I'm a big fan of crockpot meals, particularly with working more hours. I'm also a huge fan of cooking a meal once that gives us leftovers for fast dinners. This recipe does both. The meat is great on its own, on salads, in tacos or used in any enchilada, quesadilla, burrito.
Crockpot Carnitas
1 Tbsp. oregano
2 tsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. olive oil
2 lbs. pork loin
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno, chopped
2 tsp. salt
Juice of one lime
Juice of one orange
Additional oil for searing
Pat the tenderloin dry with paper towels. Rub the meat evenly with the oregano, cumin and olive oil. Place in slow cooker, and top with the remaining ingredients. Cover, and cook on high 4 to 6 hours or low for 6 to 8 hours.
Remove the tenderloin from the crockpot, reserving the juices, and shred the meat with two forks. Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add enough carnitas to cover the surface without crowding, and ladle a little of the reserved juice into the pan. Cook until the juice evaporates and the bottom of the carnitas are crispy. Flip, and cook until the other side is browned. Remove from heat, and serve with a little more juice. Serves 6
March 14, 2019
Browned Butter Frosting
My original plan for cupcakes was chai cupcakes with browned butter frosting. Sounds delicious, right? Well, the chai cupcakes are now a crumbled mess sitting in the freezer because they tasted great but baked horribly. Rather than doming nicely, they spilled over the edges into the flattest of pancakes, which made the cupcakes impossible to remove from the tins.
*Sigh*
Good thing that this browned butter frosting from Gold Lining Girl goes wonderfully with chocolate cupcakes as well. I'll be honest, I didn't try this frosting because I'm doing another round of Whole 30 (Day 9 today!). But I sniffed the browned butter and managed not to drool in the frosting. I definitely want to make this again when I'm eating all the sugar.
Browned Butter Frosting
1 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla
4-5 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream.
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown. It will develop brown flecks, foam a lot and smell like a delicious nutty caramel.
Remove from heat, and whisk in vanilla. Chill until firm but not hardened in the refrigerator. (If completely hardened, let come to room temperature for easiest frosting preparation.)
Beat the butter until creamy. Add in powdered sugar and heavy cream. Beat until light and fluffy. You can add more cream or sugar as needed to get the desired consistency. Makes about 4 cups of frosting.
*Sigh*
Good thing that this browned butter frosting from Gold Lining Girl goes wonderfully with chocolate cupcakes as well. I'll be honest, I didn't try this frosting because I'm doing another round of Whole 30 (Day 9 today!). But I sniffed the browned butter and managed not to drool in the frosting. I definitely want to make this again when I'm eating all the sugar.
Browned Butter Frosting
1 cup butter
1 tsp. vanilla
4-5 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup heavy cream.
Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently, until golden brown. It will develop brown flecks, foam a lot and smell like a delicious nutty caramel.
Remove from heat, and whisk in vanilla. Chill until firm but not hardened in the refrigerator. (If completely hardened, let come to room temperature for easiest frosting preparation.)
Beat the butter until creamy. Add in powdered sugar and heavy cream. Beat until light and fluffy. You can add more cream or sugar as needed to get the desired consistency. Makes about 4 cups of frosting.
February 22, 2019
Copycat Taco Bell Tacos
My oh my! These tacos from Foodie Crush are the best tacos I've ever had, aside from more authentic artisan tacos in the Virgin Islands. The extra time required to make these is well worth the end result. In fact, I think I need to make tacos again this weekend.
These are so good. You simply have to try them. And don't skip the process of baking the tacos for the blissful melted cheese. So good.
Copycat Taco Bell Tacos
1 lb. 85% lean ground beef
1/2 white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
2 cups tomato juice
1/4 cup yellow corn meal
12 taco shells
2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
Toppings as desired
Preheat oven to 400°F. Add the ground beef to a large skillet over medium high heat, and cook until browned, about 10 minutes, breaking into small pieces as it browns. (Think really small pieces like Taco Bell.) Add the onion and garlic, and saute until the beef is really nicely browned and the onion translucent. Add the seasonings, and cook for another 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
Stir in the tomato juice and cornmeal. Simmer 10-15 minutes until the juice has cooked down and cornmeal is softened, stirring occasionally. Add more tomato juice or water if the mixture clumps.
Place taco shells upright in a baking dish. Spoon about 1/3 cup taco meat in each shell, and top with cheese. Bake 5 to 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and shells begin to brown slightly. (You can put your shells on top of chopsticks if you like, to raise the shells up a bit and give the grease a place to drain.) Garnish with desired toppings. Makes about 12 tacos.
These are so good. You simply have to try them. And don't skip the process of baking the tacos for the blissful melted cheese. So good.
Copycat Taco Bell Tacos
1 lb. 85% lean ground beef
1/2 white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
2 tsp. cumin
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. garlic salt
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
2 cups tomato juice
1/4 cup yellow corn meal
12 taco shells
2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
Toppings as desired
Preheat oven to 400°F. Add the ground beef to a large skillet over medium high heat, and cook until browned, about 10 minutes, breaking into small pieces as it browns. (Think really small pieces like Taco Bell.) Add the onion and garlic, and saute until the beef is really nicely browned and the onion translucent. Add the seasonings, and cook for another 1-2 minutes, stirring often.
Stir in the tomato juice and cornmeal. Simmer 10-15 minutes until the juice has cooked down and cornmeal is softened, stirring occasionally. Add more tomato juice or water if the mixture clumps.
Place taco shells upright in a baking dish. Spoon about 1/3 cup taco meat in each shell, and top with cheese. Bake 5 to 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and shells begin to brown slightly. (You can put your shells on top of chopsticks if you like, to raise the shells up a bit and give the grease a place to drain.) Garnish with desired toppings. Makes about 12 tacos.
January 18, 2019
Braided Cream Cheese Danish
Perhaps Danish is the wrong word, but I disagree with Sprinkle Bake's original description of coffee cake. This is a sweet, yet not overly sweet, dough that comes together quickly despite the use of yeast. I made the original cream cheese filling, with an unwelcome addition, this time. I accidentally omitted the cup of sugar in the filling, so I have a rather bland cream cheese filling. I did add some jam on top of the cream cheese, so that helps somewhat, but I'm disappointed because it's just not as amazing as I anticipated due to my own error.
However, for how quickly the dough came together, and as forgiving as it was for me subbing 3 types of flour, I want to repeat this. (On a side note, how on earth did I run out of all-purpose flour?) I think a chocolate filling would be stunning. Heck, I bet the original filling would be pretty amazing if I remembered all the ingredients.
Update: I made it with the filling from this Chocolate Babka from Brown Eyed Baker. I doubled the filling to ensure I had enough for both loaves. It was heavenly.
Braided Cream Cheese Danish
Dough
1 cup milk
1/2 cup plus 1 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
4 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2 eggs, room temperature
6 cups flour
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
Cream Cheese Filling
2 cups cream cheese
1 cup sugar (Note: This is important.)
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. flour
2 eggs
2 tsp. lemon extract
Egg Wash
1 egg yolk
1/3 cup pearl or coarse sugar
To make the dough, heat the milk, 1/2 cup sugar and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar melts, and a few small bubbles appear at the edges of the pan. Remove from heat, and let stand at room temperature.
Dissolve the yeast and 1 tsp. sugar in a bowl with warm water (about 90°F). Let stand until bubbly, about 10 minutes.
Beat the eggs into the yeast, and then stir in the cooled milk (about 98°F). Add in the flour a little at a time, until the dough begins to become elastic. Add in the melted butter, and then stir in more flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Butter a large bowl with the remaining butter, and place dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise about 45 minutes until doubled.
Meanwhile, make the cream cheese filling by beating together all the ingredients. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet or two medium ones with parchment paper. Punch down the dough, and cut into two equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 10 x 15 rectangle. Spread half the filling lengthwise down the center third of each rectangle. Cut 1-inch strips from each side of the filling to the edges of the dough, angling all the cuts in the same direction. Fold the dough over the filling at each end, and then fold the strips over each other across the filling. (See the original blog post for a great description and visual.)
Carefully transfer each braid to the prepared sheet. Brush with beaten egg yolk, and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Let them stand at room temperature until slightly puffy but not doubled, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Bake 15 to 25 minutes or until bread is golden brown and fragrant. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 2 large loaves.
However, for how quickly the dough came together, and as forgiving as it was for me subbing 3 types of flour, I want to repeat this. (On a side note, how on earth did I run out of all-purpose flour?) I think a chocolate filling would be stunning. Heck, I bet the original filling would be pretty amazing if I remembered all the ingredients.
Update: I made it with the filling from this Chocolate Babka from Brown Eyed Baker. I doubled the filling to ensure I had enough for both loaves. It was heavenly.
Braided Cream Cheese Danish
Dough
1 cup milk
1/2 cup plus 1 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. salt
4 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
2 eggs, room temperature
6 cups flour
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
Cream Cheese Filling
2 cups cream cheese
1 cup sugar (Note: This is important.)
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. flour
2 eggs
2 tsp. lemon extract
Egg Wash
1 egg yolk
1/3 cup pearl or coarse sugar
To make the dough, heat the milk, 1/2 cup sugar and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar melts, and a few small bubbles appear at the edges of the pan. Remove from heat, and let stand at room temperature.
Dissolve the yeast and 1 tsp. sugar in a bowl with warm water (about 90°F). Let stand until bubbly, about 10 minutes.
Beat the eggs into the yeast, and then stir in the cooled milk (about 98°F). Add in the flour a little at a time, until the dough begins to become elastic. Add in the melted butter, and then stir in more flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Butter a large bowl with the remaining butter, and place dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, and let rise about 45 minutes until doubled.
Meanwhile, make the cream cheese filling by beating together all the ingredients. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet or two medium ones with parchment paper. Punch down the dough, and cut into two equal pieces. Roll each piece into a 10 x 15 rectangle. Spread half the filling lengthwise down the center third of each rectangle. Cut 1-inch strips from each side of the filling to the edges of the dough, angling all the cuts in the same direction. Fold the dough over the filling at each end, and then fold the strips over each other across the filling. (See the original blog post for a great description and visual.)
Carefully transfer each braid to the prepared sheet. Brush with beaten egg yolk, and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Let them stand at room temperature until slightly puffy but not doubled, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Bake 15 to 25 minutes or until bread is golden brown and fragrant. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 2 large loaves.
January 2, 2019
Everything Cheese Straws
These simple breadsticks come together in a matter of minutes, thanks to puff pastry. They are best the first day, as leftovers become much crumblier. We made these, from Food Network Magazine, for a neighborhood gathering and would definitely repeat them.
Everything Cheese Straws
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg
1 tsp. water
2 Tbsp. everything bagel seasoning (find recipe here)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400°F. Roll each sheet of puff pastry to an 11-inch square on a lightly floured surface. Beat egg with water, and brush onto each puff pastry. Sprinkle each sheet with half the bagel seasoning and cheese. Press gently to adhere, and then cut each sheet into 1/2-inch wide strips. Twist the ends of each strip in opposite directions to curl it.
Place strips on baking sheets lined with parchment paper, and bake until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Makes approximately 30 breadsticks.
Everything Cheese Straws
2 sheets frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg
1 tsp. water
2 Tbsp. everything bagel seasoning (find recipe here)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 400°F. Roll each sheet of puff pastry to an 11-inch square on a lightly floured surface. Beat egg with water, and brush onto each puff pastry. Sprinkle each sheet with half the bagel seasoning and cheese. Press gently to adhere, and then cut each sheet into 1/2-inch wide strips. Twist the ends of each strip in opposite directions to curl it.
Place strips on baking sheets lined with parchment paper, and bake until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes. Makes approximately 30 breadsticks.
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