Happy Valentine's Day!

You know what's coming up on Tuesday? That's right, it's "eat-chocolate-until-your-teeth-rot-away-day." My favorite day of the year! Not.

No, no....I'm just kidding. I don't hate Valentine's Day. I just don't find it very exciting. Anyway, whether I like the holiday or not, it's a wonderful reason to decorate some cookies.

Speaking of love and Valentine's Day and things of the sort, my friends and I saw The Vow last night. There were some mixed feelings about the movie, but I for one really enjoyed it. It doesn't take too much for me to like a movie, though...especially when Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams are in it.

I just thought I'd throw that in there.

Okay, I hope you all have a wonderful week (February 14th included!).

PS: Let's all pray that this cold weather will go away soon. Who cares if it just decided to show up two days ago? It's messing up my running schedule and I'm ready for it to go away already!

A Healthy Twist

This may be a baking blog, but I still like to eat healthy.

Though baking is certainly my specialty and favorite thing to do, I also like to cook, I like healthy foods, and I like putting recipes on my blog. So, here are a couple of side dishes my mom and I made to go along with the Almond Crusted Tilapia my dad made tonight. I love coming home to delicious food!

Tomorrow, it's onto Valentine's Sugar Cookies!

Baked Herb and Parmesan Potato Slices

Baked Herb and Parmesan Potato Slices 

Serves 3

Ingredients:

2 whole russet potatoes (medium size)

2 whole large red potatoes

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon dried parsley

1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese 

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Rinse potatoes and dry with paper towel. Slice the potatoes at a slight diagonal. Add the potato slices to a large bowl. Next, add the herbs, spices, and olive oil. Mix all ingredients together so that the herbs, spices, and olive oil coat both sides of the potato slices. Lay potatoes on a cookie sheet. Try to keep them in a single layer so they aren't stacked on top of one another. Next, top the potatoes with the grated parmesan cheese. 

Bake in a preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until the thinnest pieces are a golden color. Serve warm right out of the oven. 

Enjoy!

Roasted Vegetables

Roasted Vegetables 

Ingredients: 

1/2 c dry white wine

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1/4 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoons pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons Garlic and Herb Seasoning 

Carrots, onion, zucchini, yellow squash, bell pepper

Directions:

Stir top 5 ingredients together. Set aside. Cut vegetables. Add to liquid. Let sit, and stir occasionally for 30 minutes. Roast at 400 degrees on cookie sheet for 15 minutes (Note: When placing vegetables on cookie sheet, use slotted spoon to keep liquid marinade in bowl). Add vegetables back to liquid after they finish cooking to give them added flavor. 

Minnie Mouse Birthday Cake and Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars

This has been such a good weekend. I probably say that about every weekend. But really. This has been good. And yes, I am watching the Super Bowl. I'm just updating this at the same time...because, well, I don't really care about the Super Bowl. Shocking, I know. I actually have to plan my trips upstairs to happen during the game rather than the commercials. I do love football. I really do. Just not this game.

Moving on. Yesterday was my lovely friend Sarah's 19th birthday. We went to PF Changs for dinner to celebrate, and ohhhh man it was good. Sorry about the bad quality picture. It was taken with an iPhone.

After PF Changs, we went back to her house for cake and presents. Sarah LOVES Disney World, so I thought I would make her a Minnie Mouse birthday cake. You're never too old for a pink Minnie cake, are you?

Next up is a really yummy recipe. These Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars are great to take to a party (Super Bowl party, anyone?) or just keep for yourself. They're really easy to cut and ration out for a lot of people if you do want to take them somewhere. I highly recommend trying these bars if you're looking for a chocolatey dessert to make one day. Enjoy! 

Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars

Chewy Oatmeal Fudge Bars

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
3 cups oats
2 cups chocolate chips
1 can Sweetened Condensed Milk (15 oz.)
2 Tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (optional, walnuts or pecans) *I did not use

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325. Grease and flour a 9×13 pan. 

In a large bowl sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In large mixing bowl, beat together softened butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and beat until combined. Add vanilla and mix well.

Slowly add the sifted flour mixture and mix until combined. Stir in oatmeal.

Gently spread 2/3 crust into bottom of prepared pan. Reserve the rest for topping.

Make the filling:
Over Medium-Low heat, melt together chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, 2 tablespoons butter, and salt. Stir until smooth. Remove mixture from heat and stir in vanilla and nuts if using.

Evenly pour filling mixture onto crust but keeping filling about a 1/4 inch away from side of pan so it does not stick to side while baking.Evenly dollup top of filling with remaining oat mixture. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until topping is light brown and fudge layer set but not solid. Don’t overbake these bars or they can become dry.

Cool in pan on rack until set before cutting. Can chill to set faster. Keep stored in airtight container.

Tomato and Basil Pizza

Phew. This has been one busy weekend. And it's only Saturday afternoon. That's okay, though. I like busy. Especially when it's with things like spending time with my friends and family...and baking, of course.

I have quite a few pictures and recipes from this weekend, but I'll start with the homemade Tomato and Basil Pizza my mom and I made last night. Here we go...

Tomato and Basil Pizza

Tomato and Basil Pizza

Ingredients:

2 1/4 to 2 1/2 pounds small-to-medium sized fresh tomatoes, sliced 

3 cloves fresh garlic, peeled and quartered lengthwise or thickly sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil, plus additional oil for the pizza 

12 branches of fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried thyme

Bay leaf

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper 

12 oz fresh pizza dough (we bought whole grain dough in the Publix bakery...it was delicious) 

8 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced

One bunch of fresh basil 

Parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F

2. Toss together the tomatoes with the garlic, olive oil, thyme, bay leaf, and season with salt and pepper (be generous with the salt). Then, lay the tomatoes out on a non-stick baking sheet that's large enough to hold the tomatoes in a single layer. 

3. Roast in the oven for 1 hour, checking midway during roasting to make sure the garlic isn't burning. If the tomatoes are getting overly dark on the bottom, turn them with a spatula. 

4. After one hour, turn off the oven and leave tomatoes in the oven until oven cools completely. Roasting time will vary depending on the size of tomatoes; just roast them until they've given up their juices, as shown in the picture.

5. To make the pizza, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F and place a heavy baking sheet on a rack on the lower third of the oven.

6. On a lightly floured surface, roll and stretch the pizza dough into a 14-in circle. Place the dough on a sheet of parchment paper. 

7. Brush the dough with a thin layer of olive oil. Drain the tomatoes well, then distribute the tomatoes and garlic over the dough. Put the mozzarella slices over the tomatoes, then place a dozen fresh basil leaves on top of the pizza and grate some Parmesan over the top. 

8. Transfer the pizza to the baking sheet by grabbing the hot baking sheet out of the oven and slide the pizza onto the hot baking sheet.

9. Return the pizza to the oven and bake for 10 to 20 minutes, until the pizza is baked to your liking; the bottom crust should be crisp and the top should be slightly browned and bubbling. 

10. Remove from the oven and serve with additional Parmesan cheese if desired. 

Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

I have a really delicious recipe for you today- homemade whole wheat hamburger buns.

Last weekend, my mom was out of town. She was going to be getting home just before Saturday night dinner, so my dad and I were in charge of cooking. We decided to make hamburgers, but we realized we didn't have any buns. 

What would a normal person do? Go to the store. What did I do? Make the hamburger buns. 

I love trying new things. I especially love making bread. I. Love. Bread. 

Anyway, I found a recipe online for whole wheat buns, and I ran down to the kitchen to start the process. They ended up tasting really yummy. However, I was a little bit pressed for time, and I didn't allow them enough time to rise. They were a little bit small, but tasted just as good :)

 Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns 

Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

Ingredients:

15 oz all purpose flour (3 cups)

10 oz whole wheat flour (2 cups)

1 cup milk

1 cup water

2 tbsp butter

1 tbsp sugar

1.5 tsp salt

2.25 tsp instant yeast (one envelope. Active dry yeast will work too)

1 egg

wheat germ (optional)

Directions:

In a small saucepan, combine the milk, water, butter, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer, then remove from the heat, and let it stand until it’s lukewarm (too hot and it will kill the yeast). If you have an instant read thermometer, you want to use it when it’s 110 degrees F.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour and yeast together to combine. Pour the lukewarm wet ingredients from the saucepan into the flour, and stir until the dough starts to come together. If you have a stand mixer, use the dough hook to knead for 8 minutes. If not, knead the dough on a floured surface for 10 minutes (and resist adding too much flour. Adding more flour will make the bun more dense, and heavy).  Place the dough in a large oil greased bowl, and toss the dough to coat.  Cover with plastic wrap and let stand until it doubles in size (about 1 hour).

Redistribute the yeast in the dough with your hands (try not to degas the dough too much) and divide into 12 portions. Make tight balls by pulling the dough out and around and pinching it on the bottom.

Place them on two sheet pans lined with parchment paper, and flatten each ball with the palm of your hand until it’s about 3 or 4 inches wide (wet your hands first). Let the rolls rise until they have doubled in size, around 30 to 45 minutes. Make sure you give them the time to rise, or else they will be very dense.