Because I'm Selfless

I have a question that is plaguing me when it comes to my cookies, so I need to do one more variation before I rest. Since I want the truest answer, I'm going to use bar chocolate, not chips. I dropped by the International Wine Center because I've heard they have some delicious chocolate. Well, they better because boy howdy is it pricey. It was definitely the most expensive chocolate I've ever purchased. And the costliest bar isn't even close to being enough for a batch of cookies.

But I wanted to try a couple to compare flavors because I'm selfless and want to provide the most accurate blog ever. It's a sacrifice I must make as a chef. To take the road of...chocolate. No need to thank me, I can feel your gratitude radiating through my computer.

Let's begin this experiment, shall we?

(Oh, and if you have Mumford & Sons, please turn on their music while you read. That's my listening music today.)

(Um, the above comment about being a chef and having the most accurate blog? Please cross those off the list. I'm neither a chef nor have the time to make 100% certain that I'm 100% accurate. Plus, I like to make things up. Shhh. Don't tell.)

(One more thing, the chocolate is not the plaguing question. I'm not going to delve into that until I run my trial.)



This was the most expensive chocolate. I had to sell a kidney. Okay, I didn't sell a kidney. But this was the moment in the store where I realized I should really set a cooking budget each month. And it wasn't obscenely expensive, it was just pricey for the amount of chocolate you get for the moolah.


It was my least favorite. I wouldn't buy it again. Sorry van Gogh. (Doesn't it look like van Gogh on the packaging? And I typed van Gosh twice before getting it right. True story.)


Second most expensive per ounce. I love the packaging because of the wax seal and there's a love poem inside!


Isn't this the cutest, loveliest chocolate ever??!!


This bar is what I'll use when I bake my cookies.


I liked this one the best. I still won't be buying it routinely. I'm not willing to pay this much when I've been happy with my Wal-Mart chocolate bar. I was happy that the cheapest one came out victorious. When I try higher quality things I get nervous. I worry that I'm going to fall in love with something that I cannot have somewhat regularly or that I will truly need to sell a kidney to have it in my life. I like my kidneys.


Here's what I've noticed about higher quality chocolate: It falls apart into layers. Because it's less waxy? Because it's a truer product? Because of the type of production? Because fate says so? I have no idea why, but it does.

Don't you feel like you learned so much from this investigative reporting? No? You don't? Well, then you should probably conduct your own research. It's imperative actually. Go on. Buy your chocolate. It's all in the name of science.

Shiny and New

I'm not sure if you've noticed, but I love to bake. What? You have noticed? Well, then it won't come as a surprise that I love to buy cooking supplies. In fact, I'd much rather shop for cooking supplies than for clothes. Rest assured, I don't shop mindlessly or aimlessly for kitchen supplies. My sense of financial responsibility kicks in....or maybe it's the limited kitchen space...No, no, I'm certain it's financial responsibility.

Anyway, every so often I let myself get something I've been drooling over. Today was that day. While my heart longs for a Kitchenaid Mixer, I cannot justify such a purchase. Yet. I would use it routinely, but man are they expensive!

My latest item of interest was rectangle measuring spoons. I petted them at Macy's a couple months ago. They're from Martha Stewart's line. Anyway, I told myself that I needed to wait that day. Today, with a little extra cash, I raced straight away to Macy's. Okay, I ran some errands, had some lunch, and then went to Macy's.

I was giddy.
I was excited.
I was nervous that I would buy waaaaaay more than the measuring spoons.

I can't help it. My heart goes pitter patter when I'm in kitchen supplies. So here is my confession: I walked out with more than the measuring spoons. I bought a stainless steel measuring cup set too. Nevermind that this makes my third set of measuring spoons and measuring cups. They each are different and have their own purpose. And let's just be honest: there are days when I cook a lot and I don't want to wash them and I certainly can't wait for a half-full dishwasher to run.

But this rectangle set of spoons will fit where my others will not and they're beautiful. I love them and I won't apologize for allowing them to enter my life. In fact, I'll dance and sing in their honor.



Hello, my pretties. I'll love you forever.

Donut Muffins

The Pioneer Woman has an additional site called Tasty Kitchen. A couple weeks ago, she linked to a recipe on that site called Muffins That Taste Like Donuts. Aside from sounding delicious, the recipe reminded me of my first baking experience in Home Ec. Do they still offer Home Ec classes? I sure hope so. Mrs. Steinhoff taught me how to sew. She told me "You can always add time, but you can never take time away" which is an important concept when it comes to cooking. And I'm sure there are various tidbits running around in my head from the three classes I took with her. Her class was where I learned that when a baby is born, there's a step that comes after the baby comes out. Since this is a cooking blog, I'll spare you, but let me tell you...whew, that Family class was valuable! Are you grossed out now? Sorry. The point I'm trying to make is that I hope that schools are not skipping home economics classes because there really is a lot of value in such courses. Now, back to the reason you're here: food.

The muffins, which I will now refer to as Donut Muffins because I don't want to type out Muffins That Taste Like Donuts anymore (except for that one last time), were delicious. I don't know that they really tasted like donuts, but they're good. I'm not really into donuts, so I wasn't bothered by that fact. Really, it probably made them more delicious to me. I only dipped the tops in cinnamon sugar, so maybe if I had dipped the entire thing like the recipe shows they would have tasted more like that? I don't know. Do your own thing. If you want the entire thing dipped, go for it. Since I was channeling the nostalgia of my youth and home ec class, I just dipped the top. Well, that and I didn't really pay attention to the fact that they were completely covered until later. But I'm still happy with my decision to only cover the top in cinnamon sugar.



1 3/4 cup Flour
1 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1/3 cup Oil
3/4 cup White Sugar
1 whole Egg
3/4 cup Milk

FOR THE TOPPING:
1/4 cup Butter
1/3 cup White Sugar
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon.

Combine oil, sugar, egg and milk. Add dry ingredients and stir only to combine.



Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a bowl. Combine the white sugar with the cinnamon in another bowl.


The muffins have a distinctive nutmeg taste. I love nutmeg, so this makes me happy. If you're not nutmeg's #1 fan, you'll want to use a bit less.

Shake muffins out while still hot. Dip muffins in butter, then into the sugar/cinnamon mix. Let cool.

My Sous Chefs

I love these boys. I've known them since they were almost 3 months old. They're now 6 1/2 years old. I love them, I love them, I love them. They, along with their brother and my nephew, are my most favorite boys of all time. I spent Saturday evening with them and we made cookies. From a package. Let's face it: their attention span would not allow for homemade cookies. As it was, I was left to finish up the project. But that's okay because they're still my favorite sous chefs.

Peach Muffins

The Mudhouse has peach granola muffins that I love. I mean, I would give up my first born for those muffins. Okay, not my first born, but if I had a beloved pet it would totally get the boot for those muffins. My lovely friend Gillian came over on Monday to have an Anne of Green Gables day. We watched AOGG, cross-stitched (crochet for Gill), drank Starbucks, and ate peach muffins that she had made. Since I had extra peaches, I wanted to try to find a peach muffin recipe that I can make so that my future children and pets are not in danger of being given the boot. Gillian doesn't use recipes, much like my mother, so I looked online. I found one at cooks.com that seemed pretty simple and did not require ingredients I didn't already have on hand. They were pretty good. Not Mudhouse good, but definitely a decent home recipe. Here's their recipe:



1 (16 oz.) can cling peach slices (I did not use sinful canned peaches. I used approximately two cups of cut up fresh peaches.)
2 c. whole wheat flour
3/4 c. sugar
3 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 c. quick oats
2 eggs, well beaten
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 c. milk
1/4 c. cooking oil


Fresh peaches. Lovely.

Drain peaches (if you're a heathen using canned), cut in small pieces and set aside. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add oats and peaches, stir to coat peaches. Combine eggs, milk and oil. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Fill greased muffin tins about 3/4 full.


I didn't listen to the 3/4 part. I'm a rebel.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 35 minutes. Cool in pans 5 minutes. Serve warm.

Peach Crisp

I could write poetry about peach crisp. They would all be love sonnets. My mom makes a killer peach crisp. It makes me love her even more. Of course, my mom is not the type of person to use recipes, so a couple years ago when I begged her for her peach crisp recipe she was a little uncertain of what to tell me. So I did only what I could do in such a position, I threatened to share with the world the picture I have of her wearing a zebra tail. Oh, how quickly she discovered the recipe then. Okay, I made all that up. Though I do have a picture of her wearing a zebra tail when we moved me to Kansas and I found it packed in my stuff. My mom indulges my silliness, which also makes me love her more. Now, I should tell you, I ONLY make peach crisp in the summer with perfectly fresh peaches. I have never attempted it with canned peaches and doubtfully ever will. Canned peaches are simply a sin.

Peach Crisp, Mom Style

1 cup flour
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup sugar
1 stick butter
Peaches

Peel and slice peaches to cover a 9x13 pan. Tip from my mom: cut the peaches over the dish so the juice drips into the pan. In a bowl, mix together the ingredients, making a coarse meal. Sprinkle the topping over the peaches. Bake at 350 for 35-45 minutes. In theory you're supposed to spray the pan, but I always forget that part; however, I've never had a problem in my glass dish. The peach crisp is good when it comes out of the oven, but if you can hold out, wait until the next day. The flavors.....oh, heavens. I can't even talk about how good it is the next day. Now, you won't be able to wait for the next day and that's okay. Just make sure you save some so you can enjoy it when the flavors have had time to settle.




My mama. I love her.

Slow Cooker Roast Beef

For the majority of Sundays while I lived at home, my mom would make a roast. I've made a couple roasts on my own, but usually in the slow cooker. It's easy, little fuss, and you can go about your life. Roast is a wonderful food because it can be versatile depending on seasoning. Plus, it's delicious hot or cold in a sandwich the next day.

I have meat issues. I don't like to handle it too much, I don't like to associate the raw meat with my final product, and I have issues. So, being able to throw the meat in the slow cooker is perfect for me. Seriously. I really can't think about it or meat grosses me out.

I bought a more expensive roast because I wanted a higher quality cut with less fat. Plus, I didn't realize that I was being ripped off until I talked prices with my mom. But it was a really fantastic cut of meat and the taste combined with the low fat to meat ratio made it worth it. (Should I have said low meat to fat ratio? I don't know how to word that using a ratio scenario. Whatever, there was waaay more meat than fat. The end.)

I'm not going to provide a recipe because I simply want to make you aware of using a slow cooker for a roast. I put my roast in with a cup of water (the water should rise up to cover 3/4 of the roast) and I seasoned the heck out of it with a couple spices I had bought. You can use rubs, Mrs. Dash, salt and pepper, yada yada yada. Season with whatever flavor makes your mouth happy. Cook on high for approximately 4 hours. It may take a little longer depending on the size of your roast. Make sure you check it because you don't want to overcook your roast. Dry roast is not good. You shouldn't need gravy to moisten or flavor a good roast. If you're cooking a more straightforward roast, throw in some carrots and potatoes. And now you have successfully made a delicious dish with minimal effort. You're welcome.

P.S. I think I have used the word roast in this blog more than I've said it in my 29 years of existence. Roast.