so I went searching through their website for something healthy, convenient and practical. I came across these muffins and just loved them! They are filled with dried cranberries and have a nice orange flavor. They are topped off with granulated sugar, which gives them the texture of a nice cake doughnut. The top is definitely my favorite part! I make a full batch of these and usually enjoy one fresh from the oven and freeze the rest. Once they are frozen I'll either grab one to go (they thaw out in about a half hour or so) or throw one in the microwave for 20-30 seconds. A muffin and some hot coffee - a perfect start to my day! Orange Cranberry Muffins Makes approximately 15 standard-sized muffins 2 cups all-purpose flour 2/3 cup granulated sugar, divided 1/2 cup sweetened, dried cranberries 2 teaspoons orange zest 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup low-fat (1%) buttermilk ** 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted 1 egg, lightly beaten **If you don't have buttermilk on hand you can make a quick substitution by putting 1 tablespoon of acid (lemon juice, white vinegar, cider vinegar or white wine vinegar) in a measuring cup. Fill the rest of the cup with 1% or skim milk to make 1 full cup of liquid. Let sit 5 minutes. Stir and proceed to use in the recipe. Preheat oven to 400° F. Spray 15 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
Combine flour, 1/2 cup of sugar, cranberries, orange zest, baking powder, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Whisk to combine. In a separate bowl mix together buttermilk, melted butter and egg. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Spoon batter in prepared muffin tins. Sprinkle the remaining sugar over the tops of the muffins. Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pans a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Source Weight Watchers So, I've been on a major health-kick since the start of 2013. Back in January 2011 something clicked in my brain and I started Weight Watchers and stuck to it for 3 months. I lost 15 pounds and I felt amazing! I was happy with my weight so I let some of the good habits slide a bit. Then at the beginning of 2012 I was starting my blog and training for the Pittsburgh Marathon Relay. I tried half-heartedly to eat the Weight-Watcher-Way but just couldn't make it happen with all the yummy things coming out of my kitchen! This wasn't a big deal because I was running more than usual so my weight pretty much stayed the same. Enter the 2nd half of 2012. All bets were off. We went on a 3-week vacation (running was minimal...eating was plentiful), moved out of our townhouse, into my parents' townhouse and FINALLY into our new home. After getting settled in the new house we were faced with Halloween candy, Thanksgiving dinner (and leftovers) and lots and lots of Christmas goodies. That brings me to January 2013. This year I am back on Weight Watchers and I'm doing a great job so far! I'm also training for 2 half-marathons (that's 13.1 miles, people!). I'm also trying very hard to incorporate fun food and baking into my daily life in a healthy way. I'm going to do my best to bring you healthy and delicious recipes as well as the occasional sinful treat! Oh, one more thing, you should be forewarned, I've been craving LOTS of citrus and oatmeal lately! Today I bring you a Weight Watcher inspired Orange Ginger Scented Granola. Orange juice and ground ginger are both used in this granola, but I feel the flavor is delicate, not overpowering. I have been enjoying this granola served over plain, nonfat yogurt. It's great for a light breakfast or a mid-afternoon snack. You could also serve it in a bowl with some milk, or just grab a handful as a quick snack on the go. Orange Ginger Scented Granola
2 cups quick oats 1 cup old fashioned oats 2 cups puffed rice cereal, such as Rice Krispies 6 tablespoons honey 1 teaspoon canola oil 1/4 cup orange juice 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup sliced almonds 1/2 cup mixed raisins Preheat oven to 350° F. Mix oats and puffed rice cereal together in a large bowl. Spread evenly onto a rimmed, non-stick baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, stirring once. Remove from oven. Allow to cool slightly. While the cereals are baking, combine the honey, canola oil, orange juice, cinnamon, ground ginger and vanilla extract into a 2-cup measuring cup. Mix well. Set aside. Place slightly cooled cereal back in the large bowl. Stir in the almonds. Pour the liquid mixture into the bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Spread evenly onto the rimmed baking sheet again. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cereal starts to brown, stirring every 5 minutes. Remove from the oven, stir in the raisins and allow to cool. Once granola is cool, store in an airtight container. Adapted from Weight Watchers So, I've been making my own pizza for years - sometimes with a pre-baked crust from the store, sometimes with one of those refrigerated pizza crusts and sometimes with my own dough. Through the goods and the bads of pizza dough I always found one consistently bad thing - the sauce! I am not a fan of the store bought pizza sauces that come in jars and bottles, so I've tried half-heartedly to make my own pizza sauce time and time again. Sometimes I would use straight marinara sauce - didn't quite cut it. The next time I'd doctor-up my marinara sauce with a little oregano - still not quite right. To my surprise, internet searches for a pizza sauce recipe yielded nothing! In the end I'd resort to going back to store bought sauce because I just couldn't 'get it'. FINALLY, about a year ago I came across this recipe on Annie's Eats (I know I've said it before, but this girl's blog has seriously changed my life!) and it happened - I finally 'GOT IT'! This pizza sauce is ridiculously easy to make! If you have 5 minutes and a food processor you can probably whip up a batch out of your pantry right now! I find that this recipe makes enough to cover at least two pizzas. When I make a batch I usually use half and freeze the other half for another time. When using from frozen I suggest you reheat it gently on the stove for a few minutes to thicken it up a bit. The sauce tends to be a bit watery when defrosted from frozen.
Give this one a try! I promise - you'll never buy store bought pizza sauce again!! DIY Pizza Sauce 28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes, drained 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon dried oregano 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a bowl. Refrigerate (or freeze) until ready to use. Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats Last Spring made a delicious Shaved Asparagus Pizza and I promised all of you that I would share the pizza dough recipe with you. Well, life happened, a move happened and...well, I'm sharing it with you now! Homemade pizza dough is nothing new to our kitchen. My husband has been our main "Pizza Dough Maker" for years. He seasoned his dough very well and the pizza always came out nicely. The only thing lacking was the crust - I mean, it was OK as a vehicle to deliver the delicious toppings to your mouth, but when the toppings were gone, I never really wanted to eat the crust. All that changed when I found this recipe from Annie's Eats. The crust is so amazing! There is never a time when a crust hits the garbage can - it's all devoured right along with all the other pizza yumminess! I've been making this recipe for about a year now and I've come a long way with my pizza making skills. Take a look at Annie's awesome pizza tips for some great pointers on how to get the best pizza ever! I've incorporated many of these tips into my own pizza making, however, currently I'm using a metal pizza pan instead of a stone. I've had stones for years and years but lately we keep breaking them! We can't figure out what we're doing wrong, so for now, a metal pizza pan it is! If you've never made your own pizza dough, I beg you to give it a try! It's really not that hard! Basic Pizza Dough 1/2 cup warm water (about 110° F) 1 envelope (2 1/4 tsp) instant yeast 1 1/4 cups water, room temperature 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 22 ounces (approximately 4 cups) bread flour, plus more for dusting 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt olive oil or nonstick cooking spray Place the warm water in a medium bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and let sit for about 5 minutes to allow the yeast to swell. Add the room temperature water and the olive oil. Set aside. Place the flour and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix briefly to combine. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the water/yeast/olive oil mixture. Once all ingredients have come together, switch over to the dough hook and knead on medium speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball and place in a deep, lightly oil bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Punch down the dough and divide into 2 equal balls of dough. If you want to freeze the dough for future use, wrap in plastic wrap, then place in a freezer safe bag. When you are ready to use the frozen dough, defrost it in the refrigerator for 1 day prior to using it. On the day you are going to use it, let the dough come up to room temperature before shaping it. If making a pizza, shape your dough to fit your pan, or pizza peel if using a stone. (I know you aren't really supposed to use a rolling pin when forming pizza dough, but I just haven't perfected my stretching technique yet!) You could also use the dough to make these crowd-pleasing pizza bites! From here you can add your toppings and bake your pizza according to your own recipe. I like to cook mine at 450° F for about 10-12 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Oh, see that sauce in the background? Best. Pizza. Sauce. Ever. Will share that soon!
Give it a try! Good luck! Source: Adapted from Annie's Eats Hello and Happy New Year! Welcome back to the Butter Blog! After a very long break from blogging I've decided to start it up again and I'm very excited about it! There were so many things going on for me the 2nd half of last year that blogging took a backseat to other priorities. We've been in the new house for 3 months and have celebrated 3 major holidays already. Happily, moving boxes and decoration boxes are now all clear from my living space and I can finally relax, cook, blog and enjoy life....ahhhh! For a short while I contemplated stopping blogging altogether, but then I remembered why I started it in the beginning a little over a year ago - to challenge myself to try become a better cook, to document my favorite recipes all in one place and to share those recipes with friends and family. To that end, I am committing myself to blog at least one time a week, so...here goes!! The first recipe I want to share with you is a heavenly Lemon Loaf Cake. I made this cake several months ago, only a few weeks after we moved in, and I can still remember the taste of the cake so well! It has a beautiful yellow color inside the unassuming brown crust. The lemon flavor was bright but not overpowering. And the texture was a little dense, almost like a ricotta-based cake (which I LOVE!) and oh-so-indulgent! After eating my weight in sugar during the month of December I've found myself really craving citrus foods right now. This Lemon Loaf is perfect for that craving! I can't wait to get in the kitchen this weekend and make another batch! Lemon Loaf Cake
Makes 2 loaf cakes - approx 16 slices each For the cake 1 1/2 cups cake flour 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1 teaspoon salt 2 1/4 cups granulated sugar 8 large eggs, at room temperature 1/4 cup lemon zest (approximately 2 lemons) 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice** 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled 1/2 cup sour cream 2 teaspoons vanilla extract **Tip: Zest your lemons while they are whole, before juicing. It is MUCH easier this way! For the lemon syrup 1/3 cup fresh lemon juice 1/3 cup granulated sugar For the lemon glaze 2 cups confectioner's sugar, sifted 4-6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice Preheat oven to 350° F. Butter sides and bottoms of 2 9-9-inch loaf pans. Line with parchment, then butter the parchment. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cake flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the sugar, eggs, lemon zest and lemon juice. Mix on low speed until just combined. With the mixer running, slowing pour in the melted butter. Add the sour cream and vanilla and continue mixing until all ingredients are incorporated. Gradually add the flour mixture using a rubber spatula to gently fold in, being careful not to overmix. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared loaf pans. Bake on the middle rack for 20 minutes. Rotate the pans and reduce the oven temperature to 325° F. Continue baking for another 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pans for about 15 minutes. While the cakes are baking, prepare the lemon syrup. Combine the lemon juice and granulated sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Cook for approximately 3 more minutes. Remove from heat and set aside. Remove the cakes from the pans and place on a parchment or Silpat lined baking mat. Using a toothpick, poke holes in the tops and sides of the cakes. Brush with the lemon syrup, allow to soak in and brush again. Allow the cakes to cool for approximately 30 minutes. When the loaves are cool, prepare the lemon glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the confectioner's sugar and 4 tablespoons of the lemon juice. The glaze should be thick, but pourable. Add more lemon juice, if needed, to reach desired consistency. Pour the glaze over top of each loaf (it will drip down the sides). Let sit for about 15 minutes, or until the glaze hardens, before serving. When I made this recipe I 'halved' it to only make one loaf. My loaf kept well, unsliced, in Tupperware until it was gone (about 5 days). I plan on making the full recipe the whole way through to the glaze and cutting and freezing it by the slice. I'm not sure how this will come out but I'm going to give it a try. It sure would be convenient to grab a yummy slice to go on busy mornings! Source: As seen on Cook Like a Champion, originally from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking |
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