Simply sweet

Short but Sweet, quick and easy treats.

Today I wanted to share two of my favorite easy to make desserts. I'm not much of a baker so when it comes to making dessert I like to keep it as simple as possible. These wonderfully simple spreads are a great appetizer to take to parties as well as to have for dessert or a sweet treat any time.

 The first recipe I will be sharing is one I made for a project I was working on for a program called leadership nugget. Every year my work sends 25 people through Leadership Nugget to grow as a leader in the company as well as to work on projects. My Final Project was called "Cheese specialist favorites" which was a project where I built a catalog of recipes all built around cheese. This being said I set off on my adventure of creating and remaking recipes that highlighted cheese. I had to bring a full set of recipes from appetizers to desserts. It was easy coming up with all the savory, but how to make a cheese recipe that is sweet? The answer came in a small tub labeled Mascarpone.
  In simple terms it is similar to cream cheese and is most used for making tiramisu.

 *A friendly warning, This dip was nicknamed Cheese crack when I tested it among my classmates

Angel's Heavenly Fruit Dip:

Ingredients:

• 8 ounces Mascarpone ( I used Vermont butter and cheese co. mascarpone) 
• 7 ounces Marshmallow fluff 
• 1/2-1 teaspoons ground cinnamon ( use more or less depending on your taste)

1.) In a mixing bowl combine mascarpone and marshmallow fluff, whisk until smooth.

Add cinnamon until well blended.

 

This pairs great with fresh fruit, ginger snaps, pretzels and of course a glass of bubbly.

I also made dessert cups with a chocolate mousse in the bottom of a chocolate shell, then layered the fruit dip and topped it with fresh berries and chocolate caviar. 

Alright, now onto the Second recipe. This Idea came from my want to trick my eldest sister into eating goat cheese. My eldest sister is one of the pickiest eaters I know, so to introduce her to goat cheese I decided to sweeten it up a bit. 

 Honey Vanilla Goat cheese spread:

 Ingredients:

• 5 ounces plain Chevre
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon vanilla

1.) Let chevre come to room temperature to make mixing easier.

In a mixing bowl add honey and vanilla, mix well.

 

2.) Serve immediately or form into a log and wrap in plastic wrap, refrigerate over night.

 If you want to add a little something extra, try adding mini semi-sweet chocolate chips mixed in or on top.

 Serve this with everything from flat fortune cookies, graham crackers, apple slices or what ever your heart desires. Everyone at the party I served this to loved it including my sister, she is now an avid goat cheese lover. So try this with any goat cheese skeptics in your life who you'd like to convert. 

  Thanks for reading and stay tuned for more fun recipes... that will probably include cheese. 

  ~Angel

Mac n' cheese if you please

                               Baked Mac 'n cheese

Mac 'n cheese is not only a classic dish but also one of my absolute favorite things to make and eat. This delicious dish has endless possibilities as far as flavor is concerned. As a cheese monger I have access to hundreds of cheeses and the opportunity to hear what people are making. The usual 3-4 cheese macs are what I get to play with and help people create. Everything from the more complex including ingredients like prosciutto, pancetta, lamb, etc. As well as simple 1-2 cheese combos with the usual suspects like cheddar and gruyere. How ever, I decided to challenge myself to making a healthier mac n' cheese that didn't sacrifice any flavor. 

  The first place to start was finding a great cheese that would offer a lot of flavor and also not be completely terrible for you. I decided upon an Irish cheddar called "Oscar Wilde". Irish cheddar's tend to be sharp, nutty and a bit tangy in flavor with a well rounded amount of salt to them. If you can't find Oscar Wilde cheddar a more commonly found irish cheddar is Kerrygold Dubliner or Vintage Dubliner. 

 Now, On to the sauce! How to create a rich creamy sauce that wont add to your waist line?

  It starts with a basic sauce I learned how to make growing up called a Béchamel. Truly a simple sauce to make, it contains a basic 3 ingredients: Milk, butter and flour. To create a cheese sauce from this is turns into what is known as a Mornay sauce with the simple change of adding the cheese. Your normal mac n cheese typically calls for heavy cream to give that rich creamy flavor and texture. Mornay sauce does a great job of supplying both those but with the option of using something healthier than heavy cream. In my recipe I used low fat milk and whole wheat flour to help the healthy.

 Lastly I wanted to do a bit healthier noodle and bread crumb topping to round out my all around healthier version. I found a veggie based pasta at the store to replace the normal elbow noodles. To top it all off I found a whole wheat panko bread crumb that I mixed with a bit of cheese to help get that crispy crust.

 I will put it out there that I am in no way saying this is so healthy that you can eat this every day, though it is a great alternative to other recipes. This also is not the healthiest one out there, but I am a foodie and sacrificing all flavor is out of the question just to kick those few extra calories out of a recipe. This little note is just to cover me from angry comments ;) 

Now for the recipe!

Baked Mac N Cheese with a healthy twist:

Ingredients: 

• 12oz Vegetable Farfalle (or other shaped Veggie pasta)
• 1 cup low fat milk
• 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour (regular flour also works)
• pepper and salt to taste
• 10oz shredded cheese ( I used Oscar Wilde cheddar)

Topping:

• 3/4 cup whole wheat panko bread crumb
• 1/4 cup shredded parmesan (I used Parmigiano-Reggiano freshly shredded)
• 2 tablespoons cheddar ( I had a bit left over from making the sauce)

~Preheat oven to 375 degrees

- Bring water to a boil and cook pasta for about 2 minutes less than the instructions on the box. You want a par-cooked pasta, the pasta will finish cooking in the oven. Drain pasta once done, toss with a teaspoon of olive oil to keep it from sticking. Place in large mixing bowl, set aside.

- Warm milk over low heat in a small sauce pan until it is just over room temperature, set aside. Melt the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium-low heat, then slowly whisk in the flour until blended. Heat the roux until it turns into a paste like consistency and slightly browns. 

-Slowly add in the milk until blended. Cook over medium heat continuously stirring.

Once the sauce has thickened to where it coats a spoon and you can draw a finger across the back of the spoon and leave a clear line.  Add salt and pepper, stir well.

Remove from the heat. Add cheese a handful at a time stirring constantly and incorporating each handful well. Stir until completely melted.  

-In a separate small mixing bowl combine the breadcrumbs and cheese to create the topping. 

-Pour sauce into mixing bowl with pasta. Stir until all the pasta has been coated with the sauce. If Available, scoop mixture into 5 medium ramekins that have been lightly greased.

If not use an 8x8 glass baking dish, also lightly greased. Sprinkle a light layer of the breadcrumb mixture over the top. Place ramekins on a baking sheet, bake for approximately 20-25 minutes or until topping is crispy and sauce is bubbling. 

   

I hope you try and enjoy my mac n cheese recipe. I encourage you to experiment by trying new cheeses and adding some extra flavor. Try adding a bit of paprika for a smokey and slightly spicy kick, or some dried parsley for a little extra something.

  Until next time, cook, experiment and enjoy great food.

  Cheers,

 Angel

Once you go Black Olive Tapenade you don't go back

         Black Olive Tapenade on a fresh Baguette with Chevre  

 In my experience even the biggest foodie has a few things they don't care for. With that being said I want to share a recipe I created to work around a few ingredients I don't care for. 

   When shopping in the grocery store you normally only see two kinds of Tapenades; Chopped green olive Tapenade and Kalamata Olive tapenade. This is a problem for me considering the only olives I like are Black olives or Black Cerignolas (A large black olive from Italy). Problem number two, 90%-100% of Tapenades contain Capers in which I also dislike. This left me with no choice but to create my own!

 Step one was to figure out how to mimic the flavor profile of your every day Tapenade and make it to be something I could enjoy and share with friends, family and guests. In general Tapenades are made of two major components; Savory and salty. Green olives have meaty and rich flavor as well as a salty brine, Capers add the bulk of that salty component as well as a slight peppery taste. Black olives still do a great job of bringing a similar flavor to the table as Green olives, step one check. The easy part was taken care of... now how to replace the Capers?. The Solution was a small cocktail pickle called a Dill Cornichon. This Fun little pickle also goes by the name Gherkin(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gherkin). I had my base flavors down which meant it was time to start the experimenting. To get a recipe that I was happy with it only took about two times of messing with amounts to get it to taste just how I wanted it to.

* Olive bars are your friend when you only need a few things *

   Black Olive Tapenade:

Ingredients:

• 1 4.25oz can of Chopped black olives
• 3-4 Medium to Large Dill Cornichons
• 2 large Pitted green olives (I used seasoned ones from an olive bar) 
• 4-6 Cloves of Roasted Garlic (I used Roasted and Marinated from an olive bar)
• Pepper to taste
• 1 Teaspoon Onion powered
• 1 Tablespoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil

-Put Chopped Black olives into a small mixing bowl and set aside.

Chop the Cornichons and Green olives into like size pieces and mince the garlic.

- Combine the Cornichons, Green olives and Garlic into the bowl with the Black olives and mixed until well blended. Add the Pepper, onion powder and Olive oil into the bowl, Mix well.

*This recipe will Keep in the fridge for about a week.

 To complete this Appetizer I took a fresh French Baguette and sliced it to about half inch thick pieces.

Then spread a layer of Chevre (I used Laura Chenel ). If you are not a fan of Goat cheese you can also use a higher end Cream cheese. Also this may be the Cheese Monger in me but please do not use Philadelphia cream cheese if you go that route, the flavor and texture is all wrong.

This Wonderful Combo of Creamy and Tangy Chevre with salty Tapenade pairs wonderfully with a lighter red wine such as a Barbera or an Oaky Chardonnay.  If you are more of a beer drinker like myself, I paired this with a Sommer Brau. A light wheat style beer with just a hint of hops.

I Hope you Enjoy this recipe and if you have any questions I would love to hear from you.

As always Thank you,

Angel 

What I'm all about

A Bit about me and what my Blog is all about.

Everyone Who knows me knows I am in love with food. I have had a passion for food and cooking since I was very young. Growing up I watched more FoodNetwork than cartoons.

 My Passion for cooking grew as I learned to cook from my parents and by watching cooking shows. In my early teens I fell in love with the science behind baking; But soon turned to cooking. I took several cooking classes and got to pick out my first chef's knife for my 15th birthday. I made a hobby out of reading cook books and attempting my favorite recipes in my spare time. I have always been lucky in my parents support of my passion for food and their wonderful cooking to learn from.

 At the Age of 16 I started working at Nugget Market which is a locally own Grocery store chain, it has been called the Disneyland of grocery stores before. Growing up in a small town I had never been exposed to many gourmand cooking items.

 I now work as a Cheese monger in the Specialty cheese Department. Having the opportunity to work with the executive chef of the company to create recipes for my work, which was an amazing experience.  Needless to say I have been spoiled by my work, Though when it comes to cooking at home I have a much tighter budget. Not always having the money to drop on unique and gourmand ingredients, I have learned to use what I have and improvise with what I don't. This Blog is all about my adventures in cooking on a budget and sometimes way over my budget. At times my recipes are a bit of everything left over in the fridge put into one dish; Other times I will have a bit extra to create some of this recipes I think up while I am at work.

I love trying new approaches to recipes, Weather that means trying to make them a bit healthier or just put my own spin on it.

I look forward to sharing my success and failures in my adventures of cooking and creating wonderful food.

Serenely,

Angel