Happy St. Paddy's Day!

It's been a while, sorry folks! I have lots of stuff to post; a folder full of photos and recipe notes. I've just been busy, or lazy... or both. Probably just hibernating, like I do in the winter.

Siobhan sent me lots of fun Irish quotes earlier today, including this one: I'm troubled, I'm dissatisfied. I'm Irish. So there! That's my excuse for not blogging for a while.

But what better way to get back into it than by sharing with you this delicious I MEAN DELICIOUS chocolate stout cake that I made?? Yesterday I was at my studio and snow was coming down. It always seems to snow on or around St. Patrick's day here, which always freaks me out. I guess being from southern California it will always strike me as completely bizarre. Anyway, I was all, I can't paint right now, I really need to bake something chocolatey. You can ask Jimmy, I believe those were my exact words. So I came home and made this:

It's made with chocolate and stout! And in case you haven't guessed already, I'm having a Guinness while I type this! My cake didn't come clean out of the bundt pan as you can maybe see, but guess what! Who cares! I decorated that s**t anyway. Also, I used this year's Christmas sprinkles! Yeah, those are xmas trees making that shamrock! Here's the recipe, from the wonderful Smitten Kitchen blog.

Here's another quote Sio sent me: St. Patrick's Day is an enchanted time... a day to begin transforming winter's dreams into summer's magic! Cheers to that. 

Happy St. Patricks Day!! 

xo ~Shauna :)

Happy Halloween from Sandy-Ravished Jersey!

Well you guys, the super-storm has been crazy, but the good news is, I was able to get these Halloween treats baked before the power went out:

They are Chocolate Halloween Devil Kitties! Super yummy chocolate cookies with a touch of spice. So good, and so much fun! 

I used this recipe from a really great baking blog that I like a lot, but with a different shape, obviously. And I didn't have dutched cocoa powder, but she explains in her baking basics section why it is OK to substitute regular unsweetened. They were delicious!

Papi was running around our apartment like a crazy person a few hours before the hurricane hit, and we were convinced he sensed it coming.  So the little bit of cayenne pepper on top (which is such a super tasty finishing touch by the way) was a perfect representation of his friskiness.

I have to say this is one of the most exciting things I've made in a while. Tiny spicy chocolate kitties!! They have gotten us through the hurricane, for sure. 

Meow!

xo,

~Shauna :)

Rich Flourless Chocolate Cake

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRETCHEN!!!!
I made this cake in celebration of Gretchen's birthday.  It is a really rich and intense chocolate cake that would go perfectly with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, a big glass of cold milk, or just by itself.  It is easy to make and here is the recipe:
1. Preheat oven to 350 and prepare a pan - I used a spring form.
2. Melt 1 pound of buttersweet chocolate and 4oz of butter over a bain marie.
3. Mix 2 egg yolks with 3oz of sugar and mix to a creme.
4. Mix the melted chocolate mixture into the egg yolk mixture.
5. Whip 8 egg whites to a soft peak.
6. Fold the egg whites into the chocolate mixture until incorporated.
7.  Bake for about 30 minutes.  The cake will rise and then fall when cooling.
Enjoy!

Triple Chocolate Cookies

These cookies are super easy to make and very tasty.  And I just think they are so pretty too!  Here is a recipe that is similar to the one I used.

Nutella and Cheese Turnover

I had a little leftover ricotta cheese and wanted to do something with it.  We also have a supply of Nutella that never seems to end.  So I decided to make a turnover stuffed with these wonderful gems.  I mixed the ricotta with cream cheese in about a 2:1 ratio, added a few tablespoons of sugar, about a teaspoon of vanilla extract, and one egg.  I used ready-made pastry dough and cut each sheet into 4 squares, then spooned on a little cheese mixture followed by some Nutella.  I brushed a little beaten egg on the edges of the dough and folded them into triangles.  They baked at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.  Anything with Nutella is dreamy so you can imagine how these were!

Chocolate Chip Pancakes!!!!

If you recall, I recently had some amazing pancakes out at one of our neighborhood brunch places. Well, I've been dreaming about them ever since. And I don't even really dream about pancakes! Anyways, I MADE THEM. Oh man they were sooooooo good too! I made them without bourbon banana, and with many more berries, b/c I generally can't get enough strawbs and bloobs. I made the batter less sweet than your average pancake batter, with a touch more salt. I poured it into egg rings on the skillet to make them set up thicker, and added the chocolate chips after a few seconds. Yumm!!!!!

Ice Cream, East Side

So Siobhan and Grant and I all got ice cream makers for Christmas this year. So, following up Siobhan's refreshing coconut post, here's my first delicious creation: mint chocolate chip. The recipe was from Thomas Kellar's cookbook Ad Hoc at Home, which Jimmy and I got for ourselves after drooling over Harold's Christmas present from Siobhan. We used mint from our garden... soooo yummy!!!

So Grant, the pressure's on. We want to see your ice cream soon!! :)