Almond Poppy Seed Bread Pudding

For our wedding we had two kinds of cake.  My husband picked out a spice cake while I picked out an almond poppy seed cake.  Unfortunately, I never got to have any of the almond poppy seed cake, so I wanted to try to make my own.  I found this recipe for almond poppy seed cupcakes and almond buttercream frosting.  When I was already in the process of making these cupcakes, I realized that I didn't have any paper baking cups for my muffin pan, but I figured I could just grease the muffin cups, and they would turn out fine.  Wrong conclusion.  The cupcakes were very tasty, but they came out in at least 3 or 4 pieces, if not more.  So they were no longer cupcakes, and I decided to make them into break pudding instead.  Here's what I did:

Ingredients for cupcakes

• 2.25 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 2 sticks butter, softened
• 1 cup sour cream
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Ingredients for bread pudding:

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 cups milk
• 2 eggs, whipped

Ingredients for frosting:

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 3.75 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 tablespoon almond extract
• 3 tablespoons milk

To make the cupcakes:  Preheat the oven 325 degrees.  Cream the sugar and the butter.  Add the sour cream, eggs, almond extract and dry ingredients.  Stir in the poppy seeds.  Spoon the smooth batter into lined cupcake pans.  Bake the cupcakes for 30 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Let the cupcakes cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then let them cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the bread pudding:  Crumble the cupcakes in a greased 9 X 12 baking dish.  Mix the cream, milk, and eggs together and pour over the crumbled cupcakes.  Let sit in the refrigerator overnight.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Let cool completely.

To make the frosting:  Mix the butter, powdered sugar, almond extract, and milk and beat them for several minutes until a smooth, creamy frosting forms.  Adjust the consistency by adding more milk or powdered sugar, as needed.  Once the bread pudding is completely cooled, spread the frosting on the top. 


Although I didn't get the cupcakes I wanted, this bread pudding was quite yummy!  I especially enjoyed the frosting.  I will probably make this again, even if I do the paper baking cups and am actually able to make the cupcakes as directed.  

Mother's Day Chocolate Pie

Edited on 10/11/16

For Mother's Day this year, I told my mom that I'd make her dinner, anything she wanted.  The first thing out of her mouth was "chocolate pie."  (It took her longer to decide what she wanted for dinner, but she finally said that she wanted chicken tikka masala.)  I inwardly groaned when she asked for chocolate pie, because I have been trying to make my famous Aunt Meredith's chocolate pie for the past few years, and it has NEVER come out right.  It's either been burned, lumpy, or soupy.  I once ruined one of my mom's pots by trying to make this pie.  I made this pie for Easter this year, and when I pulled the plastic wrap off it when we were ready to serve dessert, half the pie came off with the plastic wrap.  (I also made a strawberry pie, just in case, and thank goodness for my foresight!)  I swear, this recipe is cursed for me!  When my aunt makes it, the pie comes out perfect, Every. Single. Time.  I just don't understand!  So I'm passing along this recipe, even though it doesn't exactly meet criteria for being cooking "therapy."  However, once it's done, and (if it turns out right) it is simply HEAVENLY to eat! 

Ingredients:

• 2 baked 9 inch pie crusts
• 2 1/4 cups sugar
• 4.5 tablespoons cocoa powder (this should be unsweetened, 100% cocoa powder; not hot chocolate mix)
• 6 tablespoons flour
• pinch of salt
• 3 cups (2 12-oz cans) evaporated milk (not sweetened evaporated milk, just regular)
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 1 stick butter
• 1.5 teaspoons vanilla

Start heating water in a double boiler on medium heat.  Mix the evaporated milk, eggs, butter, vanilla, and sugar until the butter is melted.  Sift in the cocoa, flour, and salt into the double boiler.  Stir CONSTANTLY with a wire whisk, scraping the bottom of the pot, until it reaches the consistency of pudding, about 20 minutes.  Pour into the pie shells and let cool uncovered in fridge overnight.

This is about what it will look like when it is ready to go into the pie shell.















I cannot reiterate it enough--you MUST stir constantly, otherwise it will burn.  Also, you MUST use a double boiler, because it will burn if you don't (and as I have learned from experience, burned chocolate tastes terrible!).  I also highly recommend that you sift all the dry ingredients to help reduce lumping.  In addition, if you need to cover it, use aluminum foil rather than plastic wrap (remember what happened to me at Easter?).  I always have trouble with letting it cook long enough, so that it gets thick enough to set up properly.  My rule of thumb is that when I think it's ready (usually it's about the consistency of melted chocolate at this point), I let it cook for another 5 minutes so that it can reach that pudding consistency. 

I hope to goodness that you have more luck with this recipe than I have had!

Aunt Meredith's Chicken Spaghetti

 My Aunt Meredith shared this recipe, and oh my goodness...it is SO good!  I also love this recipe because it makes a ton of leftovers that we can eat throughout the week during those weeks we don't have time to cook.  So without further ado, here's what we did:

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken, cooked (I like to boil the chicken the day before and let it refrigerate overnight)
• 1 lb. thin spaghetti
• a couple tablespoons oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 bell pepper, chopped
• 2 cups celery, chopped
• 8-oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced (1 small package)
•  2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 cans Rotel, drained and rinsed
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 1 lb. Velveeta
• 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Cook the chicken earlier in the day or the day before so that it has time to cool.  Discard all the skin and bones and cut the chicken meat into bite size pieces.   Boil the spaghetti according to the package directions, drain, and set aside.  In a dutch oven, saute the onion, bell pepper, celery, mushrooms, and garlic in the oil on medium heat.  Add the cream of chicken soup and Rotel.  Cut up the Velveeta into pieces so that it will melt more quickly and add it to the onion mixture.  When the Velveeta has melted, add the chicken and mix well.  Then add the cooked spaghetti and mix thoroughly.  Pour the chicken mixture into a greased lasagna pan (or a deep 9 X 13 baking dish).  Sprinkle the shredded cheddar cheese on top.  Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and golden. 

We have added quite a bit more veggies than the original recipe called for, but we've kept the Velveeta the same, so if you think there is too much spaghetti and not enough Velveeta, go ahead and add a bit more!  We also talked about using real cheese instead of Velveeta (my husband, who is from Wisconsin, was horrified the first time I made this for him; apparently Velveeta isn't "real" cheese).  But this recipe is already pretty involved and requires a lot of pans and time, so we haven't gotten around to trying that yet. 

Mexican Chocolate Cookies

It's been a while since I posted a dessert, so now is the time!  I found these Mexican chocolate cookies on pinterest (let me tell you, if you're not on pinterest, you should be; I've found some great recipes there!).  You can find the original recipe here.  Here's what I did:

Ingredients:

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup white flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1.5 teaspoons ground coffee (I used decaf)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 cup chocolate chips

 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a Kitchenaide mixer combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar.  Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined.  Add the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, coffee, and spices and mix until the dry ingredients are fully incorporated.  Fold in the chocolate chips.  Drop the batter by the spoonful onto a baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes.  Let cool slightly before eating.

I wanted a bit of heat in these cookies, so I increased the amount of cayenne.  My husband thought it was kind of strange for a dessert to be spicy, so he didn't care for the increase.  If you are a bit wary of spicy cookies, drop the cayenne down to a pinch. 

How to Pick a Winning Recipe

Final are now over, and I (thankfully!) passed all my classes.  I have several recipes I'd like to share with you that I haven't had time to post since I've been studying, but I thought we could take a break from recipes to talk about how to pick a good recipe.  I was recently listening to The Splendid Table on NPR, and they were talking about what makes up a great recipe.  I thought this was especially appropriate because I get very frustrated when a recipe isn't clear, and since I like to cook to relax (hence the name "Cooking Therapy"), I think discussing the qualifications for a good recipe is necessary.  Here's what Lynne Rossetto Kasper says makes up a good recipe (which I stole from here):

• Does the recipe tell you what you can prepare ahead?
• Does it tell you how to store the food and for how long?
• Are the ingredients specific -- not "1 pound beef," but "1 pound well-marbled beef chuck"?
• Do the instructions tell you ...
• What kind of pot and utensils to use?
• The level of heat and/or the timing needed for each step?
• What the food should look like, sound like, and/or smell like?
• How to know if it's done?
• How to serve?

I must admit that many of the recipes I've been posting have not been this specific, so I'm going to try to be better about writing good recipes.  I think that knowing the size of pot to use, the level of heat and timing, and what the food should look like, sound like, and/or smell like are the most important for me.  Several of our old family recipes are pretty basic and don't include a lot detail since they were meant to be learned by demonstration rather than a written recipe.  So I'm trying to make those recipes especially a little clearer for future generations. 

If you see that one of my recipes isn't clear, please let me know!  I poorly written recipe is a stressful recipe!  And stress is not a good seasoning! 

Garlic Cheese Biscuits

 Do you like seafood?  I don't because of that fishy taste it always seems to have.  Do you like going to Red Lobster?  I do!  Because of their yummy cheese biscuits.  Now I have a recipe for garlic cheese biscuits, so I don't have to endure fish to have them!  Here's the original recipe, and here's what I did:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups white flour
• 2 teaspoons garlic powder, plus 1 teaspoon garlic powder for topping
• 2.5 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 stick butter, plus 3 tablespoons butter for topping
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1 cup buttermilk (or regular milk if you don’t have buttermilk, which I didn't)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, garlic powder, baking powder, and baking soda.  Cut in the butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs (I combine all this in my Kitchenaide mixer and let it do all the work).  Add the cheese.  Stir in the buttermilk until moistened.  Drop heaping tablespoonfuls about 1 inch apart onto a greased baking sheet.  Bake for 10 minutes.  While biscuits are baking, melt the 3 tablespoons of butter with the teaspoon of garlic powder.  Brush over the biscuits and bake for 4 minutes longer or until golden brown.

Slow Cooker Lasagna Soup

My friend Ami recommended this soup recipe.   It was very tasty, and we had a lot of leftovers for lunch.  Here's what we did (and here's where we got it):

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. Italian sausage, cut into bite size pieces
• 2 onions, diced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 1 6-oz. can tomato paste
• 1 28-oz. can diced tomatoes
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 cups chicken broth (about 2 cartons)
• 10 oz. curly pasta of your choice
• Ricotta and mozzarella cheeses for topping

In a large slow cooker, combine all the ingredients, except the pasta and cheeses.  Cook on low for 8-9 hours or on high for 4-6 hours.  In the last 30 minutes of cooking, add the pasta.  When ready to serve, spoon the soup into microwave safe bowls.  Dollop some ricotta and sprinkle some mozzarella on top of the soup.  Microwave for about 30 seconds, or until the cheese is melted.

Thank you, Ami, for this great slow cooker recipe.  I need more recipes for our crock pot, so if you have any, feel free to pass them on.

Chicken Tikka Masala

Do you like Indian food?  I L.O.V.E. Indian food, and I've had a very hard time finding good recipes.  I found this recipe for chicken tikka masala on pinterest, and it is as good as the tikka masala we get at our favorite Indian restaurant.  You can find the original recipe here.  We had to improvise since we didn't have all the ingredients, so I'm going to give you the instructions on how we will make it next time, rather than what we did this time:

Ingredients for chicken kabobs:

• 1 1/2 lbs. chicken, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 4 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander
• 3/4 teaspoon paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper (I don't like black pepper, but if you do, use it instead)
• 2 tablespoons plain yogurt (I like Greek yogurt for extra flavor)

Ingredients for sauce:

•  several tablespoons oil
• 2 onions, diced
• 6 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 2 large tomatoes, chopped
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds (you can use ground cumin if you don't have cumin seeds)
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 teaspoon ground white pepper (again, use black if you prefer)
• 3 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 4 tablespoons butter (half a stick)
• 3 tablespoons lime juice
• 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
• 6 tablespoons water

To make the kabobs:

Mix the oil, lime juice, spices, and yogurt in a medium bowl.  Add the chicken and mix well to ensure even coating.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour to 1 day.  When done marinating, remove the chicken from the refrigerator.  Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and spread the chicken over a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.  Cook for 8 minutes, or until no longer pink in the middle. 

To make the masala:

In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium-high heat.  Add the onions and garlic.  Saute until the onions are soft and transparent.  Reduce the heat to medium-low and add the tomato.  Simmer for a few minutes until the tomato softens, stirring occasionally.  Mash the tomatoes and onion mixture until it becomes a mushy paste.  Stir in the cumin seeds, coriander, paprika, cayenne, cinnamon, white pepper, and sugar.  Let the masala simmer uncovered for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.  Pour the sauce into a blender and puree until smooth (you may need to do it in batches depending on the size and strength of your blender).  Return the masala to the saucepan and stir in the butter, lime juice, cream, and water.  Set on high heat.  Let it come to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low.  Add the chicken and let simmer 5 minutes, stirring every minute or so.  Serve over rice and with naan.  Makes about 6 servings.

I must reinterate: this is the best Indian food recipe I've found!  It is extremely tasty!  If you're vegetarian, I think you could easily make this recipe with chickpeas instead of chicken.  The original recipe called for twice the amount of cayenne, but we thought it was too spicy, so I would recommend cutting it in half.  My husband likes spicy food, but he thought that the cayenne overpowered all the other flavors, and I must admit, it was a little overwhelming.  If you don't like spicy food, you might want to half it again.  Also, the original recipe called for 1 lb. of chicken, but we didn't think that the sauce to chicken ratio was ideal, so I'd recommend using more chicken.  However, the amount of marinade that I included here is for the original 1 lb., so you might also want to make some more marinade if you don't think that will be enough.  Other than those two minor changes, I wouldn't change a thing!  This is the best recipe we've made since the stuffed portobello mushrooms, and we will definitely be making this again soon!