Chocolate Choco Chip Waffles

My favorite meal is breakfast, but unfortunately on most mornings it is a rushed bowl of cereal.  Well, no more!  I had a free morning and decided to attempt waffles--waffles not made with a mix.  The recipe said it would make 3 waffles...I got about 10.  Luckily, they freeze well and that means toasting a frozen waffle is as easy as pouring a bowl of cereal!  And another reason to love these waffles even more:  I don't need syrup!  I  drench pancakes and waffles in syrup, but these taste so good with frozen yogurt that no syrup is needed, saving my coronary arteries :)

Chocolate Choco Chip Waffles

   Ingredients

• 3/4 cup cornmeal
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 oz mini chocolate chip (or regular sized ones) (I added them until I felt like I had enough)
• 2 teaspoons baking pwder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup skim or 2% milk
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, separated
• toppings: frozen yogurt, berries, confectioners sugar, chocolate syrup, etc.)

   Instructions

• Heat waffle iron
• In bowl, combine cornmeal, flour, cocoa powder, sugar, choco chips, baking powder, and salt
• Stir in milk, oil, and water 
• Beat egg whites into stiff peaks and fold into batter
• Use your waffle iron to make waffles!  I could give you instruction but each iron is a bit different, and I bet you know how to use yours better than I do!
• Add toppings.
• Enjoy!

Sushi and Tempura

Yesterday was amazing because I went to dinner with friends and had two of my favorite foods: sushi and sweet potato tempura. Last night's meal was a great value and left both my stomach and my wallet happy.  This picture is not from last night, but from a much fancier sushi and tempura outing in Chicago, but I was reminded of that night.  Yay for yummy food and pretty presentations!

Mehendi Inspired Tuxedo Brownies

Inspired by my first attempt at mehendi (seen here), I decided to decorate these tuxedo brownies.  What are tuxedo brownies, you ask?  They are a layer of brownie on the bottom and a layer of cheesecake on top.  Yum.  Maybe instead of mehendi patterns, I will make heart designs for Valentines Day in a few days.

Tuxedo Brownies

     Ingredients

• Brownie Layer
• 1 pouch brownie mix
• oil, water, and eggs according to brownie mix instructions
• Cheesecake Layer
• 2 cups (16 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 eggs

     Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325deg F
• In bowl, blend brownie ingredients according to brownie mix instructions
• Spoon batter into lightly greased 13x9x2 in pan
• In another bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth
• Add 2 eggs and continue to mix until blended well
• Gently spoon cheesecake mixture over brownie batter and spread evenly
• Bake 40-45 minutes, but keep an eye on them
• Cut into squares after cooling
• Decorate with red frosting (as I did here) or melted chocolate

Pre-Workout Smoothies

Yes, downing a smoothie before working out may seem like a bad idea--usually it's a post workout reward.  But I need this little boost of energy that is both easy and quick to make.  It would be amazing to be able to make these with fresh fruit all the time, but that is not always possible where I live.  The following is using mostly ingredients that keep well so they can always be on hand.

In a blender, blend the following:

• vanilla yogurt
• ice cream
• ice cubes
• milk
• ingredients for flavors (see below)
• sugar to taste

You can change the proportions of the ingredients to get the smoothie texture you desire at the moment.  Add more ice cream and less ice cubes and milk to make it thicker.  Add more milk to make it thinner and easier to gulp down quickly.  Add more ice cubes if you are in the mood for a less creamy version.

Flavors:

• Strawberry: 
• I got a large bag of frozen strawberries from Costco.  They last forever.  Drop a few in for each smoothie.
• Strawberry Chocolate: 
• frozen strawberries
• chocolate syrup--the kind you make chocolate milk with :)
• Banana Split
• frozen strawberries
• banana (use only 1/3 or 1/2 banana for a single smoothie)
• chocolate syrup
• Mango
• mango pulp/syrup--I recently discovered this comes packaged in a plastic bottle at Asian supermarkets.  I was used to buying mango pulp in large cans and was always figuring out how to use that much pulp before it all went bad.  This bottle concept is amazing because it allows me to use a little bit of pulp at a time while the rest stays fresh.  
• Strawberry Mango
• frozen strawberries
• mango pulp

I didn't give exact measurements on the flavors because I tend to add some, taste, add some more of this or that, taste, etc.  Just have fun with it!

Cappucino Brownies

Regular brownies are always great, but even better when they are extra special like these Cappucino Brownies. The brownie part has a coffee flavor to represent the actual coffee. The white chocolate ganache on top represents the steamed milk foam on top of a cappucinno, and the cinnamon on top completes this "cup" of coffee.  I think I shall experiment more with different types of brownies. As always, recipe below:

Cappucino Brownies:

Ingredients 

• Brownies:
• Nonstick vegetable oil spray
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, diced
• 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup all purpose flour

• White Chocolate Ganache:
• 6 ounces high-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Perugina), chopped
• 5 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Instructions

• Brownies:
• Preheat oven to 325°F.
• Line baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving overhang on 2 sides.  Spray foil with nonstick spray.
• Stir butter and chocolate in a large saucepan over  low heat until chocolate is melted.
• Remove from heat; whisk in sugar, then eggs, 1 at a time.
• Whisk in espresso powder, vanilla, and salt; sift flour over and stir to blend well.
• Transfer batter to prepared pan.
• Bake brownies about 30 minutes until tester inserted into center comes out with some moist batter attached (make and chill ganache while waiting for brownies to bake and cool)
• Cool completely in pan

• White Chocolate Ganache:
• Place white chocolate in medium microwave-safe bowl. Bring cream to simmer in small saucepan. Pour cream over chocolate in bowl.
• Let stand 30 seconds, then stir until chocolate is melted and smooth. If necessary, microwave on low power in 10-second intervals until white chocolate is melted completely.
• Chill about 25 minutes until ganache is thick but still slightly pourable.

• Assembly:
• Using foil as aid, lift brownies from pan. Turn over onto sheet of parchment paper, tray, or any flat surface.  Peel off foil.
• Pour ganache onto center of brownies and  spread to edges.
• Sprinkle with cinnamon.
• Chill until ganache is set, at least 2 hours. 
• Cut brownies and serve!

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

These are the the best oatmeal raisin cookies I have had--so yummy, so soft, so perfect!  And how can one not be happy when their apartment smells of freshly baked cookies?  Wonderful on a cold, winter day.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

     

     Ingredients

1. 1/2 cup butter, softened
2. 1/2 cup butter flavored shortening (I used butter)
3. 1 cup packed light brown sugar
4. 1/2 cup white sugar
5. 2 eggs
6. 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
7. 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
8. 1 teaspoon baking soda
9. 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
10. 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
11. 1/2 teaspoon salt
12. 3 cups rolled oats
13. 1 cup raisins

     Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter, butter flavored shortening, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth. 
3. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt; stir into the sugar mixture. 
4. Stir in the oats and raisins. 
5. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
6. Bake 10 to 12 minutes until light and golden. Do not overbake. Let them cool for 2 minutes before removing from cookie sheets to cool completely. Store in airtight container. Make sure you get some, because they don't last long!

Crème Brule French Toast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and I never skip it.  But it's rarely more complicated than a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice.  Then I came across Crème Brule French Toast at a friend's party and fell in love with it.  Once I figured out how to make it myself, I feel even more in love.  You see, I like to EAT, not COOK when I wake up.  But with this, all the work is done the day before, and all I do is pop it in the oven when I wake up.  Easy.  It tastes like French Toast, with a surprise Crème Brule layer on the bottom.  The bright red strawberries I had in my fridge and the compliments from my breakfast mates were just more reasons to smile that morning!  Oh--and if you make a big batch, the leftovers can give you great breakfasts for many days. Don't worry, the recipe is below:

Crème Brule French Toast

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon syrup
• French or Italian bread (1-1.5 inch thick slices)
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup half and half
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon orange liquor or orange juice
• cinnamon to taste (optional)

Instructions

• Melt butter in saucepan
• Add syrup and brown sugar
• Stir until sugar is dissolved
• Pour liquid into bottom of glass dish
• Arrange bread on top of sugar Mixture
• Mix together eggs, half and half, vanilla, salt, and OJ (and cinnamon)
• Pour over bread
• Soak overnight in fridge
• Bake 35 minutes at 350deg