Chocolate Souffle
Chocolate dish #3: Heaven!
Yes, as you can see, I did get new ramekins, and I love them! If you don’t own any, I would highly recommend going and getting some!:)
So if you’ve never had this dish, then you are missing out! Chocolate souffle is actually really easy to make and is super yummy! It’s basically just a really moist and airy chocolate cake, that gets REALLY puffed up when you bake it.
This dish is perfect for my family because we really aren’t big chocolate cake fans, (I know, we’re insane!) We like it, don’t get me wrong, but find that sometimes it’s just too rich. This souffle is just the right combination for us!
Chocolate Souffle (cdkitchen.com)
- 3/4 tbsp. butter
- 6 tbsp. sugar
- 4 1/2 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
- 1 1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
- 3 egg yolks
- 2 tbsp. heavy cream
- 6 egg whites
- handful of chocolate chips
Butter the ramekins and sprinkle them with 1 tsp. sugar. Melt the chocolate over a double boiler, and whisk in the egg yolks and heavy cream.
Beat the egg whites in a mixer fitted with the balloon whip for about a minute, then add the rest of the sugar and beat for 30-45 seconds. Gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and pour into the ramekins. Top with the chocolate chips and bake at 350 degrees for 22-26 minutes, or until you stick a toothpick into the center and it comes out clean. Sprinkle powdered sugar over the top and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Chocolate Raspberry Cookies
Chocolate dish #2: These cookies!
Ok, so if you’ve ever had a thumbprint cookie, then you kind of know what I’m talking about. It’s just basically an orange short-bread cookie with raspberry jelly in the center and drizzled with chocolate. Now who wouldn’t like that?
Orange, chocolate, and raspberry are great combinations, and these cookies definitely take advantage of that! You get the crunchiness of the cookie, the tanginess of the raspberry jelly, and the sweetness of the chocolate all in one bite! Now, the recipe originally called for orange marmalade, but since we had none in the fridge, I just substituted it with raspberry jelly. By all means, use orange marmalade if you’d like, but I really like the chocolate and raspberry together.
Chocolate Raspberry Cookies (Dana Angelo White)
- 1 c butter, softened
- 1 c sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tsp. orange zest
- 2 c all-purpose flour
- 1/4 c raspberry jelly
- 6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
- 1 tbsp. butter
- 1 tbsp. milk
Combine the butter and sugar on medium speed. Add the egg yolk and orange zest, scraping the sides occasionally.
Add the flour and mix until it forms a thick dough.
Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead until it becomes smooth. Form into a ball.
Now if you don’t have one of these tools, then just roll the dough out to about half an inch thickness and use a small, round cookie cutter to make little circles. Otherwise, just roll the dough between your hands and flatten it out.
Then, make an indentation in the middle of the cookie with your thumb.
Now is when you’re going to want to fill the little holes with the jelly.
Bake on a parchment-lined baking sheet at 375 degrees for about 12 minutes or until the edges are brown. Cool on a wire rack.
See my Double Boiler post to make a double boiler and melt the chocolate. Drizzle over the cookies and let set on the rack. Enjoy!
Chocolate Mousse
Since February is National Chocolate Month, I decided to honor the worthy celebration by making at least one chocolate item each week this month! First chocolate dish: Chocolate Mousse! Now this dessert does come with a lesson, so listen closely to what I’m about to tell you……………………MAKE SURE YOU READ EVERY DETAIL ABOUT A PRODUCT BEFORE YOU BUY IT OFF OF EBAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I’ve been wanting to get some porcelain ramekins for a while, and I finally found some for $15 on Ebay. I was very excited about all the recipes I was going to make, when all of a sudden, I opened the box and saw that they were only about 3 inches across and 1.5 inches deep. Definitely not what I was expecting! I was pretty upset, but turns out that they’re the perfect serving size for the mousse. If you have 6-8 0z ramekins, then just double the recipe. I will be buying bigger ones soon, but for now, I’m stuck with this!
Mousse is the French word for foam, (can you see the connection to the hair product?) and this dessert is definitely foamy. It’s so light and airy that it’s almost like eating a cloud! I was always a little intimidated by mousse, but turns out it’s so easy to make! The whipped cream adds a great fluffiness to this decadent dessert and makes it look very pretty! Appearance is very important you know!
Once you learn this recipe, it’s easy to come up with other flavors of mousse to make. For instance, you could replace the chocolate with a reduced raspberry jam or jelly and make raspberry mousse! Get creative! Whatever flavors you like, you could probably put in this recipe.
Chocolate Mousse (Anne Burrell)
- 3 oz chocolate
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tbsp. sugar
- 1 tbsp. black coffee or coffee liqueur (You won’t be cooking this, so you might not want to use the liqueur if you have kids!)
- 1 1/2 c heavy cream, plus 1/2 c
Melt the chocolate over a double boiler, (see my double boiler tip). While that melts, beat the egg yolk and sugar together with a whisk until it turns a pale yellow and has doubled in size. Add the coffee and whisk that in. Pour the 1 1/2 c of heavy cream into a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat on high until it forms soft peaks.
Whisk the melted chocolate into the egg mixture until it’s glossy and smooth.
Carefully fold the whipped cream into the chocolate. Here’s how you fold it, start by almost scooping the mixture with your spatula.
Then, turn the scoop back onto the mixture!
Now repeat this process until all the cream is incorporated. When you’re finished, spoon into individual serving dishes and chill for at least 1 hour before serving. Whip the extra 1/2 c of heavy cream and serve on top of the mousse when ready to present. Bon Appetite!
Mini Egg Frittatas
We had a snow day on Wednesday, so I got up and decided to make breakfast for everyone! I made french toast and these little frittatas. They’re basically just like little omelets made in a mini muffin pan and are very easy to throw together!
Now, the recipe calls for ham, but since we had none in the fridge, I used some left over bacon that I just crisped up before putting them in the egg mixture. You can be as creative as you like with this ingredient, and use some prosciutto or speck, which are both types of smoked italian ham, or you could even use some pancetta, an italian bacon. Or, you could go the vegetarian route and use some diced bell peppers or anything else you like to put in your omelet. The possibilities are endless!
Mini Frittatas (Giada de Laurentiis)
- 4 eggs
- 1/4 c milk
- handful of parmesan cheese
- salt and pepper
- 2 oz thinly sliced ham, chopped
- 1 tbsp. finely chopped italian parsley
Whisk together the eggs, milk, cheese, and salt and pepper. Add the ham (or any of your ingredients) and parsley. Pour into a greased mini muffin pan with 24 cups and bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Serve warm and enjoy!
Game-day Feast
We are a football-loving family, so the Super Bowl was a big event in our house! We didn’t have a party or anything, but we did have some awesome food! Our Super Bowl spread included Italian Cheese Pizza, Bacon Wrapped Shrimp, Taco Dip, Deviled Eggs, and Brownies! My dish was the shrimp, but I’ll give the recipe for them all!
This is a recipe that my family makes for just about every party/special event that comes our way! It’s something that everyone will love (even the kids!) because it’s so simple. Believe me, you’ll be making this dip for every reason imaginable!
Taco Dip
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1/4 salsa, more as needed
- cheddar cheese
- lettuce
- grape tomatoes
- black olives
Blend together the cream cheese and salsa, adding more salsa if needed. Place in a decorative dish and refrigerate for atleast 30 minutes. Top with the cheese, sliced lettuce, quartered tomatoes, and sliced olives. Serve with tortilla chips and dig in!
Deviled Eggs
Ok, so maybe I didn’t make these, but hey, I ate them! Deviled eggs are so simple to make and are a big hit with kids, too! My mom’s been making them since…since…well since before I can remember, and we all can’t get enough of ‘em!
Deviled Eggs
- 8 hard-boiled eggs
- 1/2 c mayonnaise
- 2 tbsp. sweet pickle relish
- salt and pepper
- paprika
Cover the eggs in cold water and bring to a boil. Cover with a lid, turn off the heat, and let sit for 15 minutes. Peel them and cut them in half, then scoop out the yolk. Mash the yolks with a fork and add the relish, mayonnaise, and salt and pepper to taste. Add more mayonnaise if not creamy enough, and add more relish if not flavorful enough. Fill the egg halfs using my Pastry Bag tip and sprinkle with paprika. Chill in the fridge until ready to enjoy!
Bacon Wrapped Shrimp
So I mentioned earlier that my family loves football, well we also love seafood! This was the perfect snack to munch on during the game because come on, I mean shrimp…wrapped in bacon…dipped in warm cheese sauce! What’s not to love about it?
Bacon Wrapped Shrimp (Claire Robinson)
- 8 jalapenos
- olive oil
- salt and pepper
- 8 pieces of bacon
- 16 peeled, de-veined shrimp
- 1 1/2 c grated monterey or chihuahua cheese
- 3/4 c half-n-half
Put the oven on broil. Slice the jalapenos in half, removing the seeds and ribs. Place them on a cookie tray and drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper. Roast them in the oven, flipping occasionally, until soft and the skin starts to bubble. Transfer them to a bowl and cut the bacon in half. Bake the half-pieces of bacon on a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees. You don’t want to cook the bacon thoroughly, just until it’s pliable.
Now take the shrimp and wrap it in a jalapeno.
Now wrap a piece of bacon around the jalapeno. 
Insert a toothpick into the center to hold them together and bake at 400 degrees for about 10 minutes. Now to make the cheese sauce, you’ll need to see my Double Boiler post to make one, and melt the cheese and half-n-half together. Add a little salt and pepper and serve alongside the shrimp. Enjoy!
Tip: How to Make a Double Boiler
Double boilers are called for in lots of recipes, but if you don’t own one, it’s a pain to go find one, plus they can be very expensive! So I’m going to teach how to make your own! Start by putting some water in the bottom of a saucepan.
Bring the water to a boil and place your bowl on top. Make sure the bowl doesn’t touch the water!
When your water is simmering, add whatever it is you’re melting.
Here, I’m melting cheese. But this is also great for melting chocolate, or marshmellows, I even make lemon curd in a this double boiler. Hope this helps you in the kitchen!
Chicken Cacciatore
Juicy chicken, sweet onions, rich tomato broth, succulent mushrooms and peppers…are you hungry yet? Chicken cacciatore (pronounced catch-i-tory) is my family’s new favorite dinner, and for good reasons, too! You braise the beautifully seared chicken thighs and serve them swimming in a lovely tomato-vegetable sauce. Since we’ve been getting so much snow and ice in northern Texas, it was nice to have a hearty, well-balanced meal to cheer us up!
I know that this dish may sound kind of difficult, but it turned out to be so much easier than I thought! It’s a great dish to serve to company because they’ll think you spent a long time working on it, but really you spent about 45 minutes on the whole meal! You’re sure to get two thumbs-up with this crowd pleaser!
Chicken Cacciatore (Anne Burrell)
- olive oil (as needed)
- 8-10 chicken thighs (I used boneless, skinless; you could use bone-in, skin-on if you’d like)
- 2 large onions
- pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
- 4 garlic cloves, smashed and minced
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1 pound cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 2 c dry white wine
- 1 28 oz can plum tomatoes
- 1 bundle thyme
- 3 dried bay leaves
Coat a large pan with olive oil and sear chicken.
Your goal is not to cook the chicken all the way through, just to brown the outside!
Slice your onion (I only used 1, and I didn’t use the garlic), mince your garlic, dice your peppers, slice your mushrooms (I bought pre-sliced), and bundle your thyme. Saute the onions in olive oil with the red pepper flakes until they are brown and caramelized, 8-10 minutes. Then add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add the peppers, next, and cook for 1-2 minutes. Throw in the mushrooms and saute until soft. De-glaze the pan by adding the white wine.
Now for the tomatoes, you could run them through a food mill if you have one, or you could do what I did and puree them in a blender, then run them through a fine-mesh strainer to get out the seeds and pulp. Add them to the pot with the thyme, bay leaves, and chicken. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer and partially cover for 20-30 minutes.
Once it’s done simmering, remove the chicken and taste the sauce for seasoning. Remove the thyme and bay leaves and serve the sauce over the chicken.
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve alongside egg noodles or rice and a green vegetable.
Blueberry Muffins
Ahhhh…the humble, under-appreciated blueberry muffin. I don’t think this muffin gets enough attention because whenever you have one, it usually comes out of a plastic wrapper. Well not these! These blueberry muffins are soft and fluffy and moist and, most importantly, home-made! They’re so delicious because they’re made from pancake mix. Imagine eating a blueberry pancake, but in muffin form…that’s how it tastes! It adds an extra little sweetness and fluffiness to these tasty treats, and just makes you feel happy inside! The blueberries kinda pop and ooze all their wonderful juice into your mouth and add a whole other dimension to the muffins. Whether they serve as a day-starter or a mid-afternoon snack, you won’t be disappointed! Remember that the next time you cringe over a blueberry muffin. 
Blueberry Muffins (Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix)
- 1 c Aunt Jemima Pancake Mix
- 1 c all-purpose flour
- 1/3 c packed brown sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1 c milk
- 1/3 c veg. oil
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- 1 c blueberries (could be substituted with 1 medium apple, peeled and chopped)
Topping
- 4 tsp. granulated sugar
- 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners. Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Next, combine the milk, oil, egg, and vanilla and slowly add to the flour mixture. Beat until the dry ingredients are moistened, and stir in the blueberries.
Fill the cups with the batter, (I used my hand-dandy mini ice cream scoop to do this!) and combine the topping ingredients. Sprinkle an even layer of the topping over the batter and bake for 16-18 minutes. Let cool for 2 minutes before serving and enjoy!
