Baked Brie

At Thanksgiving I wanted to experiment a little bit with cheese. 

I love cheese, but Ben is only a half hearted convert (thanks to the smelly Tirolean Bergkäse) so I rarely do much with it because I am the only one who will eat it. And that is not great for my girlish figure. So I must wait until I have guests to spread the load a bit.

This recipe I was anxious to try because I love turkey/brie/cranberry sandwiches and this was a bit of a riff on those same flavors. Plus brie is a very tame cheese, so it's a good place to start.

Serves 8-10
1 large sheet of puff pastry dough
1 round or wedge of Brie cheese
1 cup raspberry jam
1/2 cup almond slivers

apples or crackers for dipping

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees (176 C). If you choose to, start with cold brie and carefully cut off the top rind. You can leave it if you want, as it is edible, but some prefer to eat as little of it as possible. On a cookie sheet, lay out the puff pastry and put the brie on top. Spread jam on the brie, sprinkle the almonds on top of the jam, fold dough over, seal, and cut off excess.

Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown. Let cool for ten minutes before serving. Serve with apples or crackers.

Broccoli Bacon Salad

Ok, with the new baby I haven't been cooking much. I've tried to keep everything I make both very healthy and very easy so as to keep life simple. During Christmas I tried out this salad and it was delicious. Tons of flavor and totally easy to make. You could experiment a little bit by adding tomatoes and cheese but it's great as is.

1 head broccoli

6-8 slices cooked bacon, crumbled

1/2 cup finely chopped red onion

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup almonds, toasted

Dressing:

1 cup Mayonnaise

1/4 cup white sugar

2 Tbsp white wine vinegar

Place bacon in a skillet and cook over medium high heat. Once browned, drain grease on a paper towel and crumble. Rinse the broccoli and cut it into small, bite sized florets. Toast almonds in olive oil in a pan on the stove and sprinkle with salt until golden. Toss bacon, broccoli, raisins, almonds and onion together in a large bowl.

Whisk dressing in a bowl until smooth. Pour over broccoli mixture and toss to coat. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Halloumi and Pancetta Rolls

From my friend Michelle

A couple of years ago on Christmas Eve, I looked at the Christmas dinner that I had worked at all day and decided that it just wasn't worth it. It was beautiful and the food was nice, but I was completely exhausted from preparing everything that by the time dinner started I just wanted a bowl of cereal and to curl up on the couch. SO this last year I focused on recipes that were really simple, but still special and decadent. Hopefully over time I will have a collection of great standbys that I can whip up for parties without wearing myself out over details.

ANYWAY, this is one of those recipes. It's simple and you can put it together in ten minutes before just popping it in the oven. It's not particularly diet friendly, but for a special occasion it is perfect.

Halloumi is a cheese from Cyprus and used often in Greek and Turkish food. It looks like mozzarella but is soaked in brine, which makes it fairly salty. What makes Halloumi special is it's higher-than-normal melting point, which makes it ideal for grilling and frying without melting all over the place.

Pancetta is basically the Italian version of American bacon. It isn't smoked and often has different spices, but behaves the same way and can usually be substituted with regular bacon without any problems.

Serves 5-6

9 oz Halloumi cheese (250 grams)

12 slices of bacon
1 Tbsp chopped chives
Black Pepper

Heat the oven to 400 F (200 C)

Cut the Halloumi into 12 strips, and roll the pancetta around the cheese.
Lightly season the rolls with chives and pepper. DO NOT SALT. The cheese is already quite salty and any more could push it over the edge. Put on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes or until the pancetta is starting to crisp and turn brown.

You can cut them in half if they are too big, or skewer with toothpicks to help keep them together. Best served warm.

Chocolate Cheesecake Kisses

From the genius Bakerella

I have been meaning to post this recipe for months now and am just now getting around to it. I made these for Valentines Day and they were a hit. I got the idea from one of my favorite food websites: Bakerella. If you have never been to her site, you should really go over and take a look, but I'm warning you it is not good for your diet! She is incredibly creative and always has fun dessert ideas to try out. Just don't say I didn't warn you about the diet thing.

Anyway, I was looking for a special Valentines Day recipe and decided tried this one out and loved it. It is very rich, with a cookie/cheesecake flavor and were really fun to make and eat!

1 package of oreos (18 ounces or 500 grams) of cream filled chocolate cookies

8 ounces (226 grams) cream cheese

1 1/2 cups chocolate bark (I used regular baking chocolate, you could use chips or whatever)

Directions:

First, finely crush all but about 7 cookies in a ziplock bag, cream filled center and all. Try to get rid of all the big chunks. Stir in the cream cheese, using the back of a spoon to mash the two together. Roll the mixture into 1 inch (2.5 centimeter) balls and place the on a wax paper covered cookie sheet. Then, form the balls into the shape of a kiss (cone shaped) coming to a point at the top. Put the balls in the freezer for 20 minutes or so to harden them a little bit so they dont fall apart when you cover them with chocolate.

*mine turned out a little different from Bakerella because they don't have oreos often in Austria, so I used a vanilla/chocolate cookie. Hence the multicolored inside instead of the dark oreo brown.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler (or very carefully in the microwave, stirring frequently) until you get about 1 1/2 cups of melted chocolate in a bowl. One at a time, dip the kisses one at a time into the chocolate, tap off the extra chocolate and slide them off onto the wax papered cookie sheet to dry. Once dry, refrigerate and enjoy!

To Decorate:

Write or type messages onto thin strips of paper. Cut out foil into 5 inch squares (about 13 centimeters), place a dry kiss in the center. Insert the message near the top and secure it as you wrap the kiss in the foil, covering it completely.

There you have it, homemade kisses for the one you love.

Angel Food Cake

adapted slightly from allrecipes

In Ben's family, the traditional birthday cake is a light fluffy cake with whipped cream and strawberries. Where my first instinct is to choose the darkest, densest chocolate cake possible, I have become fully converted to this lovely, chocolate-free treat. It is so light, and you feel so good after eating it! Anyway, this recipe was excellent and it turned out beautifully.

serves 20

12 eggs (1 1/2 cup egg whites)
1 cup confectioners' sugar

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp cream of tartar*

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/4 tsp salt

3/4 cup sugar

Preheat oven to 350 F (176 C). Separate eggs; discard yolks. Place 1 1/2 cup egg whites in a mixing bowl; let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. (room temperature eggs whip better)

Meanwhile, sift confectioners' sugar and flour together and set aside. Add cream of tartar, extracts and salt to egg whites; beat on high speed. Gradually add sugar, beating until sugar is dissolved and stiff peaks form. Fold in flour mixture, 1/4 cup at a time. Gently spoon batter into an ungreased 10 inche tube pan. Cut through batter with a knife to remove air pockets. Bake at 350 F (176 C) for 40-45 minutes or until the cake springs back when lightly touched. Immediately invert pan, cool completely before removing cake.

nutritional analysis: each serving (1/20 of the cake) is about 100 calories (before toppings)

*I can not for the life of me find cream of tartar here in Europe. I'm sure they have it somewhere, but it's under a different name or something and I'm sick of trying to describe it in broken German to the salesperson. Anyway, if you don't have cream of tartar, you can substitute it with 1 1/2 tsp of lemon juice or white vinegar.

Salmon Cream Cheese Crackers

I made these at Christmastime as an appetizer and they were great! I really came to love gravlax in Finland and I try to use it as often as I can. Be sure to use gourmet mustard, the plain old yellow kind will not suffice.

crackers

cream cheese

fresh dill (I had to use dried... boo.)

cured salmon gravlax

Mustard (must be artisan!)

Spread the crackers with a layer of cream cheese, add a dollop of mustard and put a slice of gravlax on top. Garnish with dill (fresh if you have it) and refrigerate until serving.

Chocolate Popcorn

from A Cozy Kitchen

My dad always gets tons of flavored popcorn from his clients for Christmas, so for that reason fancy popcorn has a Christmas-y feeling to it. The chocolate covered popcorn is always my favorite, and it is so easy to make. I combined this with a batch of caramel popcorn to take to a party and it was a hit. This stuff is seriously addictive.

1 Tbsp oil (to make the popped corn)

1 cup popcorn kernels (unpopped)

2 Tbsp butter

12 oz (350 g) chocolate

splash milk

salt to taste

Make popcorn using a pot, or whirly pop or air pop machine.

Using a double boiler (or a glass bowl over boiling water) mix together the butter, chocolate, and milk. Stir until melted and smooth.

Pour the chocolate over the popcorn and stir with a wooden spoon until popcorn is fairly evenly covered, then spread out on a baking sheet or some waxed paper and sprinkle with salt.

Let cool for 3-4 hours for the chocolate to harden (can also put in the fridge or freezer to speed cooling process)

Caramel Nut Popcorn

from Taste

I love popcorn so much, but sometimes I get a little bored with the simple sprinkling of salt. This was a really easy way to make popcorn POP.

1 Tbsp oil

1 cup popcorn kernels (unpopped)

9 Tbsp (125 g) butter

3/4 c white sugar

2 Tbsp honey

1 cup nuts (I used almonds, but walnuts or pecans would also be great)

salt to taste

Using the oil and a pot or whirly pop or air pop machine, make the popcorn. Put in a bowl and set aside.

Combine butter sugar and honey in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for 5-7 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved. Bring the mixture to a boil. Boil, uncovered, without stirring for 5-7 additional minutes (or until a light golden brown). Remove from heat and stir in nuts. Pour caramel mixture over popcorn and stir until the popcorn is coated fairly evenly. Spread on a baking sheet (lined with baking paper for easy clean up) and set aside to cool. Break into pieces and serve.

Pineapple Black Bean Salsa

In an effort to eat a little healthier, I made this salsa to bring to a world cup party with some friends. It was great, spicy and sweet from the pineapple and combined with the salty chips it was wonderful.

1 cup pineapple, chopped into chunks

1 bell pepper, chopped roughly

1/2 red onion, finely minced

1-3 jalapeño, minced (Add according to your heat preference. Removing the seeds keeps it mild)

3 cloves garlic, finely minced

1 cup corn

1 cup black beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup orange juice (or pineapple juice if using canned pineapple)

1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

1/4 tsp ground chili

1/8 tsp ground cumin

salt and pepper to taste

Chop and combine all ingredients in a large bowl. I find that making it a few hours in advance helps the flavors to mingle a little better. Place in the fridge until you are ready to use. Serve with tortilla chips.

Almond Tart

adapted from Bitchin' Camero

I have wanted to try this tart for a while now, and it was wonderful. Perfect for a brunch or light dessert, it was sweet and soft and looked very pretty coming out of the oven.

Serves 4-6

7 large eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup ground almonds

1 cup cream

1 cup sliced almonds, more for garnish

1 tsp ground cardamom

1 lemon, zest and juice

3 Tbsp unsalted butter

2-3 Tbsp powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 400.

Place the butter in a baking dish, and set it in the warming oven to melt. While it is melting, grab a large bowl, and whisk together all of the remaining ingredients except the powdered sugar. Pour the batter into melted butter and bake for about 30 minutes, or until the eggs are totally set and the edges are browned. Dust with powdered sugar and remaining sliced almonds and allow time to cool completely before serving.

Kettle Corn

from Allrecipes

I LOVE kettle corn. It reminds me of my mom, who can't resist the stuff. Unfortunately I can't find it anywhere here, so I thought I would find a way to make it at home.

Let me warn you, this recipe took a few tries to get down. I burned the sugar a few times, and once was left with a lot of unpopped kernels. So be prepared for a learning curve. But it's a great recipe to learn and fun to experiment with. White sugar makes it taste like popcorn balls, brown sugar like caramel corn and powdered sugar is supposed to work as well, though I have never tried it. Also, I read that you can add food coloring to the oil to turn the popcorn different colors... So many possibilities!

Serves 4

1/2 cup unpopped popcorn kernels

4 Tbsp oil

1/4 cup sugar

salt to taste

1. Take a large pot with a lid. Cover the bottom of the pot with the oil and put it on the stove on medium-high heat.

2. Place 3 kernels of popcorn in the pot and wait until these kernels pop. Once they do, the oil is hot enough. Pour the sugar into the kettle and once it has melted (it only takes a few seconds) quickly add the kernels on top. Place the lid on the pot.

3. Begin shaking the popcorn. Leave the pot on the stove for three seconds and then pick it up and shake it for three seconds so the sugar doesn't burn. Repeat until the popping slows considerably, then take it off heat and continue shaking for 30 seconds. It is very easy to burn this popcorn, so err on the side of more unpopped kernels than burned sugar. Dump it in a bowl and immediately add salt. Watch out, the sugar will be hot.

4. Let cool and enjoy!

Paradise Tomato Pineapple Dip

from Paradise Bakery

I tried this dip at Paradise Bakery in Salt Lake and it was a flavor explosion. So I looked it up when I got home and whipped some up. It was simple and the unusual flavors really pop together. Be sure to pair it with a high quality baguette and bring it to your next party.

2-3 skinny baguettes, sliced

11 oz sundried tomatoes

3 cups canned pineapple

1 1/2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp salt

3 oz garlic cloves, chopped

1 tsp soy sauce

6 oz olive oil

Place all ingredients except the olive oil and bread in a food processor. Process until slightly chunky. Slowly add in the olive oil and stir until combined. Refrigerate until used.

Grapefruit Cupcakes

Adapted from Crepes of Wrath

The first thing I noticed about these cupcakes is that they were beautiful. Really, the icing is a nice soft pink and the cake a cheerful golden color and they were so nice. Luckily they also taste great. The cake has a little fruity tang that is complemented by the icing.

Makes about 12 large cupcakes

1 1/2 cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup yogurt

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

zest of 1-2 grapefruits

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup oil

1 cup confectioner's sugar

2-3 Tbsp grapefruit juice.

Preheat oven to 350 (176 C). Sift together dry ingredients in a medium bowl. In a large bowl, combine sugar and grapefruit zest and stir well, until the sugar takes on a nice light orange color. Then add eggs, vanilla and yogurt to the sugar/zest mixture. Beat well. Mix in the dry ingredients slowly, then fold in the vegetable oil. Line or grease muffin tins and fill each cup 3/4 full of batter. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the cakes spring back when touched and are a lightly golden color.

While baking the cupcakes, create the icing by mixing together the sugar and grapefruit juice. Once the cupcakes are completely cooled, drizzle the icing on top and enjoy!

Rainbow Birthday Cake

I made this cake for my nephew's first birthday and it was beautiful.

The frosting had some issues, but once you cut into the cake it was a lovely display of color.

And it was so easy! First, you make a simple white cake. (We used the boxed kind to save time) You split the batter into different bowls and add enough food coloring to get the primary and secondary colors:

Then you pour the batter into the cake pan, one a time, layering the colors on top of each other. Do not stir. Bake the cake as directed and let cool completely before frosting. Again, we used the store bought kind, but next time I think I would use a homemade cream cheese frosting... mmmmmm....

Enjoy!

Mom's Carrot Cake

from my Mom

This is one of my very favorite cakes and my mom's recipe is my very favorite version.

1 cup oil

2 cups sugar

1 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

4 eggs

3 small jars carrot baby food

2 cups flour

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp baking soda

Frosting:

8 oz cream cheese

1/2 lb powdered sugar

1/2 cup (113 g) butter

Mix together oil, sugar, vanilla and salt in a large bowl. Then add eggs, beating well after each addition, and mix in the pureed baby food carrots. Sift together the flour, cinnamon and baking soda and add to the wet mixture. Bake in a 9 x 13 inch pan for 30-35 minutes (or until the center comes out clean when you pierce it with a toothpick). Cool well before frosting. Eat chilled.

Spinach Artichoke Twists

adapted from Sparkling Ink

This is an easy and pretty finger food I brought to a party. They were light and savory and disappeared in 20 minutes.

10 oz (280 g) frozen spinach

10 oz (280 g) canned artichokes

1/2 cup (1.2 dl) cream cheese

1/2 (1.2 dl) Parmesan cheese

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

salt and pepper (to taste)

17 oz (480 g) frozen puff pastry

Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C).

Drain the spinach, chop the artichokes and combine together along with parmesan cheese, cream cheese, garlic and onion powders and salt and pepper.

Thaw the puff pastry as directed. Spread the spinach-artichoke filling generously on the sheets. Carefully roll them up and press the end to seal the seam. They should look like little burritos. Next, using a sharp knife, slice the rolls into 1/2 inch thick slices and place them on a baking sheet. (It may help to put the rolls into the freezer for 30 minutes to make the slicing easier) Bake at for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Caramel Apples

From Allrecipes

We wanted to bring something very American to a Finnish Halloween party this year and finally decided on caramel apples. The caramel was a little hard to find, but once they were finished it was well worth it. The nuts added a nice saltiness that complemented the sweet sugar and tart apple beautifully. I have to admit that these were the best caramel apples I have ever had, and something I plan on making a Halloween tradition in our house.

6 tart apples

14 ounces of caramel (about 400 grams)

2 Tbsp water

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 cup salted nuts, chopped

sticks

Stick the sticks (we used plastic forks...) into the top of the apples about 3/4 of the way through. In a small saucepan, heat the caramels, water and vanilla on low, stirring frequently. Once the caramels are melted and soft, dip the apples into the caramel and carefully scrape off the excess using the side of the pan. Roll the apples in the nuts and place on wax paper to cool. Allow at least 30 minutes for the caramel to harden.

Puppy Chow

from the Chex website

Called puppy chow because of the brown kibble look, this stuff tastes much better than it looks. And it is probably very bad for you. But it is so very good. Perfect for road trips or slumber parties or any time you are getting lots of people together. It is so easy to make and so hard to resist!

1/2 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup butter

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 tsp vanilla

9 cups chex cereal (or other similar cereal)

1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

Melt peanut butter, butter and chocolate chips together in a saucepan over low heat. Mix in the vanilla, and then pour over cereal and mix in a large bowl. Once cereal is coated with chocolate/peanut butter mix place in a large ziplock or sturdy paper bag and dump in the powdered sugar. Shake up mixture until thoroughly coated with powdered sugar.

BBQ Pork Sandwiches

I LOVE slow cooker recipes. They are impossible to screw up and people think you are just amazing in the kitchen. If they only knew how easy it was, they wouldn't be so impressed! For the Fourth of July, we wanted to make something uniquely American and this was just the ticket. The sandwiches were so good, juicy and delicious.

I made my own sauce because it is hard to find good BBQ sauce in Finland. But feel free to experiment with different flavors of the bottled kind.

Pork

3-4 lbs pork (could easily switch to beef or chicken)

3-4 cups (about 25-30 ounces) BBQ sauce (homemade or bottled, it doesn't matter. You just need enough to mostly cover the pork)

1 medium onion, minced

3-4 cloves garlic, finely minced

salt and pepper to taste

Homemade BBQ Sauce

1 cups ketchup

1 cup water

1/2 cup vinegar

1/2 cup brown sugar

5 Tbsp olive oil

3 Tbsp paprika

2 Tbsp chili powder

3 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp cayenne powder

Also needed:

Buns, pickles, coleslaw and some people like mustard...

Combine all sauce ingredients and simmer for about 15 minutes in a pan until sauce is thickened. If using a bottled sauce, skip this step.

Put the Barbeque sauce in a deep pot (or crockpot) and add the minced onion and garlic, salt and pepper. Put in the pork and be sure that it is mostly covered with sauce or those bits will be dry. Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours (overnight) or 4-5 hours on high. Scoop off excess fat, and shred the beef. Add a little water or extra sauce if it looks dry. Put the lid back on and cook on low for an additional 1-2 hours. Stir occasionally. Serve warm on split buns and let the compliments roll on in.

Shortcake

adapted from Pioneer Woman Cooks

We were getting ready for a 4th of July party and I had a cake meltdown. The cake I made did not work at all and was a huge mess. So with an hour to go, I turned to the reliable Pioneer Woman, hoping she had a simple recipe we could throw together at the last minute. And she saved the day. Because I was just done with cooking at that point, Ben ended up making the whole thing and it turned out so great!

For our topping, we used whipped cream and berries. For a more decadent icing, PW has a lovely looking cream cheese icing that looks divine to try...

1 1/2 cups flour

3 Tbsp corn starch

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

9 Tbsp butter, room temperature (117 grams)

1 1/2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

Topping:

4-5 cups whipped cream (prepared)

Strawberries

Blueberries (optional)

*Important: If using 8 inch round cake pans, be sure it is at least 2 inches deep or the batter will overflow!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 inch round cake pan or 9 inch square (we needed a rectangle shape so we used a 9x11 inch pan...)

Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda and corn starch.

Cream butter with the sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs in one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined. Add sifted ingredients and mix until just combined.

Pour into a greased and floured cake pan. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until no longer jiggly in the middle. An inserted knife should come out clean and the cake should look lightly tanned. Remove cake from the pan as soon as possible and put it on a rack to cool completely.

Wash and slice the berries. Once the cake is completely cool, slice it in half through the middle (so there are two layers) Spread about 1-2 cups whipped cream on the bottom half of the cake and cover with a layer of strawberry slices. Put the other half of the cake on top of the cream/berry layer and use the remaining whipped cream to cover the entire cake. Decorate with berries and serve. If not eating right away, store in the fridge.