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Really Really Yummy Cupcakes

Alright, you have to make these cupcakes. First off you may not know this yet but i am recently obsessed with all things cupcake. I am at the point now that any excuse i have to make cupcakes and use my new Kitchen Aid mixer will do. Just like last week, my roomy had a Stella & Dot jewelry party so of course i had to make cupcakes!



I found this recipe in one of my older Cooking Light magazines for Red Velvet Cupcakes. This is one of their "healthier" recipes that are made over to reduce the fat and calories. Even after that they are still really tasty. The frosting is perfect, not to sweet or thick. The only problem about these cakes is that they are the perfect amount of sweetness you could probably eat about 5 in one sitting ahhhhhh! Good thing summer is almost over.

Yield: 30 cupcakes (serving size: 1 cupcake)

Ingredients

Cupcakes

• Cooking spray
• 10 ounce cake flour (about 2 1/2 cups)
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups nonfat buttermilk
• 1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons red food coloring (about 1 ounce)

Frosting

• 5 tablespoons butter, softened
• 4 teaspoons nonfat buttermilk
• 1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese, softened
• 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar (about 1 pound)
• 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. To prepare the cupcakes, place 30 paper muffin cup liners in muffin cups; coat with cooking spray.

3. Weigh or lightly spoon cake flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine cake flour, unsweetened cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk. Place granulated sugar and unsalted butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 3 minutes). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and 1 1/4 cups nonfat buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Add white vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla, and food coloring; beat well.

4. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire racks.

5. To prepare frosting, beat 5 tablespoons butter, 4 teaspoons nonfat buttermilk, and cream cheese with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar; beat until smooth. Add 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla; beat well. Spread frosting evenly over cupcakes.

Nutritional Information

Calories:205

Fat:7.3g (sat 4.5g,mono 2g,poly 0.3g)

Protein:2.3g

Carbohydrate:33.5g

Fiber:0.3g

Cholesterol:34mg

Iron:0.9mg

Sodium:168mg

Calcium:35mg

recipe by Nicolette Manescalchi, San Francisco, Cooking Light, DECEMBER 2009

Finally I Can Grill Again

It had been about 2 weeks without my grill. I unfortunately had run out of propane and was unable to get it filled until this past weekend. I went a bit crazy cooking tonight out of excitement for my normal summer cooking routine to be back. It was all worth it. For one, I had an amazing grilled albacore tuna steak with grilled zucchini, artichokes, and Yukon gold potatoes. Then with a ton of left over grilled zucchini ,thanks to my mother's garden garden, i decided to throw together a pesto pasta salad for lunch this week (pesto also left over). It always helps to keep the pantry stocked with items that can do double duty for creating new dishes out of your left overs.


Grilled Albacore Tuna

Ingredients

• 1 small clove crushed garlic
• 1 1/2 tbsp chopped fresh lemon thyme (can sub regular thyme and a little lemon juice)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 Albacore Tuna steak
• Non-stick cooking spray
  

Mix first 5 ingredients together in a both for marinade. Combine the marinade and tuna in a plastic zip top bag. Marinade for 20 minutes. Heat grill over medium high heat. Spray tuna with non stick cooking spray on eat side prior to placing on the grill. Be careful and do not spray the cooking oil near the open flames!

Grill for 2-3 minutes on eat side depending on your preference. Tuna is always best slightly rare in the center.

I was first introduced to the following recipe for artichokes by the wonderful Struhm family. This is the only way you will ever each an artichoke after you try this. The extra time to put the artichokes on the grill is way worth it.

Grilled Artichokes

Ingredients

• 2 medium to large artichokes
• 1/4 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 tbsp finely chopped garlic
• Extra virgin olive oil
• 1 lemon
• Salt
• Pepper

Cut off the tips and stems of each artichoke. Then trim the pointy tips of the remaining leaves. Stuff between the leaves the onion and garlic. Steam the artichokes cut side facing upwards so the onions and garlic stay in the leaves. Depending on the size of the artichokes, this could take about 15-25 minutes. The best way to test if an artichoke is cooked is to stick a knife through the base of the stem. If the knife easily goes into the stem (heart) it is cooked.

Hold the artichoke vertically with a pair of tongs and cut the artichoke in half, starting at the stem. Scoop out the fussy hair and small leaves from the center each half. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on the grill cut side down, grill for 1-2 minutes or until grill marks are made on the artichoke. Serves with lemon wedges or your favorite dipping sauce.

Grilled Zucchini in Pesto

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp toasted pine nuts
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 1/2 tbsp fresh parmigiano reggiano cheese, grated
• 15-20 leaves fresh basil
• 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cups of 1/2-3/4 inch thick sliced zucchini
  
• 1/2 tsp Pepper
• 1/4 tsp Salt
  

Using a food processor or Magic Bullet (best invention ever!) finely chop/blend together the garlic, toasted pine nuts, cheese, salt, and pepper. Add the basil leaves and olive oil. Blend together until all the ingredients are well mixed and basil finely chopped. Pour 2 tbsp pesto sauce over the sliced zucchini and mix until zucchini is evenly coated. Let sit for about 5 minutes to marinade. Grill until tender.

Italian Pasta Salad

• 1/2 lb campanelle pasta
• 1/3-1/2 cup left over grilled zucchini, diced
  
• 1/2 cup canned artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
  
• 1/2 cup cannellini beans (white kidney beans)
• 1/4 cup canned roasted red bell pepper, diced
  
• 1/4 cup sun dried tomatoes in olive oil, diced
  
• 2 tbsp toasted pine nuts
  
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh tomato, seeded
• 1 tbsp fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, finely chopped
  
• 1/4 cup pesto

Cook pasta according to package directions. In a large bowl while the pasta is cooking, combine the remaining 8 ingredients. Add the pasta and stir in pesto. Add salt and pepper to your taste.

Chili for a Chilly Summer Night

It's August here in the bay area and still not very warm. Is it usually like this? Well, these past few weeks have caused me to crave those warm slow cook flavors that we experience when fall rolls around. Tonight i made some good ole' Chili, even with a little ground beef. I feel a bit naughty eating red meat two nights in a row. Very rare for me!

The great thing about chili is that it is fairly quick to make, not a lot of prep work, and a large amount of flavor for only cooking for about 15-20 minutes. I channeled Rachel Ray tonight with her guide to measuring. Use your palm! If you make a cup with the palm of your hand and fill with seasoning, it usually is close to a tablespoon. So much easier than busting out the measuring spoons and then having to clean them. Measuring is strictly for baking.

KLD's Chili with a tiny bit a meat

Ingredients

• 1 red bell pepper, diced
  
• 1-2 tbs extra virgin olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
  
• 1 medium size red onion, chopped (if you have another type on hand it will work too)
• 1/4 lb ground beef (optional)
• 1/3 cup red wine
  
• 28oz can diced tomatoes
  
• 20oz can red kidney beans (this size is available at Trader Joe's, 15oz works)
• 15oz can black beans
• 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper (or about 2-3 shakes of the seasoning container depending on your heat tolerance)
  
• 1 1/2 tbs cumin
• 1 tbs chili powder
• 1/2 tbs ancho chili powder (this has some heat, great addition to spice collection)
• Pepper
• Salt
• 1/2-1 cup water (depending on how thick you want your chili)
• fresh cilantro for garnish and topping
  

Place a large pot over medium to medium-high heat. Drizzle with olive oil. Once oil is heated (be sure not to burn the oil, olive oil does not have a high burning point) add the diced red bell pepper. Saute in pan for 7-10 minutes or until the bell pepper is slightly tender. Add the chopped onion and crushed red pepper. Cook for an additional 4-6 minutes or until onion is almost transparent. Add the finely chopped garlic. Saute in pan for about a minute, finishing with moving the bell pepper mixture to one side of the pan. Add the ground beef to the clear side of the pan, mixing until lightly browned. Sprinkle with about 1/4 tsp pepper and a pinch of salt. Pour in the red wine and scrap the bits off the bottom of your pan. This is all the flavor!

Simmer with the red wine for about a minute to reduce the wine. Add the remaining ingredients. Slowly add the water and stir until the desired consistency of your chili is reached. Feel free to add more water if the chili is still too thick for your liking. Bring mixture to a boil and then reduce to low heat to simmer for 15-20 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and enjoy!

For the nights you need a glass of wine, my newest favorite wine pick is Contadino Pinot Grigio Vivace. This wine is slightly bubbly with a light flavor. Truly refreshing with this spicy, smokey chili. I found this wine at one of my favorite stores, Trader Joe's.

The Experiment

Alright here we go! Today is day one of Kreate Live Dine. I am looking forward to sharing all my favorite recipes, dinners of the day, dining out, and beyond. As I was attempting to finalize my blog design tonight, I almost burned my dinner! Number one rule of cooking, don't walk to far from the kitchen. Distractions lead to the disasters.

If you are in the mood for a bit of some Asian flavors this one is for you. I found this recipe in one of my favorite magazines Real Simple. I have not tried this recipe with another type of meat but I'm sure it would work well with shrimp and chicken. If you cant find flank steak at the store I often buy single steaks, I used tri-tip tonight. Just make sure to thinly slice the steak into strips. Also, Bok Choy cooks very quickly. Be sure to watch this once you put it in the pan. Mushy Bok Choy is not very tasty.


Beef and Bok Choy Stir-Fry Recipe | Real Simple Recipes