Parmesan Cornbread Mini Biscuits for SRC

Hi Friends! I know its been a while! I do have some cool things to share with you, but I am just trying to get motivated this new year to start sharing with you again. I just haven't been feeling that inspired... I think that's why I procrastinated so much this month before even looking at my assignment for SRC (which by the way, I had two months to work on, but no, I baked and blogged the night before it was due). I am now so sad that I procrastinated to much - the blog I was assigned is AWESOME!!! I was assigned the blog Mangia this month. It is a great blog written by a beautiful gal named Chelsy. Check out her blog - I'll still be here when you get back! I've flagged a couple more recipes to try from her blog this coming weekend because everything just looked so mouthwatering.

I decided to make Chelsy's Black Pepper Cornbread Biscuits (with a couple of my own twists!) and man were they delicious! Even hubby who swears he doesn't like anything with cornmeal loved them! If you click the link above you can find Chelsy's original recipe - its gluten free, so for any of you who like to cook/ bake gluten free or for those of you that must, do have a look! Otherwise, my non-gluten free take on the recipe can be found below.

Parmesan Cornbread Mini Biscuits
Recipe adapted from Mangia

Ingredients:

• 1 cup cornmeal
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp prosciutto and chipotle sea salt (or regular is fine too!)
• 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup warm water
• 2 eggs
• 1 tbsp. honey
• 2-3 tbsp. finely grated parmesan

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a mini-muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
2. In a medium sized bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (except parmesan). In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, water, eggs and honey. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until ingredients come together and are just moistened. Add a bit more water if necessary to get a muffin batter-like consistency.
3. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tin filling about 3/4 full. Sprinkle each mini muffin with a bit of parmesan. Bake in preheated oven for 10-11 minutes or until just set and golden on the sides and bottom. Let cool slightly then enjoy on their own or with a bit of butter!

These little guys would be delicious with chili or stew - awesome for dipping! Or just delicious for a little afternoon snack. Either way, do try them out - they come together in under half an hour and make the house smell great! Thanks Chelsy for an awesome recipe - I look forward to trying several more. :)

 



Savory Oatmeal Cookies

I have a confession to make... I'm pretty obsessed with Pinterest. I may have disclosed this at some point in the past couple of months, but seriously, this obsession has gotten worse (yes, I'm aware gotten isn't proper english and this is my caring face heehee). Any way, seriously, I check out Pinterest first thing when I wake up in the morning, at lunch time in the office, and of course lying in bed at night before I go to sleep. Now that I have the Pinterest app on my phone... well, my obsession has intensified. On one of my many Pinterest binges, I came across these amazing looking savory oatmeal cookies. And this weekend I finally got around to making them. I made some minor changes to the recipe, and the result was glorious!!

Savory Oatmeal Cookies
Recipe very slightly adapted from the Kitchn.com

Ingredients:

• 1 cup steel cut oats
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup finely grated parmesan cheese
• kosher salt for sprinkling
• Roasted garlic goat cheese

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line large baking tray with parchment paper.
2. Place oats in a large bowl and sprinkle with warm water. In a smaller bowl, combine the olive oil, honey, and egg until well mixed. Pour mixture over the oats and stir to combine. Set mixture aside.
3. In another mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, rosemary and black pepper. Whisk until well incorporated. Then gently stir in the parmesan cheese. Add the flour mixture to the oat mixture and stir until blended (try not to overmix).
4. Scoop onto prepared baking tray (I did about 1/8 cup portions or the size of an ice cream scoop). Flatten slightly then sprinkle with kosher salt.
5. Bake 18 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.
6. Once cookies are cooled, serve spread with roasted garlic goat cheese.

Yep, they're pretty easy and use very basic ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry and fridge. These are a great snack or starter to a yummy dinner and pair really well with white wine. If you have a chance, head over to the Kitchn to check out other delicious recipes and some great tips.

This post has been linked up with the recipe party over at the Sweet Spot! Head over and check out all the amazing Easter Goodies that have been linked up with the party. :)

Happy Baking my Friends!!

Parmesan and Black Pepper Biscotti

This is my favorite biscotti recipe. I've made it many, many times, but each time it has never lasted long enough to get a couple of photographs!! Hubby and sister eagerly devour it every time I make it. I know you're a little skeptical due to the fact that biscotti is usually sweet, but give this one a go! Its great with a nice chilled glass of white wine. I promise you, the entire batch will not last long in your house.

Since its Sunday and I want to go and do something today, I'm going to keep this post short! So here's the recipe - you must try this ASAP! Its a great way to use up leftover parmesan and it come together really quickly.

Parmesan and Black Pepper Biscotti
Recipe adapted from Food & Whine

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup finely grated parmesan (fresh stuff, not the powdered stuff, you need good quality for this recipe)
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp freshly ground, coarse black pepper
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• extra parmesan and black pepper for sprinkling

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line large baking pan (or alternatively, two smaller baking pans) with parchment paper.
2. In the bowl of a large food procesor, pulse the flour, parmesan, baking powder, back pepper, salt, and cayenne pepper together until just combined. Add the butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the eggs with the whole milk. With your food processor running, gradually drizzle the egg-milk mixture through the feeding tube until the mixture comes together to form a slightly sticky dough.
4. Divide the dough in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball of dough out into a 10" long log. Place logs onto prepared baking sheet(s) and press to flatten slightly.
5. Brush each log with a little whole milk then sprinkle with parmesan and additional coarse ground black pepper. Bake in pre-heated oven for 30 minutes, until just golden and firm to the touch. Remove from oven and let cool in pan on a cooling rack for 10 minutes.
6. Transfer logs to a cutting board. Using a large sharp knife, carefully cut into 1/2 inch slices. Place slices back on baking sheet with cut side up, about 1/2 inch apart. Bake in 350F oven for 10 minutes, then flip biscotti over and bake for another 10 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack to cool completely.
8. Store between waxed paper in airtight containers for one week or freeze for up to one month.  

After sharing this recipe with you, I'm struck by the urge to make another batch of these delicious little treats.... Sunday afternoon activity?!! Enjoy your Sunday whatever you're up to!

Happy Baking my Friends!

Skinny Caesar Salad

If you've been following my blog, or browsing my archives, you may have noticed that I don't post many healthy recipes. I love baking, and most baking recipes are inherently laden with fat! And the recipes I usually make from my fav cookbooks are also usually laden with fat too... I do make healthy recipes most of the time during the week, but I don't usually blog about them because I'm always in a rush to get dinner on the table and never bother to photograph any of the healthy things I make... why would people want to read healthy recipes and look at pictures of healthy food?! *gasp*!!

Any way, getting on with the story, I whip this up on a super busy weeknight and plop it on the table in front of my husband and he stops me before we dig in and says "aren't you going to photograph this? It looks like restaurant food". Of course I burst out laughing, but was secretly flattered that he thought dinner looked that good!! It honestly made my day. So, I took pictures and decided to share it with you because it is a delicious and easy healthy recipe that even the most discerning caesar salad lover will enjoy!

Skinny Chicken Caesar
Recipe adapted from Cook Yourself Thin
Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts


• 2 heads romaine lettuce


• two handfuls of low fat croutons (I like the herb and garlic ones)


• 2 medium eggs


• 2 tbsp grated parmesan


• one recipe of caesar dressing (see below for recipe)

Method:

1. Preheat your grill and grill the chicken breasts with a little salt and pepper, or any seasonings you like. Remove from grill and let rest until the rest of the salad is ready to go.


2. Wash the lettuce and dry. Chop or tear the lettuce leaves into bite size pieces.


3. Carefully drop eggs into boiling water for 4 minutes exactly (for a runny center, for a soft, but not runny center, cook more like 6 minutes). Remove from boiling water and immediately immerse in cold water. Leave in cold water until the rest of the salad is ready.


4. Place the lettuce leaves in the bowl you mixed up the dressing in and toss together to coat. Add the parmesan and toss again.


5. Divide the coated lettuce among your serving plates. Slice the chicken and place on top of the lettuce. Sprinkle with croutons and a little extra parmesan if desired. Slice the egg in half and place on the plate as well. Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper and serve.

Caesar Dressing
Recipe from Cook yourself Thin

Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp fat free greek yogurt


• 1/2 garlic clove, minced


• 2 tsp dijon mustard


• 1 tsp malt vinegar


• 1 tbsp olive oil


• salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Combine all dressing ingredients in the bowl you will toss your salad in. Whisk together until emulsified and creamy.

Happy Cooking my Friends!