Cookie Monster!

     Mr. Bloom has never really requested cupcakes, because he says he likes cakes better.  I think they are about the same.  What is not to love about your own little individual cake!? 24 times over!  I call it portion control!! Lol.  As I mentioned in my last post… I have loved everything that I have made from my KitchenAid Cookbook.  When I saw these cupcakes, I knew that I had to try them.  I love cookies and cream ice cream, so I figured I would love these cookies and cream cupcakes! 

Cupcake Ingredients

- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

- 1 tablespoon baking powder

- ½ teaspoon salt

- 1 2/3 cups sugar

- 1 cup milk

- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened

- 2 teaspoons vanilla

- 3 egg whites

- 1 cup crushed chocolate sandwich cookies (about 10 cookies), 

plus additional for garnish (I used Oreo’s of course!)

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 24 standard muffin cups with paper baking cups; set aside.

• Sift flour, baking powder and salt together in large bowl.  Sift in sugar.  
• I got a sifter! Funnily enough, I liked the strainer I had better.  And I accidentally left this one in water and it rusted.. OOPS! Note to you: Don't do that. :)

• Add milk, butter and vanilla; beat with electric mixer at low speed 30 seconds.  

• Add egg whites; beat 2 minutes.
• I was a little afraid to separate eggs, but Mr. Bloom showed me how it was done.   I am sure there is a tool for this as well, but Mr. Bloom will do for now! 

• Stir in 1 cup crushed cookies.  
• I was ready to put them in a ziploc and smash them to death.  Luckily, my sister in law gave me the idea to put them in the food processor! 

 

• Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

 

 

• Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into centers comes out clean.  
• Cool cupcakes in pans on wire racks 10 minutes.  
• Remove to racks; cool completely.

Creamy Frosting Ingredients

- 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour

- Dash of Salt

- 1 cup milk

- ½ cup shortening

- ½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened

- 1 ¼ cups sugar

- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla

• Combine flour and salt in 2-quart saucepan.  Gradually stir in milk until well blended.  Cook over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly.  Cool.
• Beat shortening and butter in large bowl with electric mixer at high speed until creamy.  Add sugar, beat until light and fluffy.  Blend in vanilla.  Add cooled flour mixture; beat until smooth.

• Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle the rest of the cookie crumbles on top for garnish! 

     These cupcakes are the best cupcakes I have ever had.  I may be biased.  I took them to work and everyone enjoyed them.  Or so they said! ;) . I honestly think that these are the first cupcakes I have ever made from scratch.  It may be due to the fact that I had never owned cupcake pans before.  Haha.  A friend bought me a cupcake cookbook and these pans, so I am looking forward to making many more mini cakes! 

With that, Enjoy! 

Crazy for Coconut!

     I have never been a fan of German Chocolate cake, because I don’t like coconut.  Mr. Bloom on the other hand loves German Chocolate Cake.  I have made the box mix before, but it recently dawned on me that I had never thought to attempt a homemade one.   I have never even made a chocolate cake from scratch before.  The only thing that really scared me away from it was melting the chocolate.   When I was younger, I had a bad chocolate melting experience.  This was before I knew what I double boiler was! So, being that it is one of his all time favorite cakes, I decided to go for it!  I turned to a KitchenAid Cookbook that my friend bought me for my birthday.  I have made a few recipes from it (that you will see in other posts soon!), and everything that I tried has turned out to be amazing.  This cake, even for a non-coconut liking person like me, did not disappoint.

Cake Ingredients

- 1/2 cup hot water

- 4 squares (1 ounce each) semi - sweet chocolate

- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened

- 2 cups sugar

- 4 eggs

- 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

- 1 teaspoon baking soda

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1 cup buttermilk

- 1 teaspoon vanilla

• This is the chocolate that I picked.  There were a few brands of course, but Mr. Bloom likes Ghirardelli.  So, I chose that one.  I am sure people prefer different chocolates, but in the baking aisle it seemed all the same to me! 

• In true Mrs. Bloom fashion.. I was already sort of aware of how to make my own double boiler, but I googled it just in case.  I didn't have any bowls that would work.  So, I had a friend bring over a bowl that she had, and I matched the pot to the bowl.  This is what mine looked like.  You can buy a double boiler, but this worked fine for me.  I filled the water a quarter of the way.  This was one of those trial and error things.  It looked like it would work, and it did! 
• Place water and chocolate in double boiler.  Stir constantly over boiling water until chocolate melts; set aside.

• This only took a few minutes.  Make sure that you constantly stir the chocolate.  You don't want it too clump together.  It shouldn't burn either.  It actually seemed funny at the end how easy it was.  Mr. Bloom had not yet requested a chocolate cake, but if someone does.. then I know what I am doing now! 

• Beat butter and sugar in large bowl with electric mixer about 2 minutes or until fluffy.  Stop and scrape bowl.  
• Turn to medium speed and add eggs 1 at a time, beat 15 seconds after each addition.  
• Continuing on medium speed, add chocolate mixture, and beat 15 seconds more or just until incorporated.  Stop and scrape bowl.

• Add flour, baking soda, salt, buttermilk and vanilla.  Turn to low speed and mix until well blended, about 30 seconds.  

• Divide batter evenly between two greased and floured (9 inch - I used 8 inch) cake pans.  
• Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.
• I forgot to take a picture of the batter!! But I DO remember what it looks like! This is the fluffiest batter I have seen.  It reminded me of a mousse.  It was definitely a light and fluffy mixture.  Hope that helps a little! When I make another one, I will edit and add the picture of the batter.

• Cool in pans 10 minutes, then remove and cool completely on wire racks.

Coconut Pecan Frosting Ingredients

- 1 cup sugar

- 3/4 cup evaporated milk

- 3 eggs, beaten

- 1/3 cup butter

- 1 cup shredded coconut (I used unsweetened)

- 1 cup chopped pecans

• Combine sugar, evaporated milk, eggs and butter in large saucepan.  
• Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture begins to thicken.
• Make sure to stir constantly! The last thing you want is scrambled egg icing.. I wasn't aware that you cooked the icing, and was a little worried I would do it wrong.. but it came out fine...

• Remove from heat and place in large bowl; add coconuts and pecans.  
• Beat with electric mixer on low speed until thick and spreadable.
• Refrigerate until ready to use.  
• I refrigerated it until the cake was fully cooled.  Maybe only like 20 minutes.  I think they just state this so you know you can if needed.. but I don't think it's totally necessary. 

• Frost the middle layer and then the whole cake! 
• I felt that I needed a little more icing.  I would make double the recipe.  Just to make the recipe additions easier.  Really I only needed about a half cup more of icing.  You could see the cake peeking through on some parts, but you can't really tell in the picture.  It may be that I used too much in the middle.  I don't feel I did, so I rather just double the recipe! 

     This cake came out beyond moist! I did taste some of the icing.  After the initial getting over the coconut texture, I did enjoy it!  Mr. Bloom said he wants another one ASAP!  So, I guess y'all will get the picture of the batter sooner than expected!  Like I said, I rather enjoy my KitchenAid Cookbook and I am looking forward to picking some more recipes from it.  And... I hope you are looking forward to seeing them come to life! 

With that, Enjoy!

Time for a Change/ Healthy Fried Rice

 

     I hear that it is normal to gain a little weight after you get married, but when does it ever stop?  My pants weren’t fitting anymore and my yoga pants became my best friends!  I had lost a little weight before the wedding, but gained it all and more back after.  One day, I decided that I had enough.  I didn’t want this for myself. I had gained over 20 pounds in just a matter of months! Of course people do the dieting when they have certain events to go to, but I didn’t want it to be like that this time.  I decided that I wanted to make a change for good.  I’ve always known that I like structure.  Funnily enough, if you know me I am not the most structured person.  I am go with the flow and laid back.  So, structure in only some areas please! Haha.  So, a good weight loss program for me is Weight Watcher’s.  It is seriously the only way I can lose weight!  I just don’t seem to have enough self-control on my own.  I have been on it before, but like I said it was for my wedding.  This time it’s for my health.  People ask me what am I losing weight for and my response is to be healthy and look hot of course!  So, I have been on it for a little over 2 months and am a couple of pounds lighter than I was when I got married!! I am really happy with this change, and I can definitely go shopping if it’s for smaller clothes!

     What does this mean for my love of food?  Ohh, it still exists! I have to find healthier ways to cook what I love! Or control my portions.  Just because I post cakes or cupcakes or fattening foods, doesn’t mean that I eat it all! It definitely doesn’t mean that I don’t get a bite or two though!

     So, one of my first challenges was to find a healthy Chinese dish.  I love Chinese food, but I have been trying to stay away from it and it’s high calorie content.  So, when I found a recipe for Healthy Fried Rice, I jumped at the chance to make it.  Did you ever think Fried Rice could be healthy? I didn’t.  But it can, and it is delicious!   

THE INGREDIENTS

- Cooking Spray

- 2 Large eggs, lightly beaten

- 1 cup uncooked carrots

- 1 cup uncooked scallions (optional)

- 3 cups cooked white rice

- 1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed

- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce, or to taste

THE DIRECTIONS

•  Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray; warm pan over medium-high heat.  Add eggs and tilt the pan so the eggs cover the bottom of the skillet.  
• When the eggs start to set, break them up into pieces with your heat proof spoon.  Cook until eggs are cooked through, about 1 minute more.  Remove the eggs from the skillet and set aside.

 

•  The recipe does not call for chicken, but I added it on my own. 
• I cut two pieces of chicken breast into small pieces.  You can choose the size.  Usually restaurants have small pieces, so I mocked them and did small bite size pieces. 
• While you are preparing the chicken, it would be a good idea to cook your rice.  I have done this recipe with minute rice and regular rice and they both taste the same to me.  Mr. Bloom claims he can tell a difference and likes the regular rice better! 
• Coat the pan with the cooking spray again and cook the chicken until it's done.  This only took a few minutes.. 

 

• Add the carrots to your dish.  If you are using scallions, you can add all but two tablespoons of them.  I don't like scallions, so I skipped this step.
• Saute until the carrots are crisp-tender, about 2-3 minutes.

 

• Stir in the cooked rice, peas and soy sauce.
• Cook until heated through, stirring once or twice, about 1 minute.
• Gently stir in the cooked eggs and remaining scallions; heat through.
• SERVE! 

     Isn't that the easiest fried rice in the world?? I think so.  I absolutely love this recipe.  It is also a Weight Watcher's recipe! Double Plus for me! So, if you are wondering if my blog is going to turn 100 % healthy, I can assure you it isn't! I just felt I should share a little piece of myself and my journey.  I know I fell off the face of the blogosphere for a bit, but I just couldn't go without blogging any longer! I did miss it, and I know you have to make time for things you love, so here I am! 

With that, Enjoy!!

The recipe can be found HERE!

I'm Stuffed.

     A lot of times I am scared to use online recipes.  People mainly only rate things whenever they are not satisfied.  (As with most things like apartments and retailers!)  How do I know if these people who rated things badly have good taste buds?? I don't.  So, I suppose you just have to jump in and find out if the recipe you picked is good to your standards or not.  Mr. Bloom and I love stuffed bell peppers.  I began to search online for a recipe and as you can imagine, there are tons of them! I always love recipes with pictures. That goes for my cook books too!  I found a recipe online with a yummy picture of a stuffed bell pepper.  I was sold.  They looked amazing.  Here, for your eating pleasure, is the recipe!

 

INGREDIENTS

- 1 lb. Ground Beef

- 1/3 cup Onion, chopped 

- 6 medium Green Peppers, remove seeds

(I use only 4 peppers)

- 1 dash of pepper

- 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

- 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese, plus more for tops

- 1/2 cup long grain rice, uncooked

- 1 1 lb. can of diced tomatoes

- 1/2 tsp. Salt

- Salt for Peppers

- 1/2 cup water

DIRECTIONS

 

•  Cut off the tops of your green peppers.  Remove the seeds and membranes.  
• When we made these, Mr. Bloom just sliced the tops right off.. but the next time I made them, we just cut the core out of them.. I felt like we could put more stuffing in that way.. 
• The recipe says you can precook the peppers by boiling them in salted water for 5 minutes, but I didn't find that this was necessary.  

 

• Sprinkle the inside of the peppers with salt.  
• I poured salt in the cups, turned them to make sure they were coated with salt well, then emptied them out.

 

 

• Cook the beef and the onion until meat is lightly browned.

 

The stuff everyone uses, but doesn't know how to pronounce!

• Season with 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a dash of pepper.  Add the one pound can of tomatoes, 1/2 cup of water, 1/2 cup of uncooked long grain rice, and 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce.

 

• Cover and simmer until rice is tender, about 15 minutes.  Stir in the 1/2 cup of shredded cheddar cheese.

•  Stuff the peppers and place them in a baking dish.
• Mr. Bloom doesn't like bell peppers, so I only used 4 and put the extra topping around the other peppers.
• The recipe does not call for cheese on top, but I think that cheese makes everything better!!!
• Bake the Bell Peppers at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. 
• Don't do any less than that, or the peppers may not cook.

YUM.

•  They should look something like this! 

     These were extremely easy to make.  You just have to do a bit of waiting, but I'm sure there is something you can do in the mean time. These are definitely worth it!  Since discovering this recipe, I have made them about 4 times!  This is now one of Mr. Bloom's favorite requests.  The online post says that they got the recipe from their Better Homes and Garden's cookbook, but I could not find it in any of mine.  

The link to the recipe can be found, HERE! 

And don't forget to take the stickers off of your peppers!!!

With that, Enjoy!

Birthday Surprise!

Pineapple Upside Down Cake

     I think that I need to rename this blog, "Busy Life of a Cooking Wife!"  I have not posted in a while, and I decided that today on my off day I would get back into my blogging.  I have a few meals that are ready to be blogged about! First up, is pineapple upside down cake!  March is a particularly good birthday month.  Mr. Bloom's birthday is in March, as well as my mother-in-law's.  About two months ago, I had mentioned to her about the different things that I was making.  She said that I should make a pineapple upside down cake.  I committed her comment to memory, and decided I would make one for her birthday. It is actually one of my favorite cakes.  I have always made them from the box, but had never attempted one from scratch.  I was excited to see how this would come out.  I used a recipe book that my in-laws gave to me for my birthday last year.  It is from Better Homes and Gardens, New Cook Book: Celebrating the Promise. 

INGREDIENTS

- 2 tablespoons butter

- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar

- 1 tablespoon water

- 1 8oz can pineapple slices, drained and halved

- 4 maraschino cherries, halved

- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

- 2/3 cup granulated sugar

- 2 teaspoons baking powder

- 2/3 cup milk

- 1/4 cup butter, softened

- 1 egg

- 1 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Place the 2 tablespoons butter in a 9 inch round cake pan.  Place pan in oven until butter melts.  Stir in brown sugar and water.

• Arrange pineapple in cherries in a pan.  Set aside.

• In a medium mixing bowl, stir together flour, granulated sugar, and baking powder.

• Add milk, 1/4 cup butter, the egg and vanilla.

• Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until combined.  Beat on medium speed 1 minute. 

• Spoon batter into prepared pan. 
• Bake 30-35 minutes or until wooden toothpick  inserted in center comes out clean.  

Love the golden color!

• Cool on a wire rack 5 minutes.  

• Loosen sides of cake; invert onto plate.  Cool 30 minutes.  

     I would recommend not cutting the last pineapple slice in half, because mine separated in the middle.  I wasn't aware of how I was going to place them before I halved all of them.  I was kind of nervous that I couldn't taste it before I fed it to people.  So, I was hoping that it was done and tasted great. 

     I surprised my MIL with the cake and had no complaints on the taste!  Mother-in-laws get a lot of bad press, but there ARE great ones out there.  And I am glad I am one of the lucky ones. : ) . 

     I know you may be wondering what kind of cake Mr. Bloom requested for his birthday.  The answer would be, Pecan Upside Down Cake! He said it's his favorite cake that I have made so far.  He did have one complaint... That one wasn't enough! So, the birthday boy got TWO pecan upside down cakes. We did have family over and they helped eat them.  So, I am sure he will be requesting another soon!   

With that, Enjoy!