Category Archives: Photography

I Spy Mini Cheddar Bacon Quiche

Posted on by
1

Every morning before work I walk into my favorite cafe and grab a cup of coffee. This cafe is actually a chain, but it is run by locals. They have yummy coffee and delicious pastries.  One of my favorite quick-fix breakfast grabs is their mini quiches. For only four bucks, you can get a cup of coffee and a mini-quiche. With the intention of saving some for the weekdays, I set off to whip up my own mini-quiche for Sunday breakfast.

Image

Mini Cheddar Bacon Quiche (makes 12)

What you will need:

  • 6 eggs
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • Bacon (cooked)
  • 4 slices Cheddar cheese (I used sliced cheddar cheese and cut each slide into 12 squares)
  • 1 small onion (roughly cut into 4 pieces)
  • 1 small handful of shredded carrots

Image

Preparing the ingredients:

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and throughly grease the muffin tin 
  • Using a food processer, chop onion and carrots for about 5 seconds
  • Whip eggs and milk for about 30-45 seconds until frothy

Assembly:

Use the following measurements to distribute ingredients between the muffin tins:

  • 1 tsp of carrot/onion mix
  • 1/4 cup egg mixture
  • 4 squares of cheddar cheese
  • a large pinch of crumbled bacon Image

Baking:

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. Use a small spatula to remove the quiches.

Image

I Spy Taco Bowls

Posted on by
1

When I am stumped about what to have for dinner, I usually result to one of the following: quinoa, grilled cheese, pasta, or tacos.  A while back, I wanted to spice up my mundane tacos, into a taco salad.

Taco Bowl Salad:

  • Lettuce
  • Tomatoes (chopped)
  • Avocado (make into guacomoli quickly my mushing up with a little garlic powder, salsa and onion powder)
  • Sour cream
  • shredded cheese
  • black beans (heat up in microwave or over stove top)
  • Tortilla
  • Olive oil spray

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray one side of a tortilla with olive oil or cooking spray (you can probably use butter too). Arrange tortilla inside the bowl so it takes on the shape. Bake for about 5 minutes or until golden brown. Then throw the salad toppings inside!

So. simple. so. easy.Image

I Spy Get Healthy NOW Chicken Noodle Soup

Posted on by
1

Last February, I battled a round of sickness. The only thing that sounded remotely edible was chicken noodle soup. Of course, at the time I was too under the weather to make a proper chicken noodle. So shortly after I recovered, I decided to redeem myself and whip up a batch of real chicken noodle and freeze the leftovers for next time illness strikes. I even went as far to retrieve some beautiful vegetables from our lovely farmer’s market.

IMG_2140

Chicken Noodle Soup

veggies copy 2

Ingredients: 

  • 1 whole chicken
  • 2 cartons of chicken broth + water 
  • 1 stalk celery
  • 3 large red potatoes 
  • 1 bunch of carrons
  • 1 large onion 
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 2 bay leaves 
  • salt and pepper to taste 
  • 2 handfulls of pasta

How to:

  1. In a large soup pot, saute chopped onion, garlic and celery on low for about 15-20 minutes until translucent. 
  2. Meanwhile, wash off whole chicken and remove guts etc.
  3. Place chicken in the pot and cover with chicken broth + water so the chicken is fully submerged. Add bay leaves, salt pepper and any additional seasoning
  4. bring to a simmer and let simmer for about 3 hours. Before you put any additional ingredients in, remove all chicken bones. Shred chicken with fork.
  5. Prepare the potatoes and carrots. About 30 minutes before you are ready to add them to the soup.
  6. 15 minutes before you are ready to eat, add a couple handfulls of noodles. Figure in a few extra minutes of cooking time for the noodles.

Enjoy!

I Spy Tangerine Cranberry Muffins with Almond Streusel Topping

Posted on by
1

Muffins are so great. As long as you stick to the proper ratios, you can literally use anything in your house. Well not literally, but mostly…

For example, this morning I wanted muffins, but I only had tangerines and some odds and ends in my pantry.

Image

Tangerine Cranberry Muffins with almond streusel topping

I always use the recipe abridged from Food & Wine Magazine.

Dry Ingredients: Mix together in smaller bowl

  • 1 1/2 heaping cups Flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp baking soda

Wet Ingredients: First froth egg, then add sour cream, sugar, orange zest and juice. Beat for 1 minute

  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbs melted butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar (if you like sweeter muffins, use 1/2 C sugar, 1/4 C brown sugar)
  • 1 and 1/2 juiced tangerine (remember to zest before!)
  • zest from 2 tangerines (1 for the muffin batter, 1 for the strussel)
  • 1 C sour cream
  • 1/2 cup roughly chopped orange infused cranberries

Mix dry ingredients, then fold in cranberries.

Almond streusel topping: Mix to a crumble and sprinkled on top of muffins before they go in the oven

  • 3-4 tbs of flour
  • 3 tbs of white sugar
  • zest from 1 tangerine
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped almonds (I used my food processor for this)
  • 3 tbs of room temp butter

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.

Image

I Spy Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Posted on by
2

I have so much produce, including some much adored sugar pumpkins. As we know, I’m a fan of the sugar pumpkin (see my pumpkin bread and pumpkin cookies). Tonight, I decided to take a stab at my first pumpkin coffee cake.

This recipe has been adapted from the blog,  Not So Humble Pie. I adjusted the recipe primarily so I could use fresh pumpkin and less ginger (I am not a big ginger fan). I realize a lot of people are afraid to mess with a baking recipe, but really it is all about the ratio. Reading the book Ratio has been extremely enlightening when it comes to baking. This book is all about the ratios of cooking and baking. Essentially for baking there is a ratio between liquid, fat and dry. Once you understand the ratio, it allows you to play in the kitchen.  Now, because my pumpkin did not produce 15 whole ounces of pumpkin (that is a lot of pumpkin, by the way!), I substituted some of the pumpkin (liquid) with sour cream.

Cake Batter

1/2 cup butter, softened
1  cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar
12-13 oz fresh pumpkin (see my post of how to cook with real pumpkin)
3 large eggs

3 tablespoons sour cream
2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon pumpkin spice
1/2 teaspoon salt

Streusel Topping:
1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter/flour a quiche pan (the kind with a removable bottom), set aside.

1) In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, sugar and brown sugar. Beat in pumpkin puree and eggs and sour cream until blended.
2) In a medium size bowl mix flour, salt, baking powder and spices.
3) Slowly blend the flour mixture into the mixture. If the mixture looks too thick, add a tablespoon of sour cream.
4) Pour mixtures into the pan and make streusel topping (just mix everything together then pour over the cake batter.
5) Bake for about 55 minutes, let cook then add frosting.
6) Add brown butter frosting (optional, but recommended…)

Brown butter frosting:

1 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups of powder sugar
whole milk

In small sauce pan, heat the butter over low heat until golden brown. Pour butter into sugar. Add 1 Tbs of whole milk until the icing is pourable.

I Spy Vegetable Corn Chowder

Posted on by
Reply

During my domesticity bake-off a month ago I made a huge batch of vegetable corn chowder soup to freeze. This chowder was so delicious, it has turned me on to a flurry of other potato chowder based recipes.

My corn vegetable chowder pre-freezer

One thing I really appreciate about this chowder is how the ratio is just right. You can substitute veggies for what is already in the fridge and it will still turn out (as long as you include the potatoes and corn).

These are the sweet peppers I used, straight from my local produce box

Ingredients:

3 tbs butter

1 large onion (diced)

2 medium bell peppers

1/2 tsp thyme

4 medium baking potatoes (pealed and cut)

8 ears of corn

3 cups milk

5 cups liquid (I used 4 cups chicken broth, 1/2 cup white wine and 1/2 cup water)

Directions:

1) In a soup pot, melt butter of medium heat. Add onion, bell peppers, carrots and thyme. Cook until soft (about 5 min)

2) add in 1/2 cup white wine and stir into the veggies. Slowly pour in milk and liquid/broth then add the potatoes. Bring to a boil and let simmer for about 10 minutes until the potatoes are soft

3) While the soup is simmering, cut the corn . After 10 minutes, stir in corn, salt and pepper, let simmer about 3 minutes.

4) Using an immersion blender, blend the mixture together so that it creates a creamy chowder.  (optional)

Before I froze the whole batch of soup, I set aside a bowl for lunch…

Serve soup immediately or keep in freezer for about 3 months. One last comment, it is surprisingly hard to find vegetarian freezer meals. As long as you substitute the chicken broth for vegetable broth, this is a great vegetarian option!

I Spy Pear Gorgonzola Kale Salad

Posted on by
Reply

I recently returned from a family adventure to Southern California. Every-time I get together with my family, we spend the entire time eating. Thus, after our intense bonding time is over, all I want to do is eat salad.

Disneyland Southern California Adventure

I threw together this kale salad with random things I had in my kitchen. The main take away is adding the edamame to the salad takes this dish from a side to a main course.

Pear Gorgonzola Kale Salad

Ingredients:
Kale
Slivered almonds (small handful)
red pear
(chopped)
orange cransins
1 cup edamame (cooked no shells)

Directions: Cook edamame according to directions.  Sprinkle a little bit of olive oil over kale and massage with your hands for about 1-2 minutes. Toss everything on and dress. I used pear Gorgonzola dressing from Trader Joe’s.

I Spy Butternut Squash Risotto

Posted on by
Reply

I LOVE FALL PRODUCE. I think it is beautiful with the reds, oranges and yellows, it is so fun to cook because the squashes are so flexible and the shelf life is so much longer than the sensitive berries and peaches of summer.  Anyway, every time fall comes around, I essentially go on a butternut squash/acorn squash/ sugar pumpkin binge.

Pumpkin from the patch

One of my favorite recipes that I actually do cook year-round is butternut squash risotto. For people who are unfamiliar about the glories of risotto, it is a arribo rice, that you cook very slowly by stirring in liquid about 1/2 cup at a time for around 20-30 minutes (depending on your batch). The best part about risotto is that it can include absolutely no dairy but tastes super rich and creamy. Essentially the process of cooking the rice slowly brings out the starches in the rice which creates that creamy taste.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Butternut Squash Risotto
1 butternut squash cubed (or just buy two small packs of chopped squash at trader joes)
1/4 c white wine
2 tbs olive oil
5-6 cups of chicken broth/water (I usually use one large chicken broth and 2 cups water)
Bacon
2 cups arribo rice

Directions:

In a small pot, bring the chicken broth/water and butternut squash to a boil. Let simmer for about 5 minutes, remove from heat and use an immersion blender to blend in the squash into the broth. You can also use a food processor (very carefully) or a blender if you do not have an immersion blender.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil. Arrange the sliced bacon on the sheet and put it in the oven to bake for about 20 minutes. The oven does not have to be pre-heated.

Heat a large pan over medium heat for about a minute. Pour in the rice and let toast for about a minute. Pour a little olive oil over the rice, continue to stir until the grains become very light brown/golden blonde.

Add a splash of wine wine while continuing to stir the rice. Once the wine has been absorbed, 1/2-1 cup at a time, gradually add the liquid until the rice as absorbed almost all of the excess liquid in the pan. Stirring along the way. Once it looks like more liquid is needed, continue to add another 1/2 cup. This process should take about about 20-30 minutes. Make sure to taste the rice along the way as it often looks cooked prior to tasting cooked.

Once the rice is cooked, garnish with bacon. Sometimes I add a little of the bacon grease to the rice for extra flavor… Did I mention I love bacon?

I Spy Fall Cookie Decorating Tips

Posted on by
Reply

I miss the immaculate falls of Spokane. In college, we would venture to Greenbluff to pick apples and take walks through the vibrant leaves. Sadly, the main downside of living in the San Francisco Bay Area is the lack of seasons.

Gonzaga University in the fall

Gonzaga University in the fall

To combat the missing absence of atmospheric changes, I’ve taken to baking and cooking my way through the seasons.

I decorated my favorite sugar cookies using two techniques; combining icing colors and chocolate melted candies.

Making the icing: 

2 1/4 tbs of meringue powder with 1 bag of powered sugar and 1 cup water. You can add flavoring such as vanilla or peppermint if desired. Use an electric mixer and beat for about 4-5 minutes.

Applying the icing: 

Outline the cookie using an icing bag with the tip used to write (it is just a small circle tip, nothing fancy). Then go back and forth horizontally between the outline to fill in the cookie. If you apply enough icing, it should spread out to fill between the cracks. Icing with meringue powder needs to dry overnight.

Fun ideas for mixing colors: 

I discovered by combing the icing (not blending the colors together but leaving them touching but separate in the container) makes a fun and somewhat realistic leaf cookie!

tri-color cookies

Applying the chocolate 

I really like adding chocolate to sugar cookies because it isn’t very common. I find that a little bit of chocolate goes a long way and adds some fun decorations! Use candy melts and follow the directors on the package. Use an icing bag to pipe designs onto your cookies. In the winter, I like to use white chocolate or even the mint/green color to decorate my cookies.

Supplies:

I’ve slowly collected the following supplies  to decorate my cookies (all supplies can be purchased at Michael’s):

1) Meringue Powder is an egg substitute, you can use 2 1/4 tbs of meringue powder for 2lb bag of powder sugar.

2) Food Coloring, I used the professional cake decorating food coloring listed below. However, the food network recently published a brilliant way to create all the colors through the convention food dye that you can buy at Target.

Professional cake decorating food coloring (not that much more expensive than the store bought ones, and lasts longer!)

3) Cupcake decorating kit using the tip to write on cakes.

4) Milk chocolate candy melts

Candy melts come in various flavors and colors

One last comment…  Because sugar cookies are so labor intensive, I always make a double batch, which allows me to send cookies to two small-to-moderate sized work environments and keep some for home. Have fun with your edible art project!

I Spy Chicken Pot Pies (with ham!)

Posted on by
1

A few weekends ago, I decided to turn into a 50′s housewife and make a bunch of frozen dinners.

One of the recipes I found was for chicken pot pies with ham. I found this recipe curiosity  of the website Delish, however it’s original origins are in from Martha Stewart.

These are mini, individual sized chicken and ham pot pies that freeze very well. I have adjusted to recipe mainly to accommodate what I had in the house at the time, but also in attempt to make this recipe with whole wheat pie crust.

Chicken Pot Pies with Ham

Pre-heat oven to 350 when you are ready to bake up your pies. Frozen pies take about an hour, unfrozen takes about 40 minutes. 

  • 2tablespoon(s) butter
  • 1carrot, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
  • 1/2 lb of green beans (chopped)
  • about 12 radishes (sliced)
  • 1 leek
  • 1fennel bulb, cored and chopped
  • 1/4 cup(s) all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
  • 1cup(s) whole milk
  • 1can(s) (14.5 ounces) reduced-sodium chicken broth
  • 1ham steak , cubed
  • 1tablespoon(s) fresh lemon juice
  • Coarse salt and ground pepper
  • Individual-sized pie crusts in the metal tins (found in the frozen food section)
For the Dough: 
The first time I made this I didn’t have individual pie tins, so I purchased them from the frozen food section. Because I still wanted to have a pie topping, I made my own dough in the food processor. This recipe makes the perfect amount of dough to top 6 individual sized pies. Going forward, I will probably tripple to recipe to make the whole pie crust.
  • 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp sugar
  • 3-4 Tbs water
Dough
  1. In a food processor add the dry ingredients and pulse.
  2. Then slowly add the cubed butter  until mixed in.
  3. Lastly add water 1 Tbs at a time until you have reached pie dough consistency.
  4. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes, then divide into 6 and roll out with flour.

For the Filling

This image shows how to cut leeks and fennel

  1. Chop, slice and dice all the veggies. Gently saute the leeks, followed by the fennel carrots, radishes and beans (about 8-10 minutes)
  2. Add flour, cook and stir for 1 minute
  3. Gradually add milk and butter, stirring occasionally for until mixture comes to a simmer and thickens (about 5-8 minutes)
  4. Remove from heat, stir in chopped ham, lemon juice and salt/peper to taste. Then divide mixture between pies.
  5. Top with homemade/store bought pie crust.
  6. Wrap up for the freezer. I used the glad press and seal to wrap up my pies.