Peppermint Cheesecake Brownies

My crazy neighbors are some of my best friends. I met them four years ago in the dorms freshman year. They are some of the best guys I know and they are also pigs. So when I came home the other day and found my Cooking Lite magazine open to the Peppermint Cheesecake Brownies and a note that said "Refill Please" I just burst out laughing. And what did I do? I made these and they were delicious!

Peppermint Cheesecake Brownies

Ingredients

CHOCOLATE BATTER:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup buttermilk
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large egg whites
1 large egg

CHEESECAKE BATTER:
1 (8-oz) block 1/3 less fat cream cheese
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 tsp peppermint extract
1 large egg
1 large egg white
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Cooking Spray

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. To prepare chocolate batter: Combine flour, cocoa, and salt in a medium bowl. In large bowl combine brown sugar, canola oil, buttermilk, vanilla, egg, and egg whites. Beat with a mixer at medium-high speed until well blended. Add flour mixture to brown sugar mixture. Beat at low speed until blended.
3. To prepare cheesecake batter: Place cheese, sugar, and peppermint in a medium bowl. Beat with a mixer until smooth. Add 1 egg and 1 egg white, beat well. Add flour and beat until blended.
4. Reserve 1/2 cup of chocolate batter. Pour remaining batter into a 9-inch square baking pan (I used a 9-inch pie pan) coated with cooking spray. Carefully pour cheesecake batter over top and spread evenly. Dot cheesecake batter with reserved chocolate batter. Swirl top two layers of batters together using the tip of a knife. Bake for 26 minutes.

Narsai David's Assyrian Pomegranate Marinade Giveaway Results

Anya has won David Narsai's marinade! Her suggestion for using the pomegranate marinade is: I'd marinate some chicken breasts and serve with a Greek salad.

Sounds delicious! I actually have some pork marinating it the marinade right now. Can't wait to cook it up!

Anya, you have 48 hours to contact me with a way to get the prize to you. I shot you an email. If I fail to hear back by February 24th I'll have to pick a new winner.

Life, love, YARN - I won!

How exciting is this! I've been entering blog giveaways and I won! I won this beautiful glass pendant and I am so excited to receive it in the mail.

Now speaking of blog giveaways, don't forget to enter the Narsai David's Assyrian Pomegranate Marinade! So few have entered, so there's still such a great chance you might win!

Check out her blog here and yay!

Narsai David's Assyrian Pomegranate Marinade Giveaway

About a month ago I bought Narsai David's Assyrian Pomegranate Marinade. However, I have yet to use it! On Narsai's website the marinade is described as follows:

Created at Narsai's Restaurant for Assyrian Rack of Lamb, this marinade incorporates fruits, red wine, garlic and spices. Not only fabulous with lamb, Narsai's Assyrian Marinade will go equally well with beef and pork.

I think this sounds so delicious and am quite excited to use it. Except, I don't know how! So now the challenge is yours. What would you do with Narsai's Assyrian Pomegranate Marinade? What would you marinate and what would you serve along side the main dish?

If you answer this question as well as leave your email address, you will be entered to win your own bottle of Narsai's Assyrian Pomegranate Marinade. Only people who leave their email address in the post will be considered in the random drawing.

Leave your suggestions by the 22nd to be eligible to win this delicious marinade!

PLEASE LEAVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS. I don't know how I'm supposed to contact the winners otherwise. :-/

Also, UPDATING AS OF 2/10. If you want to be entered to win more than just once for this contest blog about it. Leave me a comment to the blog where you mentioned this contest (after you have left your recipe suggestion) for a second chance to win. For a third chance, Twitter about it and leave the link!

Chocolate Rolls

Several weeks ago my mom and I made cinnamon rolls, though I never got a picture of them to put in here. Since I found them so much fun to make I decided to give it a go again. Typically I'm the type of girl that follows recipes to the tee, but I didn't want cinnamon, I wanted my dream food: chocolate. And from this desire became the birth of my new found breakfast food: the chocolate roll.

I also had to make a change to the dough from the cinnamon roll recipe because I was very low on all-purpose flour. Because of this I replaced a cup and a half of what should have been all-purpose flour with wheat flour. It wasn't a bad change though, however next time I want to try it with just the all-purpose.

Chocolate Roll Recipe

Ingredients

1 (.25 oz) package active-dry yeast

3/4 cup warm water

1/4 cup white sugar

3/4 tsp salt

1 egg

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

4 oz semi-sweet chocolate

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp milk

1 cup pecans

Directions

1. In a small bowl dissolve yeast and water. Let sit for 10 minutes.

2. In a large bowl combine yeast, sugar, salt, egg, and all-purpose flour. Stir well to combine.

3. Mix in the whole wheat flour 1/2 cup at a time. When the dough has pulled together put it on a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Cover with a damp cloth and let rest for 10 minutes.

4. Put chocolate, milk, and butter in the microwave for 1 1/2 minutes, stirring halfway through.

5. Lightly grease a 8x8 inch square pan. Roll dough out on lightly floured surface to a 1/4 inch thick rectangle. Smear the dough with the melted chocolate and then sprinkle evenly with pecans. Roll the dough up from the edge until it forms a roll. Slice the roll into 16 even sized pieces and place them in a pan with cut side up.

6. Cover pan with plastic wrap and let sit for 45 minutes.

7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake rolls until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Vermicelli with Sauce alla Sofia

First, I must credit this recipe to Gourmet.Com. I found out my cholesterol is higher than it should be, so I've been trying to find dishes that are lower in cholesterol and bad fats than things I typically eat (oh goodbye for now red meats). So I'm trying to cut out things out of my diet that could potentially put me at risk for heart diseases. I'm too young to have to worry about shit like this, but such is life. Granted, I haven't made the decision to completely opt out of red meat, but it is severely getting cut back into things I can and cannot eat. Anyway - I decided pasta would do me some good and since I got a food processor for Christmas and hadn't used it yet, it was the best way to go!

So I found this recipe and while it looks like pesto, it isn't. However, unfortunately when I was processing the sauce, I couldn't find the damned capers. I was sad, because I think they would have given this sauce the extra kick it could have used (because I felt a little too much olive in each bite). I did add a little more salt to make up for the lack of capers. Now where they went is the question.

Vermicelli with Sauce alla Sofia Recipe

Ingredients

2 garlic cloves
1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 small onion, sliced (1 1/2 cups)
4 anchovy fillets, rinsed, patted dry, and chopped
1/3 cup brine-cured green olives, pitted
2 teaspoons drained bottled capers
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
1 lb vermicelli (thin spaghetti) or linguine

Directions

1. With a food processor running drop in garlic until finely chopped. Stop the motor and add parsley, onion, anchovies, olives, capers, salt, and pepper. Process until finely chopped.

2. With motor still running add 1/2 cup of oil, blending until incorporated.

3. Cook pasta in boiling salted water. Drain well and toss with extra 1 tsp of olive oil. Pour sauce over pasta and serve immediately.

Mango Lassi

I got a crock-pot for Christmas and I made curry in it last night, using it for the first time. Unfortunately the curry got devoured by the pigs in my family before I could capture it as well as the homemade naan I made (though I have made that before and posted a picture in here before). So I was on this whole Indian food thing. I traveled to India two summers ago for one of the best experiences of my life and have continued by fascination in the culture through my taste buds. And because I just recently watched the movie Slumdog Millionare, I was intriqued once again to experience a part of the culture.

I bought a Cooking Lite magazine yesterday and one of the recipes was for a mango lassi. YUM! I added more mango than the recipe called for because it was tasting more yogurty than mangoey. And I would also be inclined to Americanize this recipe completely and add other fruits to the mix. It's basically a delicious smoothie.

Mango Lassi

Ingredients

3 ripe mangoes, chopped up

3 cups Greek-style yogurt

1 cup 1% milk

3 tbsp sugar

pistachios

cardamom

Directions

1. Combine the mangoes, yogurt, and milk. Blend together.

2. Blend in the sugar.

3. Pour into glasses and top with several pistachios and a pinch of cardamom.

*makes 6 servings*

Cook Book Giveaway: Rachel Ray

Because unfortunately Suzanne never got back to me with a way to contact her, I chose a new winner. Congratulations jnmacdonald! In the future for giveaways I won't be counting people's entries who fail to provide me with a way to contact them. Only fair.

Pomegranate Muffins

One of the classes I'm taking this quarter is a photo class. For our final project we had to create a book of 10 cohesive images. I decided to create a cookbook of things I've baked, since that seems to be my forte lately. At first the project was so much fun, because I got to bake, but then it became kind of dull because that's all I did.. was bake. And it wasn't even baking for fun anymore, I was baking because I had to get a certain number of pictures taken.

Anyway, this is one of my photos. The first thing I baked for this project was the pumpkin cheesecake, which I've already put in here. This was my second attempt. I had never worked with pomegranates before, and while difficult to get the seeds out, it was worth the hunt! Yum!

Pomegranate Muffins

Ingredients

1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

2 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 tbsp grated orange peel

1 cup milk

1 egg

1/3 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a muffin tin.

2. In a bowl mix flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Stir in orange peel and pomegranate seeds. Make a well in the center.

3. Whisk together milk, egg, and cooled butter. Pour liquid into well and stir until batter is moistened and ingredients are evenly mixed.

4. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with sugar.

5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned. Let muffins cool for 10 minutes before removing.

ALSO!!! Suzanne! I still need your email address. If in a few days I haven't heard from you the random number generator is going to select a new winner of the Guy Food Cookbook!

Cookbook Giveaway: Rachel Ray

So number 82 was the winning number according to the random number generator! Suzanne has won the cookbook and posted the following:

MMmmm I like the sound of these.http://www.rachaelraymag.com/recipes/appetizer-side-dish-recipes/creamed-spinach-toppers/article.html

The creamed spinach toppers do look delish! My mouth is watering just looking at it.

Unfortunately however, Suzanne, you didn't leave your email address! Please either comment back here with your email address so I can get your information to mail you the book. If after a week I don't hear back I'm going to have to pick a new winner.

Anyway, congrats!

Cookbook Giveaway!

This month I have another cookbook to give away: Rachel Ray's "Guy Food" Top 30-30 minute meals. Whether you're cooking a meal for your significant other and want to make him something delicious, whether you're a guy yourself loving to cook, or whether you're a lady who loves the traditional 'guy food' (because hell, I know I do!) now's your chance to get your hands on this book FOR FREE!

Of course though, there will be just one catch. It's nothing hard, but I need something to make you qualify to win this book! Go to Rachel Ray's website and find one recipe you absolutely want to try - something you find innovative and creative. Leave the link to the recipe in a comment along with your email address (so if you win I can contact you). On Tuesday December 2nd (my 22nd birthday!) I will choose a winner using a random number generator. The winner will receive this cookbook in the mail!

*EDIT* If you fail to follow the rules and pick a recipe, your comment will be deleted and you will not have a chance to win the cookbook, because apparently you didn't read. If you failed to provide an email address, I hope you continue following this so if you win I can get in contact with you!

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Unfortunately this year I won't be able to spend Thanksgiving with my family. A horrible phenonmena called BLACK FRIDAY exists and those working in retail know all too well how hectic life can get on that day. My boss has the whole crew scheduled to work that day, with no chance of having it off. Because of that, I am not able to go with my family to Southern California to visit more family and celebrate the day of thanks. So I went home this weekend and we did a pre-Thanksgiving together. I'm going to be so sick of turkey next week.

Anyway, I really hate pumpkin pie, so I decided to take charge of dessert and made a pumpkin cheesecake. It was so delicious, so filling, so rich.

Pumpkin Cheesecake Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs

3/4 cup ground hazelnuts

3 tablespoons brown sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups canned solid pack pumpkin (I used fresh)
1/2 cup heavy cream

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

4 eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9 inch springform pan.

2. Using a fork, combine gingersnaps, hazelnuts, 3 tablespoons brown sugar and melted butter. Press mixture onto the bottom and two inches up the sides of the pan to form the crust.

3. With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the pumpkin. Mix in the cream, cinnamon, allspice and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth.

4. Pour batter into prepared crust. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes, or until center of cheesecake is set. Allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.

Cookbook Giveaway: Cookbooks Year-Round

Allyson has won the cookbook through a random choice by a random number generator!

Allyson's favorite holiday is Christmas and she thinks a chocolate cupcake with peppermint frosting would be absolutely suitable for the holiday. Now Allyson has a cookbook which has seasonal and holiday cakes, so she can make all the Christmas cakes she wants!

You all had the most amazing ideas on what you would do with your cupcakes. I'll have to try to make a lot of them!

Keep your eyes out - I will have another giveaway come December.

Candy Corn Cupcakes

Happy Almost Halloween! For one of my classes yesterday we had a potluck. And since I have an overwhelming number of Halloween cupcake wrappers (and still do), I decided to make something festive. I've seen these around the web and decided to give my hand at it. I was originally going to make the cake from scratch, but after working all morning and studying for my midterm all afternoon, I opted with a box mix. This was seriously the first box mix I've used in ages. I was going to make my own frosting, at least. The frosting I chose was a Honey Buttercream, because I wanted to make these special. And since candy corn are infused with honey, I thought hey! Well, it was a disaster and it tasted like a pot of... butter. It was disgusting.

Luckily I had a container of vanilla frosting on hand, so I colored it, added some honey to that, and got these babies done! They went over well and were adorable.

But anyway, this isn't all this post is about. Because these are festive cupcakes and because all holidays need a little cupcake love I am giving away one copy of the cupcake cookbook "Cupcakes Year-Round". It has so many fabulous ideas of festive cupcakes to make, from Halloween spiders to cupcakes that resemble a beach!

If you want to win the copy of this book comment by November 4th and let me know what your favorite holiday or season is, and what you think the best cupcake would be for the occassion! I will pick the winner using a random number generator. Leave your email, so that if you win I can get in touch with you!

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup

I found Barefoot Contessa's recipe for her tomato soup at The Review Lady's blog (check my links on the side bar to see her blog). I've always loved Safeway's tomato basil soup, so I figured that this would only have to be better than that! The girls and I have been having biweekly potlucks, and this week it's my turn to bring the side dish. Because I love these flavors and it makes a lot, I decided it was the perfect opportunity. Though we haven't eaten yet, so I don't know how well it will go over, I did have a bowl of it for lunch and it was living up to my standards. I may run the immersion blender through it again - but the flavor is all there and all right!

Roasted Tomato Basil Soup Recipe

Ingredients

3 pounds ripe tomatoes, cut in half

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

2 onions, chopped

6 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1 (28-ounce) canned diced tomatoes, with their juice

4 cups fresh basil leaves, packed

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

1 quart chicken stock

Recipe

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Toss together the tomatoes, 1/4 cup olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread the tomatoes in 1 layer on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes.

3. In an 8-quart stockpot over medium heat, saute the onions and garlic with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the butter, and red pepper flakes for 10 minutes, until the onions start to brown.

4. Add the canned tomatoes, basil, thyme, and chicken stock.

5. Add the oven-roasted tomatoes, including the liquid on the baking sheet.

6. Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for 40 minutes.

7. Pass through a food mill fitted with the coarsest blade. Taste for seasonings.

So this is the final bowl of deliciousness. This was the first soup I've ever made and I deem it a success!

Naan & Curry

Indian food is one of the tastiest things ever and also one of the few things my picky boyfriend will eat when I cook. Actually, I lie, he's getting more adventurous. But I am confident that my curry will always win him over. This past week I bought a lot of chicken from Safeway because it's been on sale ($1.99 a pound), so I had to stock up as I usually do when the chicken is on sale. Now to decide what to cook with the other chicken I have... But I have a bit to decide because I still have leftover curry out the wazoo. Anyway, this isn't all about curry. I also decided to try my hand at some naan. The cooking method isn't the traditional way to make naan. I've made it on a grill before and it tasted delicious, but I didn't have the time today to set up the grill for the task. So I found a recipe that used the oven and I doctored it slightly. While my naan is definately puffier than the naan you'd find in an Indian restaurant, it still tasted the same and that boyfriend of mine at 5 of the 6 pieces.

Naan Recipe

Ingredients

2 tablespoons warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup plain yogurt, room temperature
4 tablespoons melted butter
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon poppy seeds

Recipe

1. Put warm water in a small bowl, add sugar and yeast and stir until dissolved. Set aside for 5-10 minutes or until it foams.

2. Blend in the warm milk, yogurt and melted margarine. In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, baking powder and poppy seeds. Pour in the yeast/milk mixture all at once and work it into the flour, using your hands. Continue mixing, adding flour or water as needed, until the mixture leaves the sides of the bowl.

3. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes or until smooth and elastic. Place in a lightly oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let stand in a warm place to rise for about 4 hours or until doubled in volume.

4. Preheat oven to 550 degrees F (285 degrees C) or your oven's highest setting and set a rack in the lower third of the oven. Place a large pizza pan or iron griddle on the rack and preheat. Also preheat the broiler.

5. Punch the dough down and knead briefly. Divide into six pieces and shape them into balls. Place them on an oiled plate and cover with lightly oiled plastic wrap. Let balls rest for 10 to 15 minutes. Roll out and stretch each ball until it is about 10 inches long and 5 inches wide. Remove the pizza pan from the oven, brush with oil and place one of pieces of bread on it.

6. Bake at 550 degrees F (285 degrees C) for about 4 to 5 minutes until bread is puffed and has brown spots, then transfer to a wire rack, returning pizza pan to oven to keep hot. Place bread under broiler until 'charcoal' dots appear on the surface. Wrap finished bread in a towel while baking the remaining loaves. (If your pizza pan is big enough, try baking two loaves at the time.)

NOTES: I doctored the recipe by rubbing the naan with melted butter and garlic prior to putting it in the oven. While the taste wasn't extreme, there was a slight hint of garlic on the bread. Next time I think I'm going to add minced garlic to the actual dough.

Of course, I didn't just make naan like I mentioned already. I also made my foil proof curry that's done me right in the past. Oh man, I'm stuffed right now after eating this massive amount of food (served over Basmati rice). Yum, I can taste it again.

Curry Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb. boneless skinless chicken breast

2 lb. onions

1 lb. tomatoes

1 sq. inch ginger

4 cloves garlic

2 tsp. tumeric

2 tsp. coriander

2 tsp. cumin

1 tsp. crushed red pepper (more or less to taste)

Salt to taste

4 tsp. cooking oil

Recipe

Saute finely diced onions, ginger and garlic on high heat, stirring constantly until light brown. Reduce heat to low, add finely diced tomatoes. Stir well, cook for 5-10 minutes. Add and stir in all spices in order above one at a time. Add 1 inch cubes of chicken. Cook 30-45 minutes on low/medium heat, stirring periodically.

Homemade Funfetti

I will not make cakes/cupcakes/anything really from the box. I find it to be too easy and without all the love thrown into the cake. My friend Stephanie's 21st birthday is tomorrow, and like I said yesterday I am going to be baking birthday cakes for everyone this year. Stephanie requested a funfetti cake and I just could not cave and buy the boxed mix. So instead I made a basic white cake and mixed in sprinkles. It's not even really worth leaving a recipe, because honestly any white cake will work for this recipe.



And I had a ton of fun decorating the cake! The frosting, I messed up a little, but hopefully it isn't too blatantly obvious (to the taste buds, not to the eyes).



Now I just need to figure out when I'm going to play in the kitchen next.














The cake itself!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake

Cheesecake isn't my favorite flavor. But it really is one of my favorite things to bake. How that makes sense, I really don't know. The first cheesecake I ever made was a pumpkin cheesecake, and ironically I enjoyed it, despite my HATING cheesecake and pumpkin pie. However, the taste of the pumpkin balanced out the taste of the cheese and the taste of the cheese balanced out the taste of the pumpkin. The reason I initially decided to try to bake the cheesecake was solely to challenge myself. I never imagined how much fun I would find cheesecakes to be.

I have also began the habit of making birthday cakes for my friends (be looking for a homemade funfetti cake either tomorrow or Wednesday). Eric's 21st birthday was yesterday and had requested me to bake him a "Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake". I was a little nervous since I could only find one recipe (thank you allrecipes.com) and I really didn't want it to suck. I would have been so sad. But of course, once again, I have made a cheesecake Iwill eat! I actually think this is the best one I've had/made thus far. The cookie dough chunks in the cake are so good, oh my gosh, I'm literally eating a piece right now.

Now, the picture really sucks, but that's because I forgot to take a picture till most of the cake was gobbled up!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cheesecake Recipe

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups finely crushed chocolate wafer cookies
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup melted butter
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, diced
2 cups sour cream
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 teaspoons white sugar

Recipe

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2. Mix the chocolate wafer cookie crumbs with 2 tablespoons of the white sugar, and the melted butter. Press firmly into the bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of one 9 inch springform pan. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 8 minutes.

3. To Make Cookie Dough: In a bowl beat 1/4 cup butter or margarine with the brown sugar and 1/4 cup of the white sugar. Stir in the water and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Beat in the flour and the semisweet chocolate chips. Stir until combined.

4. To Make Cheesecake: In a food processor or with a mixer beat 1 cup of the white sugar, and all the cream cheese. Add 1 cup of the sour cream, the eggs, and 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Mix well and pour into prepared crust.

5. Drop cookie dough in 2 tablespoon portions evenly over the top of the cake, pushing dough beneath the surface. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for about 40 minutes. Cake will jiggle slightly in center. Spread topping over hot cake. Let cake cool than chill in a refrigerator until cold, at least 4 hours.

6. To Make Topping: Mix the remaining 1 cup sour cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla, and the 2 teaspoons white sugar until smooth. Spread over hot cake.

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Santa Cruz is really warm during late August and September. It's absolutely beautiful outside, however, sometimes it can get a little unbearable during the day. Nighttimes of course are pleasant, but sometimes during the day hours I want to rip off my clothes and run naked through some pond. It's really just hot.

So since I moved into my new house I've been taking much advantage of the kitchen. I haven't taken pictures of the food I've cooked thus far, but I have been quite enjoying the gas stove and the fancy oven. And the kitchen is beautiful! There's stainless steal appliances, light wood cabinets, and granite counters. And since I'm obsessed with red kitchen supplies, I've decorated the kitchen with countless red items, my prized being my KitchenAid mixer.

This of course brings me to what I made today. Last year I bought myself the ice cream attachment for the mixer, but I hadn't made much of a use of it. So the other day I popped the bowl in the freezer and today I decided to make the mint chocolate chip ice cream, which I found via allrecipes.com. It tastes like something you could buy in the store - only better.

If anyone's reading this, do you have any flavors of ice cream you suggest I try?

Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Ingredients

2 cups 2% milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon peppermint extract
3 drops green food coloring (optional)
1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Recipe

1. In a large bowl, stir together the milk, cream, sugar, salt, vanilla extract and peppermint extract until the sugar has dissolved. Color to your liking with the green food coloring.

2. Pour the mixture into an ice cream maker, and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. After about 10 minutes into the freezing, add the chocolate chips. After the ice cream has thickened, about 30 minutes later, spoon into a container, and freeze for 2 hours.

Potato Breakfast

Living in the house I was in was sad. The kitchen was a room of vile. There was old food everywhere - molding food, stinky food, no where I wanted o be near. At first I felt the need to clean the kitchen, so I could use it. But it got to the point where I was so sick and tired of being the personal maid for 4 boys that I didn't know. So I stopped. And I also stopped cooking and began eating out a lot. Life was sad, those two months in filth. But finally I have moved into an amazing house with an amazing kitchen. The oven is so high-tech and I'm SO excited to use it!

However, this weekend I'm home visiting the parents. And lucky for me, they went to the farmers' market this past weekend. I decided to use the potatoes to make myself some breakfast. It isn't worth giving a recipe for, but if you're interested, it's onions, garlic, potatoes (yellow and purple), eggs, salt, pepper, and onion powder. It was all cooked together in a skillet for the first homemade breakfast I've eaten in two months!