No Bake Nutella Cheesecakes – Courtesy of My Baking Addiction

O.M.G

Oh Em Gee

Oh to the M to the G

Ok I think you understand the severity of this….this dessert is PHENOMENOL! Must try and soooo easy! Kudos to My Baking Addiction for whipping up this concoction!

Its moist, rich. light, tasty, and crunchy…..oh man should I go eat the extra one I have sitting in my refridgerator? (Must display self control *talking to self*). Lucky for me I also found some Milka Hazelnut at the grocery store so I chopped some up and added some it on top for decoration and for taste.

Recipe can be found at:

http://www.mybakingaddiction.com/no-bake-nutella-cheesecake-recipe/

Recipe: Fried Chicken Tenders

Did someone just say fried chicken? Wait was that fried chicken tenders? Oh snap I did! I made them for the first time and my husband and cousin refused to talk to anyone or do anything for a good hour or so after dinner. I take that as job well done *patting own back*

Ok ok I will stop talking. Here is what you need to do.

 

Fried Chicken Tenders

1 cup buttermilk

1 large egg

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tablespoon cornstarch

1.5 lbs of chicken breast, cut into one inch strips

2 teaspoons  salt, divided

2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper, divided

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon of chopped fried onion

Vegetable Oil, for frying

Directions:

1) Add 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of pepper, paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, chopped fried onion to the chicken and toss to evenly coat.

2) Cover and refridgerate for at least 2 hours. Make sure to take chicken out for at least 30 minutes at room temperature before frying.

3) In one bowl,  whisk the buttermilk, egg, 1/3 cup water.

4) In another bowl, whisk the flour, cornstarch, and rest of salt and pepper.

5) Fill the pan with enough oil so that when you add the chicken it should cover the chicken but not overflow (of course!).  Heat the oil until hot.

6) Dip each chicken strip into the buttermilk mixture, then place the chicken into the flour. Shake off any excess flour and place into the oil. HINT: have a few chicken pieces coated in flour before placing in the hot oil so that the cooking time is more accurate for each batch.

7) Cook the chicken on medium heat for about 5-6 minutes turning every 2 minutes

8) Turn the heat to medium high and cook for an additional 5 minutes or until the chicken is golden brown and the outside starts to turn crispy

9) Remove the chicken tenders with tongs, allowing excess oil to drip back into frying pan. Place chicken in a plate covered with paper towels to absorb excess oil.

10) Serve the chicken with your favorite condiments and enjoy!

Recipe adapted from Skillet-Fried Chicken from Bon Appetit

Recipe: Oven Steak Fries

Made some scrumptious Fried Chicken Tenders tonight and was requested by my cousin to have it accompanied by some homemade steak fries. Since there was so much frying happening in the kitchen, I decided to make these babies in the oven. They were absolute perfection I tell you.

Soft on the inside and crunchy on the outside, a perfect balance of all things to do with fries. These steak fries are relatively simple and here is how you can be eating your own today!

Oven Steak Fries

4-5 medium size russet potatoes, peeled and cut 1/4 inch thick

4 TB of olive oil

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:

1) Peel the potatoes and cut to 1/4 thick fries

2) Place the potatoes into a bowl and fill with hot tap water. Let the potatoes soak for approximately 5-10 minutes

2) Meanwhile, heat oven to 450 degrees F

2) Spray a non stick thick baking pan with olive oil spray

3) After the potatoes have soaked, pat them dry and place them on the baking tray in a single layer

4) Drizzle the olive oil over the potatoes and sprinkle them with salt and pepper

5) Using your hands toss the potatoes to ensure they are all coated evenly

6) Place the baking pan in the center rack in the oven. Bake on one side for about 20 minutes

7) Using tongues or flat metal spatula, turn the potatoes over and bake them an additional 15-20 minutes

8) Potatoes should be brownish on both sides. You can also check to see if they are done by inserting a knife. If the knife goes in easily, the fries are done

9) Take the fries out and serve with your favorite main dish, or if you are like me, this would be the main dish 🙂

Recipe: Spinach, Tomato, Onion & Feta Frittata – *Healthy*

We decided to eat a bit healthier (well, lets not count all those desserts I have been making and engorging). Found this awesome recipe via FlipBoard from Women’s Health Magazine. Only thing is that I didn’t have any mushrooms so I used red onions instead.  Served this with some fresh multigrain bread I purchased from Costco…..it was a match made in health heaven.

Spinach, Tomato, Onion & Feta Frittata – serves 2

4 Egg Whites
2 Whole Eggs
1 cup babys spinach leaves
1/4 small red onion, chopped
6-7 Cherry Tomatoes, sliced
Handful of cilantro, chopped
Feta cheese, crumbled, and add as desired
Salt and Pepper, to Taste

Directions:
1) In a bowl, whisk the egg whites and whole eggs until blended well
2) Add the spinach, onion, tomatoes and cilantro
3) Head an omelette pan on medium high (I personally just got a Calphalon, and its beautiful!)
4) Add a tablespoon or so of olive oil
5) When oil is heated pour the frittata mix into the pan and top with feta cheese
6) Cook until the eggs have been cooking for a few minutes
7) Cover the pan and turn the heat to medium-low
8) Cook for another 5-7 minutes until the eggs are completely cooked
9) Place on a plate and cut into slices
10) Serve with toast, croissants, ot whatever suits your fancy

Recipe adapted from: http://www.womenshealthmag.com/weight-loss/abs-diet-plan 

Volcano Cookie – Courtesy of Cookies and Cups

Love BJ’s Pazooki ? Well forget that as this is the real deal right here! And the best part…so flippin easy!

Whenever it comes to something hot served with ice cream, my tastebuds start to tingle and I already feel my butt expanding. But its ooooohhhh so worth it.

Cookies and Cups did it again with their creation of the Volcano Cookie. I didn’t have any muffin top pans but I did have individual tart pans so I baked it in those and it turned out fantastic….fantastic enough for my recluse, unsocial brother to call me the next day and rave about it (it’s not his style  to compliment). I also drizzled the top with double chocolate Hershey’s syrup and served it with Dreyer’s Churned Vanilla Bean ice cream (yes its 1/3 less in fat, not that it mattered at this point).

Here is the link to the recipe:

http://cookiesandcups.com/volcano-cookies/

White Chocolate Butter Bars Recipe – Courtesy of Cookies and Cups

Shelly of Cookies and Cups is a genius….sheer genius. Her passion for food is so evident on her blog. Her site is definitely on my Google Reader and her recipes are starred many times.

So basically once you see the words white chocolate and butter and bars in the same sentence, you know its time to turn that oven on! I was so desperate to make this recipe that I made my husband do a night run to the store so I can get working on this STAT.

To sum it up:

Effort: Easy Peasy

Taste: Moist, Cheesy, and Rich

Feedback From Co-Workers: “Can you email my wife the recipe?” (Yeah they loved em)

Here is the link to the blog and definitiely check out her other recipes:

http://cookiesandcups.com/white-chocolate-butter-bars/

Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Oaty, moist, with soft chewy raisins….what’s not to love about Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.

I found this amazing recipe under the Quaker Oats lid.  I had all the ingredients so thought I would try it out.  These cookies turn out do moist and extra oaty, just the way I like it. Oh and they were a hit at work. Definitely try it out!

Click on the following link to get the recipe:

http://www.quakeroats.com/cooking-and-recipes/content/recipes/recipe-detail.aspx?recipeid=474 .

What to Eat in Washington, DC

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Le Pain Quotidien

Ok so I am not a huge fan of breakfast. I’m a cereal bar and latte kinda girl. But this place changed my mind about the concept of breakfast. We ordered so much food and every bit of it was fantastic! The belgian waffles, the french toast, the assortments of omelettes, and their own hazelnut spread. Oh just talking about it is making my mouth water….you just have to eat here!

http://www.lepainquotidien.us/

Nando’s Peri Peri

So you might have noticed that this was also in my What to Eat in London, England link. But can you blame me. You can never go wrong with some Peri Peri Chicken. So my husband has been hearing about this place from me, my family, my friends, from people who have eaten there and his expectations were crazy high. When we arrived, the service was beyond amazing and the food was ON POINT! Oh and boy was my husband impressed. Needless to say, never bypass a Nandos….Never.

 

Crumbs Bake Shop

Great HUGE cupcakes at a great price. And what a selection. Definitely try this place just for the experience.

Cupcake Review: Crumbs Bake Shop, Washington DC

So Hubby, Son and I decided to do a day trip in DC. Boy oh Boy I love that city. We ended up walking the ENTIRE DAY. And that includes us walking to Union Station to try Crumbs Cupcake. Why? That’s a stupid question….because WE LOVE CUPCAKES!

Have to say that this place has HUGE cupcakes that were reasonably priced and a great variety. They had some for kids, some with cheesecake inside, some with ganache inside, and some really interesting flavors.

I actually love their vanilla cake with choc icing. Its quite moist and really nice. I would definitely hit this up again.

http://www.crumbs.com/

Cupcake Review: Celebrity Cupcakes, Rice Village, Houston TX

Oh where oh where do I start. Well lets just put it this way…it takes me five minutes to walk from my building to the parking garage, 2 minutes to exit (if it isn’t rush hour), and about a 10 minute drive. BUT ITS SO DAMN WORTH IT!

Their chocolate cupcake is outta this world! I knew when I took my first bite there was something so European about it. And boy was I right. Their description on their website is as follows:

“moist dark cake with belgian ganache frosting rolled in french chocolate”

You are not lying about that!

Oh and check this…. my friend needed a small order of carrot mini cupcakes on the weekend. She called them midweek and they told her they would only have it the day before she needed them as that was the scheduled day for those cupcakes. She asked if she could pick it up the day she wanted and they told her that they only sell the cupcakes they make each morning. They cannot sell one day old cupcakes. That means guaranteed freshness everytime!

http://celebritycupcakes.com/