Julie & Julia

After a long day of class and thinking about working out, it's nice to come home and just sit. I made dinner (a baked potato cooked in the oven at 400 degrees for 45 minutes topped with butter, sour cream and cheese) and worked on some math. After my roommate made her dinner, I decided to make blueberry muffins so that I could grab something quick to eat in the morning before my 9 AM class. They are to die for. I'll post the recipe sometime. But anyways, now I'm just sitting, getting ready to watch a favorite movie of mine, Julie & Julia. It will inspire anyone to cook! So, wherever and whoever you are, remember that the kitchen will never judge you and you will always have a place in it. =]

Nutella Cream Cheese Bagel

Hi folks! So tonight as I was doing my homework, I thought man, I'm getting a little hungry. I began craving chocolate in any form. Not wanting to dirty a bunch of dishes, chocolate chip cookies were out. I went grocery shopping the other day and got bagels, cream cheese and Nutella. Nutella toast is a longtime favorite of mine, but I decided to mix it up a bit. I know the picture makes it look a little unappealing, but trust me, it's tasty stuff.

My Famous Cupcakes

Ok, so its not really my recpie, my ex-sister-in-law told me it, but I tell everyone else about them now. It's so simple and quick and fun to do!

My friend Steph and I are making some today and I'll show you guys just how simple it can be to make a cupcake that everyone will rave about.

Poor Mans Meal

Ok, so as a college student with no job, I'm at a lack of funds. I'm going back home for the holidays this weekend and I just didn't see the point in buying a whole bunch of food that I wasn't going to eat in such a short time. I've been living off of peanut butter (which I ran out of today), mac and cheese, frozen corn, crackers, applesauce and black beans for the past few days. To my surprise, I made something really tasty today. I didn't take a picture because well, I ate it too fast.

White Chocolate Cranberry Cupcakes

Adapted from Culinography


Cupcake:
1/8 Cup of white chocolate baking chips
1 1/2 Sticks of butter (unsalted)
1 Cup of brown sugar
1/2 Cup of granulated sugar
4 Eggs
Few scraps of orange peel
3 Tablespoons of orange juice
2 Cups of flour
2 Teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 Cup fresh cranberries


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If your butter is coming right out of the fridge, place on the stove top while the oven heats up to soften it up before mixing. Beat butter and sugars in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Or if you're like me and didn't have an electric mixer, just get a whisk and beat the heck of the butter and sugar. Add eggs, orange peel, and 3 tablespoons of the orange juice; mix well. Add flour and baking powder; beat until well blended. Fold in chopped chocolate and the cranberries. Be sure to fold it because if you mix it with the mixer or the whisk the cranberries will break and turn your cupcakes red. Bake approximately 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove cupcakes to wire rack. Cool completely before icing. 


Frosting:
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
4 Ounces cream cheese, softened
1/8 Cup of white chocolate baking chip
3 Tablespoons orange juice
3-4 cups Powdered sugar

Beat butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Mix in white chocolate. Mix in orange juice and powdered sugar until desired consistency is reached. Pipe or smear onto cupcakes.


These are great for the holidays or to impress that cutie you've had your eye on. My brother already wants me to make them when he comes home for Christmas! Enjoy!

Roommate's A Cookin'

So no new recipe today, but I thought I'd share what my roommate is cooking for lunch/dinner. It looks so tasty, too bad I don't eat meat :(

Butternut Squash Soup

Taken and modified from College Vegetarian Cooking

Ingredients:
1 Butternut Squash - 3lbs
2 Potatoes
1 1/2 Stalks of Celery
1 Small Onion
1 Quart of Vegetable Broth
Couple handfuls of baby carrots
1/2 Cup of Water

Begin by chopping up the baby carrots into 1/4 to 1/2 inch segments and putting them into a large pot. Clean and peel the potatoes. Cut them into about 1/4 cubes and add them to the pot as well. Next, cut the celery into about 1/4 to 1/2 inch segments and add them to the pot. Cut up the onion into 1/4 to 1/2 segments. If you put the onion in the fridge prior to doing this it'll keep you from tearing up while you cut it up. Now the tricky part. Begin cutting up the squash using a good knife. It's tough, but keep at it. It's best to just cut down the middle. Scoop out all the seeds and string with a spoon (it'll turn your hands orange if you use your hands). Cut the squash into 1/4 to 1/2 inch cubes and put them in the pot. Now, pour the vegetable broth over this mixture along with the water.

Put on the stove at Medium heat until it starts to boil. Turn to low/medium heat and let simmer for about 30 minutes. After it is done simmering, little by little transfer some of the solid food and liquid into a food processor and blend for about 7 seconds before transferring that into another pot. Repeat until all contents have been though this. Put all contents back in original pot and let simmer for about 5 minutes before serving.

The original recipe that I got this from says it serves 4, but that was not the case when I made it. It could feed at least 6 or 7 people.

Making this was really fun. Very calming to just stand there and chop the veggies. It was super yummy and I loved using fresh foods. Makes great leftovers too! A perfect fall soup. =]