Obnoxiously Rich Chocolate Cake

Every now and then I make something that is so naughty I just have to share. Today I made my own spin on the Black Magic Cake off allrecipes.com. I cut the recipe in half and then baked it in a pie pan. Once it completely cooled, I flipped it onto a platter and added my own frosting.

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

1 block cream cheese at room temp

3 T coco powder

1 1/2 c powdered sugar

1T lemon juice

3-4 T milk

1 tsp real vanilla extract

Mix all ingredients with a mixer on high for 3-4 minutes. Adjust the amount of milk according to the texture you want your frosting. 

Smear the frosting all over your cake, top with rasberries, and drizzle with melted dark choclate. Refrigerate and serve cold!

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Walnut Cookie Recipe

Ingredients:

3/4 C softened butter

3/4 C brown sugar

1/2 C white sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

1/4 C vegetable oil 

2 C flour

2 tsp corn starch

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

4 T coco powder

1 1/2 C chocolate chips

1/2 C chopped walnuts 

•Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

•Cream the butter and sugars. Next add your vanilla and egg and mix well. Then add in the vegetable oil. 

•Next you can either combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl, or do like I do and just put all the dry ingredients on top and then use your beaters to just stir it around before turning it on to mix it all in. 

•Mix well.

•Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts and using a large cookie scoop place the dough on a lined air-bake cookie sheet. 

•Bake the cookies for 12 minutes and allow them to cool before eating. 

With a large cookie scoop you will have around 15 cookies.

(I don't even buy parchment paper anymore- you can get reusable liners almost anywhere these days! I found mine on amazon for around $6 and with my prime account I didn't even pay shipping!)

BLT on Steroids

Just a little food post.

I love food. All things food. Yesterday my husband wanted a BLT for lunch, but I wanted more so I started with a little bacon from Kansas Premium Meats over in Belvue. 

I threw the bacon in the oven and threw some bread on the griddle to get perfectly crisp. 

A little Swiss cheese, bacon, lettuce, and tomatoe is always wonderful, but I decided to amp mine up by throwing some sauté'd shallots and mushrooms on top! 

You'll need a fork to eat this monster, but man is it worth it!

Easy Chicken and Avocado Burritos

I wasn't in much of a cooking mood again tonight so I threw together some easy chicken burritos.

1.25 lbs of organic chicken 

2 small avocados, sliced

1/2 can black beans, rinsed

1/2 can whole sweet corn

2 C shredded Monterey Jack cheese

2-3 T sliced chives 

5-6 burrito sized tortilla shells

Sour cream & salsa

After I cooked the chicken I sliced it up and then just threw a bit of each filling into a tortilla shell and then wrapped them up and put them on a 9x13 baking dish. I added a little more cheese and some chives to the top before baking at 350 for about 20 minutes. I stuffed mine pretty well and ended up with 5 burritos. Before we ate them we added sour cream and salsa! Simple and quick!

Fresh Veggies for Lunch

I recently began only eating vegetables I have purchased from the local market or grow myself. I haven't had the opportunity to explore growing all year in a green house so right now I am limited to what they have stocked at the Eastside Market in Manhattan.

I threw together a mess of vegetables last week inspired by a spread in my Better Homes and Gardens magazine that consisted of whole carrots, asparagus, pearl onions, oversized mushrooms, sliced garlic, parsley, & rosemary. I started with extra-virgin olive oil and put the carrots in while I prepped the rest of the vegetables. Then I tossed it all in and let it cook for a few minutes. Last week I topped it with salt, pepper, and a bunch of freshly grated Parmesan. What a rare treat that was because I'm used to eating whatever toddler food is left on the kids' plates after lunch is finished. Waste not, want not.

This week I used the same veggies except I subbed shallots for the pearl onions. Then at the end I put a generous amount of honey and a bit of soy sauce right at the end and shook it up to coat then placed the pan to the side for a few minutes while tended to a rather foul smelling diaper. Mommy-duties call...

I am obsessed with this particular mix of vegetables and today's version was so delicious! 

Variegated Chunky Yarn

My sister and I were talking about yarn yesterday. She bought a fun, variegated, chunky yarn to make a scarf for a friend. She has tried a few knitting patterns and cant seem to love any of them. I had this problem a few weeks ago when I wanted to knit a scarf with the yarn shown above. I had invested about $80 in this yarn and I wanted the scarf to look amazing. I tried knitting several different stitches, but it seemed like the stitches were so small that they took away from the beauty of the different colors. 

Finally I pulled out a crochet hook and just crocheted it length wise in a half-double-crochet (HDC or hdc). I was amazed it worked and it is lovely. I am trying to convince my sister to get a crochet hook and start crocheting again. See, back in high school we both used to crochet, but she was always so much better at it. She had a very even, consistent hand whereas mine was literally a mess. Ah, how the tables have turned. After a few years of practice, I mastered crocheting even and beautifully. Now to convince her to get back to it with her naturally beautiful crocheting skills...

Creamy Ranch Pasta Recipe

I apologize for my absence, but I'm back now! Classes starting threw my schedule off. I feel pulled in a million directions... good thing God can handle it!

Anyways, recipe-

Creamy Ranch Pasta Recipe-

Ingredients:
1 8oz package Cream Cheese
1 1oz Packet of Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
1/3C Sugar
2C Small Shell Pasta Noodles
1C Frozen Peas
Bacon Bits
Italian Style Bread Crumbs
Fresh Parmesan Cheese

Method:
Using a hand mixer, blend together the Cream Cheese and Ranch Seasoning Mix until smooth then add sugar, blend well. I added a few tablespoons of milk to make mine a touch softer. Cook your noodles in a medium pot of boiling water until they are your desired texture. Place frozen peas in your strainer and pour the pasta noodles and water over the peas (this is how I thaw mine). Rinse with cold water until cool. Stir your noodles into the cream cheese mixture. Grate Parmesan Cheese over the pasta and stir in. Grate a little extra for the top. Spread some Bacon Bits over the top and follow with your bread crumbs. Refrigerate or serve immediately. Serve cold. Approximately 10 servings.