What do you use to make your muffins moist and memorable? The kind that are almost too good to share, but when you do, everyone wants you to share the recipe too? I stumbled upon Kathy’s blog, The Ramblings of a Student Wife and came across her Chocolate and Pear Muffins. After reading about how she made them, I knew you all would want me to share the recipe!

I thought it was so neato, for lack of a better word :), that Kathy pureed pears for her muffin batter! And these weren’t just any pears, they were 3 pears that were bound to go bad if she didn’t save them from the dumpster! I can’t imagine a tastier way to rescue them. Kathy adapted a recipe that originally called for buttermilk but she didn’t have to use it because the pears provided just the right amount of moisture.

So if you’ve run out of apple sauce or buttermilk, try using pureed pears! You’ll also want to make these muffins. Kathy placed a dark chocolate square right in the middle of each one, so it tastes like you’re biting into a chocolate covered pear… or a pear muffin covered chocolate in this case ;).

Now that it’s warming up, we’re probably not doing much baking (unless you have an incurable addiction to baked goods, like myself ;). That doesn’t mean we have to sacrifice sweets, we might just have to think out of the box, the recipe box. How about opening up the veggie drawer for ideas? But remember, zucchini bread and carrot cake require cranking up the oven!

I shouldn’t have brought up carrot cake, in that case. But there’s hope! Avi’s version of Carrot Halwa is the answer, he even says it reminds him of a ‘creamy carrot cake’. That description comes from the naturally sweet carrots and ricotta cheese. The flavor of the cardamom powder might also remind you of the warm spices in a carrot cake.

Avi’s Carrot Halwa comes together quickly over the stove, in under half an hour! Because there isn’t any frosting involved, this is also a dessert that travels well. Speaking of traveling, be sure to check out Avi’s blog Aambrosia to read about other tasty recipes that he tries out while documenting his travels in India.

Eat First, Diet Later — shouldn’t that be our motto and not just the name of Cy’s food blog ;). It’s certainly our mantra around the holidays, so much comfort food around who can say no? If you’re thinking that I’m talking about turkey and gravy, I’m actually thinking about a meal that’s more along the lines of a pasta dish.

That’s right, pasta! Though Cy made her Baked Sausage Pasta for a Christmas family gathering, this is certainly a meal that can easily be enjoyed year around. And, like with the holidays, you’ll also look forward to the leftovers. Cheesy and hearty, this is a meal that’ll make mouths water. Everyone will approve, I promise!

Like a casserole, this is a meal that involves baking a variety of tasty ingredients together, but it also reminds me of a dressed up version of baked ziti. Though Cy says you can serve this with a salad, and that would be a tasty side, if you don’t have time — don’t worry about it! The veggies are already in the Baked Sausage Pasta, it’s a complete meal :).

Remember the crock-pot? That oh-so familiar slow cooker gathering dust on your kitchen counter? It’s too big to hide away in the back of the pantry — and even though you still use it for making soups, you kind of wish you could find other tasty no-fuss slow-cooker recipes? Here’s one, it’s a recipe from Lauren of Bytes from Texas.

Crock Pot Ossobuco, it’s a little different from the original veal shank dish in that Lauren’s recipe calls for beef. But you can still count on it to fill your family up and fill your home with a savory aroma while it cooks for up to 8 hours on low. This is a meal you can literally prepare before going to bed; just cut up a few veggies like celery, carrots and onions, then grab a few ingredients from the pantry, and your one pot wonder meal is ready to simmer away while you snooze.

If your Memorial Day weekend was a busy one, you’ll be glad we featured this recipe today! Don’t worry, you won’t have to pick up fast food on the way home tomorrow — this meal makes itself, you can even prepare in the morning before work. Then, when the evening comes around, you’ll get to serve your family a hot, healthy and hearty meal without having to think about spending hours in the kitchen! :)

I like to cook at least one comfort food dish a week, there’s just something about it that doesn’t get old. Every once in awhile, I do feel as though I could possibly spice up a few of my favorite dishes. For instance, spaghetti and meatballs (I loove this stuff), how do I reinvent my go-to recipe? Reeni from Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice knows how to add spice to any dish, cultural dishes in particular. She grew up in an Italian-American family eating, you guessed it, Italian food! Yum! So I knew I could count on her to give us all a few useful tips and tricks on how to add some spice to our favorite Italian comfort foodie dishes :). She’s also included a few tasty recipes that we can try out this Memorial Day weekend.

Spicing up Traditional Italian-American Comfort Food

Spicing up comfort food with flavor is easy if you work a little magic in the kitchen. Knowing how to layer flavors using very basic ingredients to Italian cooking will have your food bursting with flavors and your family asking for seconds.

Garlic, yellow onion, and green bell pepper are my holy trinity. Garlic and yellow onion are the basis on which I build almost all my flavors on. Garlic has a very distinct taste, and its pungency depends on how you cook it. Crushing it will give you the strongest flavor, the finer you chop it the stronger the taste. For a sweeter, subtle flavor use whole cloves and remove before serving. Green pepper is a nice flavor addition for tomato sauces, pizzas, and calzone.

Use regular olive oil for sautéing and a good quality Extra-virgin olive oil to ‘finish’ a dish. A drizzle over pasta, fish, soups, and vegetables can add an extra layer of flavor and feeling of luxury to any dish. It’s worth it to spend the money to get good quality. It will last quite a while if you’re just using a drizzle here and there.

I use hot, red pepper like Peperoncino, fresh or dried, frequently when I want a spicy heat. A little goes a long way in sauces, soups and in vegetable dishes. The popular standby of Red pepper flakes is a given on pizza and pastas, and a good way to control individual heat preferences.

Fresh cheese like Parmigiana-Reggiano and Pecorino Romano are a necessity on my table. Fresh grated cheese will impart a salty, rich flavor to sauces, meatballs, vegetables, soups, and baked dishes like ziti and lasagna. Romano has a sharper taste than Parmesan and they can be used interchangeably. Grate as needed and have plenty on hand for serving.

Dried herbs like basil, thyme, oregano, rosemary, sage, bay leaves, and marjoram are staples in my kitchen. I depend on generous amounts to flavor my sauces and soups. The exception here is fresh parsley, which I use like dried, adding it at the beginning of the cooking process. A sprinkle of rough-chopped fresh herbs is a lovely finish to any dish; either over the top or mixed right into sauces or soups immediately before serving.

Citrus is so often overlooked. Just a squeeze of lemon or lime can brighten up and bring to life flavors in pastas, soups and vegetables. If you feel like your food is missing something, often times a bit of lemon or lime can make a world of difference. Lemon is stronger than lime and slightly harsher. For a sweeter hit of acid chose lime.

My last tip is the most important one. Make sure to taste! Taste throughout the cooking process and season as needed to create the right amount of flavor.

I hope these tips will help turn your easily forgotten recipes into memorable ones. Dishes that will become a favorite you can turn to again and again. Here are two of my most popular recipes where you will see many of these flavor tips put to use.

Spaghetti and meatballs is an all-time favorite classic. There’s nothing that will bring you more joy then sitting down to a plate piled high with home-made spaghetti and meatballs on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Twirling the sauce laden spaghetti around your fork with the perfect piece of herb-infused meatball, tender, yet crispy on the outside, is the stuff memories are made on. And the true definition of what Italian-American comfort food is all about.

Spaghetti & Meatballs
(by Reeni)

Meatballs:
1 cup crust less white bread/Italian bread, preferably stale, diced
Whole Milk
1 and 1/2 pounds beef/pork/veal mixture or an 80-85% Ground Beef
2 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup Italian-seasoned bread crumbs
1/3 cup onion, diced small
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons fresh Parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning(I use a mix that has basil, oregano, thyme, marjoram and rosemary in it)
1 teaspoon dried Basil
1 teaspoon dried Oregano
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper
Vegetable or Canola Oil, if frying

1.Place the diced bread crumbs in a small bowl and add enough milk to soak them thoroughly.

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

3. In a large bowl add all of the ingredients except the vegetable oil including the bread crumbs
and milk. Use a fork or your hands to combine thoroughly without over mixing.

4. Use your hands to form 2-inch (golf ball) sized meatballs. Place on a baking sheet or large baking pan
and bake for 15 minutes. If you prefer to fry them heat about 1/4 inch Canola oil in a large,
deep, skillet over medium heat. Brown them on all sides in two or three batches being sure
not to overcrowd the pan. Drain on paper towels.

5. While the meatballs are baking/frying get your sauce started.

Sauce:
1 large yellow onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced in 1-inch strips
2 tablespoons Olive Oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 can tomato paste
2 - 28 oz. can Crushed Tomatoes 1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons dried Italian Seasonings

1 teaspoon dried sage
2 bay leaves
1/2 teaspoon salt (to start and more to taste)
¼ teaspoon black pepper (to start and more to taste)
1 teaspoon Sugar

1. In an extra-large stock pot sauté the onion and green pepper in Olive Oil until soft; add garlic and sauté for two or three more minutes.

2. Add tomato paste. Stir it into the onion mixture and let it heat through. Add tomatoes, water, and seasonings including bay leaves, salt, pepper and sugar.

3. Add the meatballs and simmer for at least 35-40 minutes or up to 2 hours, stirring occasionally and tasting to check the seasoning. Add salt/pepper and more dried herbs if needed. You can also add a little more water if sauce seems too thick.

4. Remove bay leaves before serving.

5. Serve over spaghetti cooked to al dente with crusty garlic bread. Sprinkle with fresh shredded Parmesan cheese.

This is a hearty and wholesome soup with its mix of cannellini beans, orzo, and spinach. The broth finds its flavor from a sauté of garlic, onion, carrot, and green pepper. Sage, thyme, and fresh parsley give it an herby flavor. The starch from the orzo makes it thick and gelatinous. Half & half is stirred in right before serving with a generous drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil to give the soup a luxurious, velvety feel. Garlic bread for dunking is a must.

Creamy Tuscan Bean Soup
(by Reeni)

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup diced onion
1/3 cup diced carrot
1/3 cup diced green pepper
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 can Cannelini Beans with juices
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 cup orzo, uncooked
3/4 cup chopped spinach, frozen or fresh
2 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped
2 teaspoons dried sage
2 teaspoons dried thyme
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
1 cup half and half
extra-virgin olive oil, for serving
fresh grated Parmesan, for serving

In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan heat the olive oil and sauté the onion, carrot,
green pepper, and garlic until softened on low-medium heat, about 5-7 minutes.

Add the beans, broth, orzo, spinach, parsley, sage, thyme, salt, and pepper.

Simmer for 25 minutes. Taste and re-season with salt and pepper if desired. Add half
and half. Bring back up to a simmer. Remove from heat and serve with a generous drizzle
of extra virgin olive oil and Parmesan.

Garlic bread

Use a crusty Italian bread, french bread or peasant bread.

Slather with butter, minced garlic, fresh chopped parsley, and fresh grated Parmesan.

Broil on a baking sheet on the middle rack of your oven for about 2 minutes, keeping a close eye on it the entire time.

With temperatures warming up, its time to dust off our favorite summer recipes! Memorial Day weekend is also upon us, that means its time for cook-outs and potlucks! So with all of these things going on, we really need to start planning our menus. You’ve bought everything for the barbecue, and the potato salad is ready to go, but what about dessert?

If the right sweet recipe for your warm weather cook-out hasn’t jumped out at you just yet, it will in a few minutes. So you might’ve tried a coconut cream pie last summer, but this year you want to serve up something a little different. How about Temperance’s version of Bedino Blanc?

Who? What?! Yes, I know it sounds like a name that belongs to a 1940s movie star, but this is a dessert… a dessert that will leave an impression for its stellar after-dinner performance, that is. You should see the disappearing act — that’s the scene where your guests inhale the white chocolatey coconut pound cake pudding dessert before your eyes! For more tips on how to serve this tasty summery treat, visit Temperance’s blog High on the Hog.

Once you’ve had more than your fair share of smoothies and baked goods, but still need to figure out a way to use the leftover papaya, where do you turn? How about to a candy recipe that’s 25 years old? Jayasree from Experiments in Kaila’s Kitchen tells us the story behind these sweet and tasty Jujups, also known as papaya candy.

Thanks to a suggestion from her Mother in Law, Jayasree decided she wanted to try out something a little different with her leftover papaya. After searching high and low for the recipe, they finally came across the golden piece of paper. How old is it? Jayasree says: “If I hold the sheet in my hand, it will turn into pieces”!

So if you’re looking for something new and old (and even borrowed — as in the recipe) think about making Jujups. In fact, with wedding season right around the corner (many weddings take place during the next few months!), I’d say it’d be a fun idea to serve guests Jujups instead of the candy covered almonds! :)

I have baked 60 cookies in less than a month’s time, slowly learned how to bake gluten-free, and though I don’t consider myself a professional in the least bit, I’ve been cooking and baking a variety of foods for a few years now… and yet I can’t seem to master the flour tortilla! I’ve been helping my grandma make these since I was in diapers, but making tortillas really requires that special touch. Rosa from Cooking with Rosie is a tortilla making expert! Her tortilla tutorial is perfect for beginners like myself because the photos are in-depth, she makes sure to capture all of the important parts so that you don’t have to worry about skipping a step :)!

Homemade Flour Tortillas
(adapted from allrecipes.com - click here for original recipe)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp lard or shortening
3/4 cups water

1. Mix flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl until well blended. Mix in lard or shortening with fingers until the flour resembles cornmeal. Make a well in the center.

2. Add water to the center. Using a fork, rotate it in small circles scraping the sides of the flour until a dough forms.

3. Continue mixing in the remainder of the flour with your hand(s).

4. Form into a ball.

5. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead for a few minutes till smooth and elastic.

6. Roll dough in a log, about 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter.

7. Cut into 8 or 10 golf-size pieces. Then roll the pieces to form a ball and flatten between the palms of your hands (not pictured). The dough does not need to be covered, but if you think you’ll be interrupted (eg. kids running around, phone ringing, etc), then cover dough with a bowl or a damp towel so it doesn’t dry out.

NOTE: At this point, heat an ungreased, large skillet or cast iron pan over medium heat.

8. Roll dough out on a lightly floured surface, starting from the center out and rotating the dough 90 degrees each time.

UPDATE: I forgot to mention that if the dough is a bit sticky, lightly rub flour onto the rolling pin and onto the sticky side(s) of the dough. The key is to lightly flour.

9. Roll dough as thin as possible for best results, about the width-size of a dime.

10. Cook tortilla for 10-20 seconds on one side, until bubbles start to form and the “doughy” look is gone. Flip the tortilla and cook the other side for 10-20 seconds as well. The tortilla will seem a bit rigid, but they will soften up after it rests (see next step).

11. Wrap the tortilla in a clean dishcloth and keep covered during the cooking process. Then store the tortillas (still wrapped in the dishcloth) in a plastic bag. Let stand at room temperature and they will become very pliable.

12. Repeat steps 7-11 for the remaining pieces of dough.

Makes 8-10 tortillas

I served these with grilled veggies and ground beef. My husband loved them and was surprised when I told him that I had made the tortillas himself. He really enjoyed them.

Have some fun with this recipe and come up with your own creations. Tortillas are such a simple flatbread that the possibilities are endless.

Saludos!

Rosa

You can also view this recipe on Stephanie’s blog, Lick My Spoon!

Savory, comforting, one dish wonder… — that’s how I would describe Stephanie’s Cornbread Casserole. Though we all have our own idea of how a casserole should or shouldn’t be, we can all agree on one thing: casseroles are as American as apple pie. Some might say they’re not as tasty, but Stephanie’s recipe will definitely change their mind.

Casseroles aren’t complete without cheese, so Stephanie added a cup of cheddar cheese to the filling in hers. But instead of taking center stage, the cheese complements the rest of the dish. Plenty of eggs, sausage, cumin, bell pepper and onion make the casserole a hearty one. Reminiscent of a pot pie, instead of having noodles, Stephanie’s Cornbread Casserole has a savory cornbread crust. I can even see this served for breakfast instead of a quiche.

So we’ve got a mouthwatering cornbread crust with a kick, made with buttermilk, corn and green chilies. Beneath that you’ll find plenty of flavorful ingredients that bring to mind the southwest. If this recipe looks like a winner, it’s because it is! Stephanie explains on her blog, Lick My Spoon, that she adapted this winning recipe and added her own delicious twist to it.

Nutella Ricotta Stuffed Pancakes with Home Fries is a fabulous breakfast thought up by Nithya of Hungry Desi. However, it is also the breakfast that can transform a night owl into a morning person, and it’s what I want to see on my plate in the morning! I guess that means I’ll be the one waking up extra early, since breakfast in bed doesn’t happen at my house ;).

But believe me, even if it’s also a rare occurrence where you live, one of two things (or both :) will happen when you make this meal. 1) There will be no one to serve breakfast in bed to anyway, because everyone will be awake when they hear about what’s for breakfast. 2) It’s almost a guarantee that the family will want to serve you breakfast in bed after they’ve tried it.

Nithya made the pancakes healthy by using whole wheat flour; part skim ricotta cheese and a few tablespoons of nutella add extra flavor. This recipe will come in handy on the days you crave a nice change from the traditional batch of buttermilk pancakes. While you prepare the pancakes on the grittle, throw the seasoned potatoes in the oven — you’ll have a home fries and pancakes in no time.