Becky Bakes

Breakfast bran muffins with veggies

2011-12-12T01:23:00.000-08:00

Their are two kinds of muffins; the sweet calorie-bomb kind that's basically a dessert and the healthy kind. These are the latter variety: chock full of healthy ingredients that fill you up. The carrots and zucchini make this a very moist muffin and all of the whole grains make it pretty dense. When I filled the muffin tins I mounded the batter, unlike a traditional muffin these will barely rise so fill the tins accordingly.

I am lucky enough to be able to find these ingredients with a minimum of fuss and expense but for readers who can't find these ingredients I would just omit the flaxseed meal and increase the oat or wheat bran. If you can only find one kind of bran then just use that. Either way I think these muffins will be delicious. If you omit the flaxseed meal increase the oil/butter to 1/3 cup.

Breakfast bran muffins
adapted from here
makes approximately 15

2 cups wheat bran
1/2 cup oat bran
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1½ teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
2/3 cup milk
2/3 cup yogurt
1/4 cup melted butter
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup honey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup packed finely shredded zucchini
1 cup packed finely shredded carrots
3/4 cup raisins

Place your oven rack to the middle and preheat to 375 degrees.

Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Combine all of the wet ingredients in a bowl.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in the zucchini, carrots, and raisins.

Fill a greased muffin pan and bake for 20-30 minutes (mine took 25-30).

Backyard edibles: The wonder weed Purslane

2011-07-24T17:51:00.000-07:00

Most people are familiar with purslane as an annoyingly invasive weed; I know that's what I always thought. Then I read Claudia Roden's book of Middle eastern cooking, in her fattoush recipe she mentioned purslane as one of the ingredients. I didn't have a clue what purslane was and I was curious about this mysterious and exotic ingredient. So with a bit of googling I had my answer and was absolutely gobsmacked when I realized it was a weed. And not just any weed, one that I had spent a good amount of time attempting to eradicate from my yard. And I was even more surprised when I read that it has the largest amount of Omega 3's of all leafy plants (purslane has up to 400 mg per cup, salmon has 1400 mg per 4 oz.). Ever since I learned about this wonder weed I vowed that the next time purslane popped up in my yard I'd water and care for it properly. Luckily I had some grow next to my vegetable patch about a month ago. I watered the purslane daily during this hot summer to encourage it to be leafy and succulent, it grew amazingly fast and now I have a generous patch of purslane.

I prepared my purslane simply by rinsing well then stripping the leaves off of the fat stems, some of the little stems seemed tender so I threw some of those in. Then I gave them another good rinse, the plant has lots of tiny black seeds about half the size of poppy seeds so I tried to rinse them all away.

Then I added in other salad fixings and we had a delicious fattoush. Purslane has a very interesting texture, it's crunchy and a bit mucilaginous with a slightly sour bite. I really enjoyed it and have decided that the only time I pull Purslane will be to add it to my salad.

Soda Stream Jet Review

2011-07-06T04:14:00.000-07:00

When I was given the opportunity to review a machine called the Sodastream I was very excited. One of my vices (among several) is that I drink a lot of Diet Soda and the premise of this machine is that with only a CO2 cartridge and their machine you can make up to 60 L of carbonated water. They also claim that you will save the environment and money too.

The Sodastream Fountain Jet machine ($79.95) came in an attractive box which included a 60 L carbonator, one 1 liter bottle, an instruction booklet and the machine. The machine has an unobtrusive, streamlined appearance that would fit in well with most people’s kitchen decor. It is made of plastic and does feel kind of flimsy.

The machine was pretty easy to use and set up although the instruction booklet was minimally helpful, it had pictures that were hard for me to interpret. To insert the carbonator you first must remove the cap and wrapping from the carbonator bottle, then remove the back of the machine and put the bottle into the hole and screw it in to the underneath of the top of the machine and reattach the back.

In order to use the machine you must have very cold water to get the best carbonation. I started keeping a bottle of cold water in the fridge just for that purpose. The trickiest part is screwing the bottle in, with one hand you have to push the front part in which makes the part where you screw the bottle in push out. Then using your other hand screw the bottle in. The first few times were a bit tricky but it became easier with practice. After screwing the bottle in push the top button until you hear a loud buzz then push the button two more times to get an average fizz. A problem that I encountered was that it took me around 14 button pushes to get the machine to make a buzz and it would make this sad squeal with every push, then I’d have to push three more times. Even after all of the pushing and hearing three buzzes the carbonation was poor. I couldn't quite figure out what was wrong and then I realized that I wasn't pushing the button hard enough. You have to nearly mash the button to get it to carbonate. The machine isn't made of what appears to be durable materials so I am curious how long it will hold up to the button mashing but as for now it's doing fine.

After carbonating the water then you can mix flavors in if you like. Mixing the Sodastream flavors at first stumped me a little, I tried to pour them into the bottle but I couldn’t get them to mix in well because I didn't want to aggressively shake my fizzy water. I finally settled on using a cup, pouring some of the syrup into the cup and then pouring the carbonated water directly onto the syrup forcefully, at first this made me cringe. I like fizzy soda and always carefully pour soda down the side of the glass to keep from losing carbonation. Because the water is so heavily carbonated, the carbonation lost is minimal and it gets the syrup to dissolve easily. For anyone who thinks they can carbonate their favorite juice unfortunately that will cause a big mess and void the warranty. Only water is able to be carbonated and you can mix whatever flavorings in after.

There are a lot of stores that are selling several Sodastream models; the Sodastream Genesis which is one step up from the Jet in terms of price ($99.95) and the Penguin which has glass bottles. Kohls and Bed Bath and Beyond are two of the mainstream, nationwide retailers that sell them. You can also do carbonator exchanges at Bed Bath and Beyond which is a better alternative for some people than the mail order exchange the company offers.

One of the claims by the Sodastream company is that using their products will save you money and cost only 25 cents per can or liter of fizzy water that you make. This is only partially true according to my calculations below. As a disclaimer I am far from being a math whiz so if someone has any issues with my calculations please leave me a comment.

A soda stream cartridge refill is $15, if you have a Bed Bath and Beyond coupon it could even be cheaper. $15 will give you approximately 60 liters according to the company, a soda stream flavoring is approximately $5.99 and will give you 12 liters per bottle of flavoring or 33 cans.

Flavored Soda Cost:

Cartridge= $15
+
$5.99 (syrup)x5= $29.95
________________________________
60L or 160 cans of soda =$44.95

Price per can= $0.28
Price per 1L= $0.75

Carbonated Water Cost:

Cartridge- $15
______________
60L=$15

Price per 1L= $0.25
Price per can= $0.06

A typical 2L at Walmart is $1.50 when not on sale so the Sodastream would actually be an equal price for flavored soda. If I do the math using ounces and cans the Sodastream will seem more economical but because the sodastream doesn’t create 12 ounce cans it makes more sense to compare the price of a 2L to the 1L Sodastream bottles in my opinion.

As for myself the Sodastream is saving me some money. I typically buy 1-3 20 oz bottles of soda at work at $1.50/bottle (I know it’s highway robbery), I’ve been bringing my homemade sodas instead of buying from the overpriced vending machines at work. I could save money by bringing 2L bottles but they are too large and the 1L Sodastream bottles are perfect.

As shown above the cost savings will be greater if you make your own soda flavorings or just drink the sparkling water plain. One of my favorite ways to drink my soda stream water is with a generous squeeze of lime. It’s refreshing and calorie free.

There is no question that the Sodastream is much more “green” than using and recycling plastic bottles or metal cans. It’s nice to know that I am reducing substantially the amount of plastic and metal I am using. Also the sodastream doesn’t use any electricity or batteries which is awesome for anyone who doesn’t have a lot of outlets in their kitchen or who already has enough gadgets plugged in.

The plastic Sodastream bottles are BPA free and all components can be recycled. They cannot be placed in hot water or the dishwasher and they cannot be used indefinitely; my bottles expire in 3 years. The FAQ’s on their website say that the reason the bottles cannot be used indefinitely is that they experience a lot of force with the carbonation and shouldn’t be used for longer than the date on them. I will admit that I don’t care for the giant expiration dates emblazoned across the bottles since I have been carrying them to work and displaying them on my desk. They do look a little odd and I’ve been questioned about them several times by curious coworkers.

If you have concerns about using plastic bottles Sodastream has a model, The Penguin that uses glass bottles which costs $199.95

Flavors:

I’ve had the opportunity to try a good quantity of the Sodastream flavors and overall they are pretty good. Their were only a couple that I absolutely hated, some that I didn’t like and several that have become my favorites. There are some definite positives to the Sodastream flavorings; they have no or low caffeine and contain Splenda instead of Aspartame. Also the regular soda flavorings are quite a bit lower in calories than their commercial counterparts 35 calories per serving vs. 110. One downside to the calorie savings is that ALL of the sodastream flavors contain Splenda, even the regular ones. So if you don’t like Splenda then you are out of luck unless you want to try the Sodastream Naturals line.

The soda stream naturals really impressed me, they are delicious and made with cane sugar and other natural ingredients. The cost for all of the flavor is that their calories are equivalent to commercial brands (around 110 calories per 8 oz.) but in my opinion the two I’ve tried had superior flavor to a lot of the commercial brands. There are 9 different varieties of Sodastream Naturals. The price for regular Sodastream flavorings range from $4.99-6.99 and the naturals are around $9.99 each. I wish the Sodastream website listed all of the caffeine content of their drink mixes because I do like to track that.

The Good:

Cola Zero- This would be the surprising underdog of the flavors. A lot of their diet flavors haven’t impressed me or been on par with diet coke or pepsi to really give me my “fix” This is good, it tastes like a cross between diet coke and diet pepsi.

Cranberry Raspberry- Pretty tasty. Has a definite cranberry flavor, it’s one of my favorites that I reach for often.

Lemon Lime- Similar to Sprite, a clean citrus flavor.

Diet Lemon Lime- Nearly identical to sprite zero, a good flavor

Sparkling Naturals Cola- very good. On par with Coke and Pepsi, also has some caffeine which is good for those of us that crave a little caffeine. My friend who is a Coke addict said that this was “really good.” I wish that the company would list the caffeine content per 8 oz., the calories are equal to Coke or Pepsi

Sparkling Naturals Black Currant Pear- very good. I liked this one a lot. My husband and friend were not as crazy about it although they didn’t dislike it. My friend remarked that it tasted like sparkling fruit juice.

Grape- Good flavor reminiscent of childrens Dimetapp which oddly enough I always enjoyed when I was little. If you’re not a children’s cough syrup junky then this might be a questionable flavor.

Green tea pomegranate peach- surprisingly good. I was certain that I wasn’t going to like it and ended up enjoying it. It definitely tastes artificial, it reminds me of the bottled Lipton green tea flavors.

Rootbeer- My husband really liked this one. Has a pretty decent rootbeer flavor, not as good as some of the commercial brands but we both liked this.

The Okay:

Ruby Red grapefruit- Has a definite artificial flavor but overall not bad, reminded me of crystal light.

Diet ruby red grapefruit- Very strong grapefruit flavor. If you like Fresca you’d like this.

Diet Orange- Good, not fabulous but on par with a “knock off” orange soda. Has a little bit of bitterness that was reminiscent of San Pelligrino Aranciata.

Dr. Pete- Pretty tasty, not as good as Dr. Pepper but a decent approximation.

Diet Rootbeer- Not bad but not good. Weak rootbeer flavor. Wouldn’t purchase again.

Ginger ale- Has a strong artificial flavor that I didn’t like and no discernible ginger flavor. That being said I like my ginger ale to be extremely gingery like Reeds Ginger Brew.

Diet Cola- Didn’t like this, the flavor wasn’t terrible but it didn’t taste good.

Diet Fountain Mist- Okay, seemed like a poor imitation of Diet Mountain dew.

My Water orange- The only My water flavor that I thought was okay. It smells good and adds a faint orange flavor to the water that tasted real.

The Ugly:

Diet Dr. Pete- Really awful bitter taste. It actually made me wipe my tongue because it was so unpleasant. This is the flavor that made me change my soda tasting technique to small initial sips rather than large gulps in case there is another flavor as unpleasant.

Energy- Pretty unpleasant with a bitter, artificial flavor. That being said, I don't like Red Bull so it didn't surprise me that I didn't enjoy this either.

My Water Raspberry- Bitter, artificial flavor that didn't really resemble raspberry.

My Water Lemon Lime- It has a very nice citrusy smell but the taste was very acrid and unpleasant.

Conclusion:

I’d recommend this product with reservations; their is very little if any cost savings so if you are looking for something to save you money I wouldn't recommend the Sodastream. Otherwise it's one of those rare machines that does what it says it will. I’d recommend purchasing one of these for anyone who is environmentally conscious and drinks a lot of fizzy beverages and isn’t particularly picky about flavor, although Sodastream has several good flavors they still are not replicas of some of the commercial brands like Coke or Pepsi. The Sodastream isn’t necessarily a better deal but there is something pretty awesome about being able to make many flavors of soda at home without a shopping trip and dragging bottles and cans home.

Disclosure: The Sodastream company provided me with a Sodastream fountain Jet machine and 10 bottles of flavoring, my review was not influenced by this. All opinions are my own.

Dulce de' Leche Cheesecake with a Chili Chocolate Ganache

2011-06-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

As a rule I don't like cheesecake... most of the time I will even turn down a piece if it's offered. I've always figured that if I was going to eat 800 calories than I darn well better really enjoy them. Cheesecake usually has an unpleasant sweet/sour tang to me and it's always kind of moist yet dry all at the same time. Occasionally I've seen one dressed up beautifully with all sorts of scintillating toppings and I've given it a hopeful taste only to realize that it was just like every other cheesecake that has let me down.

But this cheesecake that I am going to share with you has erased all of my fears and disappointments and has helped me to realize that it's not that I don't like cheesecake, I don't like bad cheesecake. Needless to say my hips will never be the same.

Dulce de Leche Cheesecake with Chili Chocolate Ganache
Adapted from Taste of Home

1-3/4 cups crushed gingersnap cookies (about 35 cookies)
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons butter, melted

Cheesecake:
3 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup 2% milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs, lightly beaten
1 can (13.4 ounces) dulce de leche*

Chili Chocolate Ganache:
1 bag (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
1-1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tbsn unsalted butter

*I found the Dulce de Leche in the Hispanic section at my local Walmart

Using a food processor grind up the gingersnaps, walnuts, sugar and cinnamon until fine. Add the melted butter until ingredients are moistened. Pre-grease a 9" springform pan, wrap the outside bottom and sides in a double layer of aluminum foil. Apply the crust mixture evenly on the bottom and half way up the sides of the pan.

In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Beat in the milk, flour and vanilla. Add eggs; beat on low speed just until combined. Pour into crust.

Pour dulce de leche into a microwave-safe bowl; microwave at 50% power until softened. Drop dulce de leche by tablespoonfuls over batter; cut through batter with a knife to swirl.

Place springform pan in a large baking pan; add 1 in. of hot water to larger pan. Bake at 350° for 60-70 minutes* or until center is just set and top appears dull. Remove springform pan from water bath. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Carefully run a knife around edge of pan to loosen; cool 1 hour longer.

Pour the chocolate chips, chili powder and heavy cream into a microwave safe bowl. Mix together, microwave in 30 second intervals until all of the chocolate is melted. Add the butter and stir. Allow the ganache to cool until it is lukewarm, spoon over the top of the cheesecake and smooth. Cover and refrigerate the cheesecake overnight, when ready to serve unmold it from the springform pan.

*It took me 75-80 minutes in my gas oven for the cheesecake to cook.

Serve this with a glass of cold milk to help cut the richness.

French apple tart for Sam

2011-04-01T09:29:00.000-07:00

Whenever my husband has a birthday I make him a home made desert and their are several reasons for this. Partly because what says I love and appreciate you more than a homemade dessert? And secondly because I am a bad gift giver, I don't mean to be but several factors come together to make my gift giving rather, how can I put this nicely? Underwhelming, boring, and predictable. The number one reason is I can't seem to hold back the excitement of buying him a gift so I usually give it early (this year he got his gift a week early)and what's worse than giving a bad gift? Giving the bad gift early or late! And number two it's usually something predictable and unexciting (this year was a new work out dvd from Beach Body fitness that he wanted) so I have to make up for my gifts with a pretty spectacular and tasty dessert, I am not a creative gift giver but I have flair in the kitchen... and what man doesn't love a little flair in the kitchen right??

When I asked him what dessert he wanted for his birthday he requested an apple pie. After cooing about how darn cute it was for a guy that's a first generation immigrant to request good ol' American apple pie. I set out to make a delicious one that said I love you much better than my workout DVD, and don't think the irony of making him a fattening dessert while simultaneously gifting a workout DVD was lost on me. I rationalized that it was his birthday after all, who doesn't have a sweet something or other on their birthday?

So out came my inherited, "Baking with Julia" book and after some deliberation I decided on the French Apple tart. It took me around 4 hours of work, several moments of frustrated cursing and a bit of nail biting regarding how the finished product would taste. Fortunately, all of the work paid off and it was delicious. From now on it will be my stand in when an apple pie or tart needs to be made.

A few words on the recipe before I post it; the pastry dough is extremely forgiving which is a huge plus for me. For some reason the house was a bit humid, which rarely happens in Arizona and my butter and shortening would only stay cold for moments after taking them out of the freezer; so as I made my pastry dough I had my suspicions that it wasn't going to work or taste very good. Except it did! Sure it fell apart after I rolled it out and I ended up, out of desperation patching the holes by squishing them together with my fingers. I felt sure that the crust was going to be tough and nasty because I had manipulated it way more than anyone should ever mess with a pastry crust. Except it wasn't, it was tender and flaky probably owing to the massive amounts of butter and shortening. I would rate the pastry dough as being pretty idiot proof, which is great for someone like me. The only change I'd make is adding a tablespoon or two of sugar for sweeter desserts. It's a great all purpose dough but I think it would have worked better with a teensy hint of sweetness.

The filling is great but next time I would double the amount I make. I ended up a bit short on filling and I am not really sure why. I actually used 2 more apples to combat the problem and I was still short. It's possible my apples were smaller than they should have been or perhaps their was a miscalculation with the cookbook. Next time I'd double it.

Without further ado here's the recipe:

Flaky Pie dough
makes enough dough for 4 open faced pies or 2 double crust pies

5 1/4 cups pastry flour or all purpose flour
1 tbsn. kosher salt
1 1/2 sticks (6 oz.) cold unsalted butter
1 3/4 cups (11 oz.) solid vegetable shortening, chilled
1 cup ice water

To make the dough in a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, put the flour and salt into the bowl and mix together. Add the butter and mix on low until it is cut into the dry ingredients and the mixture looks coarse and crumbly. Add the shortening in small bits and continue to mix on low. When the mixture is clumpy and curdy and holds together when a small bit is pressed between your fingers, add the water and mix only until it is incorporated. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and fold it over on itself two or three times, just to finish the mixing and to gather it together.

Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or for as long as 5 days. The dough can be kept in the refrigerator for 5 days or frozen for 1 month. If you are going to freeze it divide the dough into quarters prior to freezing.

French Apple Tart

Crust:
1/4 of recipe for flaky pie crust

Filling:
6 Granny smith apples
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsn. all purpose flour
pinch of cinnamon
1/2 cup fresh, fluffy bread crumbs
2 tsp. (approximately)fresh lemon juice
1 tbsn. vanilla (the original recipe doesn't call for this but I added it to fit with my personal taste)

Topping:
2 to 3 granny smith apples
1 tbsn. fresh lemon juice
2 tbsn unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar

Preparing the crust:
On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into a circle about 1/8 inch thick and fit it into a 9 inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Let the crust chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Blind baking the crust:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees farenheit. Fit a piece of parchment paper or foil into the tart shell and fill with pie weights, rice, or dried beans. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Transfer the crust, with the pie weights to a rack and let cool while you make the filling. Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees farenehit.

Making the filling:
Peel and core the apples, try to get 10-12 slices from each apple. Place the apples in a bowl and toss with the sugar, flour, cinnamon, vanilla, and bread crumbs. Add a squeeze of lemon juice. Spread the apples on a jelly-roll pan and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the apples give up their juices, start to form a sauce, and are soft enough to mash. Scrape the apples into a bowl and mash with a potato masher or a fork. Don't be overzealous- a few small lumps and bumps will add interest to the filling. Taste and add more lemon juice if you think it needs it, then cool the filling for about 15 minutes.

Filling the shell:
Spoon the filling into the shells, the filling should come to right below the rim.

Preparing the topping:
Peel and thinly slice three granny smith apples. Toss them with the tablespoon of lemon juice to keep them from browning. Arrange the apples in a circular pattern starting from the outside, slightly overlapping the slices. Work around the pie until the filling is completely covered. Brush the apple slices with butter and sprinkle with granulated sugar.

Baking:
Bake the tart for 25-30 minutes (I baked for 40 minutes) or until the top is beautifully glazed and the apple slices are edged in black. The tart is best served warm from the oven.

Stuffed Peppers

2011-03-24T13:09:00.000-07:00

I love stuffed peppers and I feel like they've been given a bad rap. They can be so much more than the quintessential ground beef,rice, and tomato sauce version that most of us have been underwhelmed by. Peppers lend themselves well to being seasoned creatively; I've made a Mediterranean version with ground lamb and beef seasoned with cloves and cinnamon, tomatoes herbs, spices and pine nuts. I've also done an asian fusion with ground chicken, bok choy, scallions and a few other items. Stuffed peppers don't have to be boring and bland, they can be savory and customizable not to mention affordable on a tight budget.

The recipe I am sharing today is similar to a basic stuffed pepper recipe but I've pepped it up with lots of garlic, fresh herbs, mushrooms and onions along with some fire roasted tomatoes. These aren't your grandma's stuffed peppers and really why should they be?

Basic stuffed peppers
makes approximately 6 peppers

1 lb lean ground beef
1/4 cup White button Mushrooms
1/2 of a white onion
4 cloves garlic
1 15 oz. can of diced tomatoes (I used Hunt's fire roasted)
Cayenne
Salt
Pepper
Cinnamon
Parsley
Thyme
Basil
6 peppers, tops and seeds removed
1 cup Medium Cheddar Cheese, shredded

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil, place peppers in the boiling water and cook for 10-15 minutes. The peppers won't immediately feel soft when you are taking them out of the water but once they sit for a few minutes they should be pliable without being mushy.

Now preheat your oven to 375 degrees.

Chop up the onions, mushrooms, fresh parsley, thyme and basil. Cook the onions and mushrooms in a pan with some Olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add the minced garlic and the chopped up herbs and cook until fragrant. Add approximately 1/2 tsp salt to this mixture. Finally once all of the items are cooked add the drained tomatoes, stir together and leave in the pan set on low.

Cook the ground beef, add 1/4 tsp salt, freshly ground black pepper, dash of Cayenne and a dash (or two) of cinnamon. Once the ground beef is cooked and drained add it to the vegetable mixture and stir well.

Place the peppers in a casserole dish and fill them with the ground beef/tomato mixture and then top with the cheese.

Cook in the oven at 375 until the cheese is melted. Serve and enjoy!

One of the differences in the recipe I am sharing is that I don't do the traditional method of filling raw peppers with a raw rice/beef mixture and that to me makes all of the difference. In a traditional recipe, by the time the filling is cooked the peppers are a mushy mess. In order to eliminate that problem I cook all of the ingredients separately and then combine them at the end. Everything is cooked appropriately and then assembled and in the end you get tender, soft peppers that aren't mushy and juicy, flavorful filling that isn't dried out. It's a win, win situation.

If you are cooking for only two like myself and don't really want 6 stuffed peppers to work your way through. Make only three peppers and use the left over meat/veggie mixture to make a meaty marinara sauce and serve it with spaghetti the next day. That's what I did and my husband didn't even know I was essentially serving leftovers.

Arabic pita bread

2011-03-16T08:10:00.000-07:00

When I moved away from Michigan I realized something very disappointing. If I ever wanted to eat relatively authentic, fresh pita bread I'd either have to hop on a plane or learn to make it myself.

I like to use a recipe from Claudia Roden's book, The New Book of Middle Eastern Food it's easy but time consuming. The pitas are only good for a day or two but the leftovers can be fried to make pita chips for fattoush.

Arabic Pita Bread
1 tbsn active dry yeast
2 1/2 cups lukewarm water
1/4 tsp. sugar
about 6 cups unbleached white bread flour or unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2-2 tsp. salt
3 tbsn vegetable or EVOO

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in 1/2 cup of the warm water. Add the sugar, and when it begins to froth (this will be proof that the yeast is still active), stir in the remaining water. add 3 cups of the flour, 1 cup at a time, gradually, stirring vigorously. Let this sponge rest for 10 minutes or until it froths.

Stir in the salt and 2 tbsn of the oil and mix well. Add the remaining flour gradually, a little at a time (you may need less), until you have a dough that holds together in a ball. Knead well by hand in the bowl, or on a floured board, for about 10 minutes, until it is smooth, shiny, and elastic and no longer sticks to your fingers, dusting with a little flour occasionally if it is too sticky.

Put the remaining tbsn. of oil in the bottom of the bowl and roll the ball of dough around to grease it all over. This will prevent the surface from becoming dry and crusty. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place free of drafts for about 2 hours, until doubled in bulk.

Preheat the oven set at the maximum, 500 degrees farenheit for at least 20 minutes, and place a large baking sheet or baking stone in the hottest part.

Punch the dough down and knead again for a few minutes, then divide in half. Divide the first half into 8 lumps. Flatten each one on a lightly floured surface with a rolling pin sprinkled with flour, into rounds between 1/8 and 1/4 inches thick and about 7-8 inches in diameter. Dust with flour and lay the rounds on a cloth sprinkled with flour. Arrange them 1 inch apart, so that they do not touch as they grow. Cover with another lightly floured cloth, an dleave to rest and rise again for about 20 minutes at room temperature.

When the bread has risen again, place 2 rounds at a time on the hot baking stone sprinkled lightly with flour, and bake for 3-5 minutes, or until they puff up like balloons and are slightly brown on top.

Wrap the breads together in a cloth while still hot, or put them in a plastic bag to keep them soft and pliable while you bake the rest of the breads.

Cilantro Lime Salsa

2011-01-19T16:44:00.000-08:00

This is by far the easiest recipe I've ever posted on this blog. It's only three (well four if you count salt) ingredients and it has an incredible flavor impact. I came up with it when I noticed that when I would eat tacos from Mexican restaurants they would often put an onion/cilantro salsa on my tacos. They gave the tacos an incredible flavor that surprised me and I decided to try making my own and my cilantro lime salsa was born. Every time we have tacos this is what I make to go with it and it's always a hit. It also has the bonus of being the base for pico de'gallo so you can just add four or five chopped up roma tomatoes and one diced jalapeno and you'll have pico.

Cilantro Lime Salsa

1 white onion
1 bunch cilantro
1-2 limes
1/4-1/2 tsp salt to taste

Chop the onion and cilantro and combine in a bowl. Juice the lime(s) into the bowl with the cilantro and onion. Add the salt and mix well. Place in the refrigerator 30 minutes to 1 hour to let the flavors meld.

How we usually eat it, chicken tacos with cheese, black beans, regular salsa and cilantro lime salsa:

Chocolate raspberry pecan thumbprint cookies

2010-12-21T01:51:00.001-08:00

These cookies are heavenly. I made them for a cookie exchange and they were a definite hit not to mention they have two kinds of chocolate; white and dark. Yum!

Pictures of the cookie making process:

The batter surprised me because it was rather crumbly but the cookies worked out fine even with the crumbliness.

Because the batter is crumbly you won't get a perfect ball and some of the batter will have a hard time sticking together. Just roll it between both palms and get it to stick together as best as you can.

The same thing goes for the pecans; just push the ball into the pecans and roll several times. The ball will probably become oblong and half the pecans won't stick but it didn't make much of a difference by the time they were baked and drizzled with chocolate.

I made my cookies double the recommended size and I ended up using a whole jar of raspberry jam. To form the cookies I used my thumbs and made some deep wells into the cookies. If the wells are too shallow when the cookies bake they rise quite a bit and don't look as pretty.

To drizzle the finished cookies with white chocolate I just used a ziplock bag filled with the white chocolate. Then I popped it in the microwave for around 30 seconds. Then I trimmed off the corner and squeezed the chocolate in lines over the cookies.

Chocolate raspberry pecan thumbprint cookies
Adapted from Cooks Country Magazine November 2010
makes 3 dozen cookies
Note: the quantities and instructions of this recipe have already been adjusted to make the size of cookie that I did. If you want to make smaller 1 inch cookies just half the recipe and it will give you three dozen.

3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup dutch processed cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
16 tbsn. (2 sticks) unsalted, softened butter
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
3 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups pecans toasted and chopped finely
18 tbsn. seedless raspberry jam
1 cup white chocolate chips melted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Combine flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. With electric mixer on medium high speed, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Reduce speed to low, add flour mixture and mix until just combined.

2. Place pecans in shallow dish. Roll 2 tbsn. dough into 2 inch ball, then roll in pecans pressing to adhere. Repeat with remaining dough. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared baing sheets. Using fingers make a well in the middle of the balls. Fill each indentation with half a tablespoon of jam. Bake until set, about 15 minutes, switching and rotating sheets halfway through baking. Cool five minutes on sheets, the transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

3. Drizzle cookies with melted chocolate and let sit until chocolate hardens, about 15 minutes. Cookies can be stored in air tight container at room temperature for three days.

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad

2010-10-17T03:20:00.000-07:00

I found this recipe on cooking light's website around three years ago. I consider it a life changing event because it introduced me to chipotle peppers canned in adobo sauce and all the amazing smoky spiciness they can impart to a recipe. If you've never tried chipotle peppers in adobo sauce give them a try.

Combine the lettuce, black beans, corn, onions and cherry tomatoes. I like to rinse the beans and corn really well and then pat them dry with a paper towel. While you're doing this throw some chicken on the grill to shred up for the salad.

Then get out your can of chipotle peppers and take one pepper out and chop it coarsely. you can puree' the rest of the peppers and freeze them in ice cube trays or you can store them in the refrigerator after removing them from the can.

Next add the chopped chipotle pepper, cumin, chili powder, garlic clove, cilantro, salt, lime juice and sour cream in a bowl. You might need to add a teaspoon of water to make the dressing easier to pour.

Puree it all together in a food processer

Mix the lettuce mixture and the dressing together. I like to add avocado slices, some cheddar cheese and a few tortilla chips crumbled up. It takes it from a tasty salad to another level of deliciousness.

Chipotle Chicken Taco Salad
adapted from cooking light

Dressing:
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2/3 cup light sour cream
1 chipotle chili chopped
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. chili powder
1 lime juiced
1 small clove garlic minced
1/4 tsp. salt

Salad:
4 cups shredded romaine lettuce
2 cups chopped grilled chicken breast
1 cup cherry tomatoes
1 avocado sliced
1/3 of a red onion finely sliced
1 can black beans
1 can sweet corn

Optional:
Tortilla chips crushed
Cheddar cheese

To make dressing puree all ingredients in the dressing list together.

To prepare salad, combine lettuce and remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Drizzle dressing over salad; toss gently to coat. Serve immediately.

Pioneer Woman's easy, tasty chocolate sheet cake.

2010-10-13T03:28:00.000-07:00

This is titled at Pioneer woman's blog as "The best chocolate sheet cake ever." Around here my husband begs, "Please don't leave more than a slice or I will eat the whole thing. It's too good." I've made this cake quite a few times, it's a standby for potlucks and for my husband's birthday. I am really surprised that I have never posted about it before because it's definitely deserving of one.

I doubled the recipe because the one fault that I can find with this cake is that it's thin, too thin to really be called a cake if it's made the way the original recipe suggests. I've done it in a jelly roll pan like Pioneer woman recommends but then the frosting rolls over the edge and onto the counter. Also I prefer to have a cake with a bit more presence; if it's made with the jelly roll pan it ends up being about as thick as a brownie.

The cake below was made for a baby shower at work. I was on my second of three 12 hour shifts and I needed to make the cake for that night. I rushed in anticipation of getting at least five hours of sleep and made several mistakes that caused my cake to be domed. I fixed that by taking a serrated bread knife and cutting until the cake was mostly flat. Then I patted loose crumbs down with a spatula. After the frosting was on you couldn't even tell that I had sawed the top off. Next time I will remember to drop the cake pan a few times on the counter to help get some of the excess air bubbles out. I should also have wrapped the pan with a wet towel to help with the rounded top. Next time I'll take the extra minute to do the cake right.

My mom gave me these adorable little cake pans and I had some extra batter. I couldn't cut the sheet cake for pictures because I didn't want to look too tacky by showing up with a pre-eaten cake. So I greased the little pans and made some mini cakes for my sister in law and husband. I also used one for my cake photo shoot. I had better luck with the pans with less ridges, I suppose I didn't grease them well enough.

Before I left for work my husband confided that he hoped my sister in law wouldn't want to eat her share of the cakes I had left. When I came back the next morning I heard that they had both enjoyed their fair shares much to my husband's chagrin. Also the 9x12 cake had been devoured by my coworkers, all 9 of them. I believe everyone had at least two servings which I consider to be the ultimate compliment at a potluck.

At the risk of sounding too bossy. Make this cake! Maybe not today or tomorrow but one day. I promise you won't regret it.

You can find the recipe here.

Iranian Tomato and Cucumber Salad

2010-08-24T14:35:00.001-07:00

The yumminess that goes into the salad, I ended up using cherry tomatoes that we had left in the refrigerator because all of the tomatoes in the picture below were mealy. I hate mealy tomatoes!

I am not a huge radish fan and I was tempted to leave them out but I am glad that I didn't. So if you are thinking of leaving them out don't do it! They give a nice bite to the salad.

Throw it all on a pretty plate and you're finished! I always love a recipe that I don't have to do much to make look nice in a photo. This didn't need a garnish or fancy camera angles. It's just a pretty, healthy and delicious salad!

You can find the recipe here.

We have a winner!

2010-08-06T22:43:00.001-07:00

The winner of the LeCreuset casserole dish is MamaCooks! Congratulations!

One year anniversary and a celebratory giveaway!

2010-07-29T22:40:00.000-07:00

BeckysBaking is officially one year old! It's pretty wild to realize how fast time has flown. I've learned quite a bit about baking, cooking and food photography (always use natural lights!) in only a year and I am looking forward to learning more as my blog (and I) get older.

As for the giveaway the lovely people from www.csnstores.com have asked me to do a giveaway and I couldn't wait to offer one lucky reader a freebie. CSN stores has tons of things to choose from like Rachel Ray cookware and ice cream makers.

So here's the deal, leave a comment with an email address I can contact you with and which item you would like. Easy peasy! Also for those who would like extra credit become a follower of my blog and I will give you a second entry, if you are already a follower you will get a bonus entry just for being awesome!

So here are your choices:

A Tribest Yolife Yogurt maker

or a LeCreuset 12x9.5" baking dish

This giveaway ends on August 6th, 2010 so hurry up and get your entries in!

Easy, Tasty Chicken Piccata

2010-05-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

I modified this recipe off the March 2010 Cuisine at Home magazine. It promised to be quick and delicious, it took around 45 minutes and it was tasty so on both counts it delivered.

Chicken Piccata
modified from March 2010 Cuisine at Home

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in half and pounded into cutlets
salt and black pepper
garlic powder
all purpose flour
non stick spray
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
3/4 cup low sodium chicken broth
2 (small)cloves minced garlic
2 tbsp. fresh squeezed lemon juice
slices of 2 lemons
chopped fresh parsley

Season cutlets with salt, pepper and garlic powder than dredge in flour. Coat a saute pan with nonstick spray, add vegetable oil and heat over medium high.

Saute' cutlets 3-4 minutes on one side. Flip cutlets over and saute' the other side, covered, 2-3 minutes. Transfer cutlets to a warmed platter; pour off fat from the pan.

Deglaze pan with 1/4 cup chicken broth and add minced garlic. Cook until garlic is slightly brown and liquid is nearly evaporated, about 2 minutes.

Add remaining broth, lemon juice, and capers. Return cutlets to pan and cook on each side for 1 minute. Transfer cutlets to warm plates.

Finish sauce with butter and lemons. Once butter melts, pour sauce over cutlets.

Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and serve immediately.

The pepper conundrum: easy differences between Poblano, Pasilla, and Ancho peppers

2010-03-17T15:42:00.000-07:00

Poblano peppers

I made tamales about a month ago and I realized something was seriously awry in local grocery stores. It seems that the names Poblano, Ancho, and Pasilla are used interchangeably except they are all very different peppers and shouldn't be. I realize that if chilies were being mislabeled in Arizona then they most likely were being mislabeled in less Southwestern areas and perhaps I should write a blog about it.

Here are some easy ways to tell the peppers apart:

1. Poblano peppers are most frequently mislabeled as Pasilla. They will have a wide top and a narrow base; they will be about the size of a small female's hand. They are often dark green but can be lighter green. They are less spicy than a jalapeno and when you cut them will smell very similar to a green pepper. Even though they are low spice the seeds will still burn so wear gloves when you cut them!

2. Ancho peppers are just dried Poblano peppers. To add to the confusion they look nothing like Poblano peppers; when they are dried they are red and will need to be deseeded. The easiest way to deseed them is by taking a pair of kitchen shears and cutting off the top then removing the seeds.

3. Pasilla peppers are also dried but they are dried Chilaca chilies not Poblano; they will be a dark brown or a black and are spicy so you don't want to confuse Anchos and Pasillas!

Poblanos

Ancho

Lemon Marmalade

2010-03-03T09:50:00.000-08:00

About a month and a half ago I began to be gifted lots of lemons by a mysterious benefactor. I am just kidding about the mysterious benefactor but it sounds way cooler than neighbor. Anyways my lovely neighbor (the one I gave ginger cookies to in December) began dropping off bags of home grown citrus at our door. Lemons, grapefruits and tangelos all began piling up in our kitchen, we must have had 15 lbs of citrus sitting on our counters and I began hunting for things to do with them. I juiced about half of them and froze the juice in ice cube trays for future use but I didn't know what to do with the rest.

I found this recipe for Meyer Lemon Marmalade at www.simplyrecipes.com the only problem was that I didn't have Meyer lemons but I didn't let that deter me. I decided to attempt a half and half version of the marmalade, I purchased some Meyer lemons and I used around six regular lemons. I wasn't sure how it would work but It made some really delicious, sweet and sour marmalade. The neighbor was given several jars and he tells me that he likes the marmalade on Peanut Butter sandwiches!

I am not going to go over how to prepare the lemons and can the marmalade because Elise at simply recipes did a wonderful tutorial that I couldn't beat so go check her website out for details!

Here is the basic recipe that I used:

Meyer/Regular Lemon Marmalade

4 Meyer Lemons
6 regular Lemons
6 cups sugar
6 cups water

Follow the recipe here except when preparing the regular lemons cut off most of the peel and the pith, then cut into segments. Because most of the bitter pith and peel is removed you won't get as much peel in your marmalade as simply recipe's marmalade but it will still be tasty.

I managed to get about nine jars of marmalade out of the mixture.

We have a winner!!

2010-02-22T07:30:00.000-08:00

The winner of the Kitrics Kitchen Scale is Darian Moone!

Thank you all for entering!

A Le Creuset or Kitchen Scale giveaway!

2010-02-11T21:50:00.000-08:00

I have a special surprise for one lucky reader's mailbox!

Their are only a few simple things you need to do to be entered, leave a comment on this entry with a few pieces of information:

1. Your first name
2. An email that I can contact you with (if you don't want to leave your email publicly in a comment you can email me it privately)
3. Which item you choose if you win

On February 22nd I will enter all of the names using a list randomizer and the reader who is number one will be chosen as the winner! Because of shipping costs this giveaway is only available for residents of the U.S. and Canada.

Here are the items to choose from:

A LeCreuset 9" casserole dish with a bonus 5" dish in Caribbean blue

or A Kitrics Stainless Steel digital kitchen scale
P.S. The kind folks from www.cookware.com have made this giveaway possible so go check their website out. They have all kinds of brand name cookware at good prices.

Arabic Cucumber Yogurt Salad

2010-02-03T02:37:00.000-08:00

I like this dip just by itself, with pita or drizzled over veggies. It's also heavenly with hamburgers, kabobs or lamb. My Egyptian Mother in Law showed me how to make this so it's relatively authentic.

1 1/4 cup plain yogurt
3/4 cup finely diced english cucumber (or regular cucumber with the seeds removed)
1-2 cloves minced garlic
1/8 tsp. salt
1.5 Tbsn. water
1 Tbsn. parsley for garnish

Optional:
2 Tbsn. Mint finely chopped*

Mix together the first four ingredients until well combined. Add the water and mix well. The water is added to the yogurt because traditionally this is made with Leban, a thin Middle Eastern yogurt. The water helps to thin out the regular, American style yogurt to a more authentic texture. For all the calorie conscious eaters, I've made this with fat free yogurt before and it worked out well.

*The optional mint gives the salad a refreshing taste just mix it in during the first step.

What do 7 dozen gingerbread men look like?

2009-12-06T05:14:00.000-08:00

I used the cook's illustrated gingerbread cookie. They are really delicious and if you make them like drop cookies they are fluffy and soft. If you roll and cut them out thin then they are good as ornaments to hang from a tree.

My friend Karen and I spent five hours making these cookies. Our work is doing a benefit where we auction off trees that have been pre-decorated, the proceeds are going towards breast cancer screening. The theme for our unit's tree is "an old fashioned Christmas" so the organizer's knowing that I and Karen both like to bake asked us to make seven dozen gingerbread men for them.

It was messy and tiring but quite fun.

I quadrupled the recipe and I had a batch left so I made drop cookies and they were delicious! The neighbor who got the container of cookies below chased me down the next day and raved about how tasty they were.

Best Gingerbread Cookies from the November 1999 issue of Cook's Illustrated

THICK AND CHEWY GINGERBREAD COOKIES

For about twenty 5-inch gingerbread people or thirty 3-inch cookies

If you plan to decorate your gingerbread cookies and make ornaments out of them, follow the directions for Thin, Crisp Gingerbread Cookies. Because flour is not added during rolling, dough scraps can be rolled and cut as many times as necessary Don't overbake the cookies or they will be dry. Store soft gingerbread in a wide, shallow airtight container or tin with a sheet of parchment or waxed paper between each cookie layer. These cookies are best eaten within one week.

3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces and softened slightly
3/4 cup unsulphured molasses
2 tablespoons milk

1. In food processor workbowl fitted with steel blade, process flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt, and baking soda until combined, about 10 seconds. Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture and process until mixture is sandy and resembles very fine meal, about 15 seconds. With machine running, gradually add molasses and milk; process until dough is evenly moistened and forms soft mass, about 10 seconds. Alternatively, in bowl of standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment, stir together flour, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, salt, and baking soda at low speed until combined, about 30 seconds. Stop mixer and add butter pieces; mix at medium-low speed until mixture is sandy and resembles fine meal, about 1 1/2 minutes. Reduce speed to low and, with mixer running, gradually add molasses and milk; mix until dough is evenly moistened, about 20 seconds. Increase speed to medium and mix until thoroughly combined, about 10 seconds.

2. Scrape dough onto work surface; divide in half. Working with one portion of dough at a time, roll 1/4-inch thick between two large sheets of parchment paper. Leaving dough sandwiched between parchment layers, stack on cookie sheet and freeze until firm, 15 to 20 minutes. (Alternatively, refrigerate dough 2 hours or overnight.)

3. Adjust oven racks to upper- and lower-middle positions and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

4. Remove one dough sheet from freezer; place on work surface. Peel off top parchment sheet and gently lay it back in place. Flip dough over; peel off and discard second parchment layer. Cut dough into 5-inch gingerbread people or 3-inch gingerbread cookies, transferring shapes to parchment-lined cookie sheets with wide metal spatula, spacing them 3/4 inch apart; set scraps aside. Repeat with remaining dough until cookie sheets are full. Bake cookies until set in centers and dough barely retains imprint when touched very gently with fingertip, 8 to 11 minutes, rotating cookie sheets front to back and switching positions top to bottom halfway through baking time. Do not overbake. Cool cookies on sheets 2 minutes, then remove with wide metal spatula to wire rack; cool to room temperature.

5. Gather scraps; repeat rolling, cutting, and baking in steps 2 and 4. Repeat with remaining dough until all dough is used.

THIN, CRISP GINGERBREAD COOKIES

For 2 1/2 to 3 dozen gingerbread people
or 4 to 5 dozen cookies

These gingersnap-like cookies are sturdy and therefore suitable for making ornaments. If you wish to thread the cookies, snip wooden skewers to 1/2-inch lengths and press them into the cookies just before they go into the oven; remove skewers immediately after baking. Or, use a drinking straw to punch holes in the cookies when they're just out of the oven and still soft. Store in an airtight container. In dry climates, the cookies should keep about a month.

Follow recipe for Thick and Chewy Gingerbread Cookies, quartering rather than halving the dough, rolling each dough quarter 1/8-inch thick, reducing oven temperature to 325 degrees, and baking cookies until slightly darkened and firm in center when pressed with finger, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Note: The easiest way to poke a hole in the gingerbread men is to use a straw and pop a hole out near the top. Poking a hole after baking was difficult and the first method gave us the most professional look.

Icing Recipe

1 egg white beaten until peaks form
1 tsp cream of tartar
3 cups powdered sugar

Beat the egg white until it is stiff. Add the powdered sugar and cream of tartar to the egg white. Mix well, you may have to add less or more powdered sugar to get the consistency you want for the icing. If the icing is too thick add 1 tbsn. of water. I used a #2 piping tip and a bag.

Outtakes from our gingerbread baking:

Not all gingerbread men are happy...

Some are downright special looking!

Happy Holidays Everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T11:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!!

I've been up since 5 a.m. cooking and baking. It's me and my dear husband's first thanksgiving together so I am trying extra hard to make everything perfect. Our families are in Michigan so we are having a few friends over to enjoy the feast with us!

On the Menu:

Fattoush
Chipotle scalloped sweet potatoes
Parmesan Garlic mashed potatoes
Corn sliced fresh off the cob
lamb chops
Turkey brined and baked using Alton Brown's recipe
Stuffing using The Pioneer Woman's recipe
Fresh cranberry relish
homemade rolls

Here's to hoping your thanksgiving day is wonderful and filled with love and tasty things to eat!

SouthWestern Egg Rolls and an apology

2009-10-26T00:33:00.000-07:00

Before I post the recipe for these delicious babies I just wanted to apologize to my blog readers for my lack of posts recently.

I am very picky about the recipes I post here and I only want to share ones I've tried multiple times and absolutely love. Perfectionism is a good thing but sometimes it can be self defeating. I have to pick between output and quality and I've decided that I'll always choose quality. I hope all of my readers understand.

Without further ado!

Southwestern Egg Rolls

1 pkg. Egg roll wrappers*
1 lb chicken breast cooked and shredded
Taco Seasoning to taste
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4 oz. canned corn
4 oz. canned black beans
Canola oil for frying

To seal the egg rolls:
Mix equal parts flour and water so that you have a paste to seal the egg rolls.

* I found the egg roll wrappers at Sprout's farmers market. It cost around $3 for 12 egg roll wrappers, the brand was Wing Hing.

Cook and shred the chicken breast. Add taco seasoning, cilantro and water and cook on low until the chicken is well seasoned. Take one of the egg roll wrappers, fill it with a scoop of the chicken mixture, a scoop of beans, a scoop of corn and top with a sprinkling of cheese. Take the flour/water paste and apply it to one of the edges of the egg roll wrapper. Fold two of the sides in and then roll downwards until closed. Rub the flour/water side a few times to make sure it's sealed.

Ways to cook these:
1. Deep fry
2. Pan fry
3. Bake

The best method hands down is to deep fry them, the second best is pan frying. Just fry the egg rolls until they are golden brown and then put on a paper towel to drain. I wouldn't recommend baking them. I tried to bake them for 30 minutes and they were completely mushy and gross. I baked them longer and they were dry and tough, I even took a picture to demonstrate how unappetizing these looked and believe me they tasted worse.

How to roll them:

The Daring Bakers Dobos Torte

2009-09-01T04:39:00.000-07:00

The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffés of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague.

I want to preface my post by saying that I really, really, really wanted to like this cake. I was so excited to make it and I thought it was probably going to become a dessert that I would make again and again. Unfortunately this cake was a massive disappointment. My dessert-loving husband even suggested that we throw it out because he thought it was much too bland. The only part we both liked was the tasty chocolate butter cream frosting.

The sponge cake is relatively tasteless, the caramel is way too lemony and the butter cream is much too soft. That pretty much sums up the problems I encountered with this recipe. I truly wish I was able to say something nicer about this cake but I can't.

Their of course is the very real possibility that I might have ruined the recipe through an error of my own so perhaps I'll take another stab at it. But for now I am just going to relax and nurse my wounded ego.

In case anyone is wondering I changed a few slight things from the original daring baker instructions; I made hazelnut-caramel spikes and decorated using those (I am planning to do a tutorial on those at a later date) and I just drizzled some of the caramel on the top instead of doing the caramel cake layer because I was running short on my cake layers. Otherwise the recipe was followed exactly.

For anyone who is curious:

Dobos Torte Recipe

Equipment

2 baking sheets
9” (23cm) springform tin and 8” cake tin, for templates
mixing bowls (1 medium, 1 large)
a sieve
a double boiler (a large saucepan plus a large heat-proof mixing bowl which fits snugly over the top of the pan)
a small saucepan
a whisk (you could use a balloon whisk for the entire cake, but an electric hand whisk or stand mixer will make life much easier)
metal offset spatula
sharp knife
a 7 1/2” cardboard cake round, or just build cake on the base of a sprinfrom tin.
piping bag and tip, optional

Prep times

Sponge layers 20 mins prep, 40 mins cooking total if baking each layer individually.
Buttercream: 20 mins cooking. Cooling time for buttercream: about 1 hour plus 10 minutes after this to beat and divide.
Caramel layer: 10-15 minutes.
Assembly of whole cake: 20 minutes

Sponge cake layers

6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
1 1/3 cups (162g) confectioner's (icing) sugar, divided
1 teaspoon (5ml) vanilla extract
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (112g) sifted cake flour (SUBSTITUTE 95g plain flour + 17g cornflour (cornstarch) sifted together)
pinch of salt

Chocolate Buttercream

4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (200g) caster (ultrafine or superfine white) sugar
4oz (110g) bakers chocolate or your favourite dark chocolate, finely chopped
2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons (250g) unsalted butter, at room temperature.

Caramel topping

1 cup (200g) caster (superfine or ultrafine white) sugar
12 tablespoons (180 ml) water
8 teaspoons (40 ml) lemon juice
1 tablespoon neutral oil (e.g. grapeseed, rice bran, sunflower)

Finishing touches

a 7” cardboard round
12 whole hazelnuts, peeled and toasted
½ cup (50g) peeled and finely chopped hazelnuts

Directions for the sponge layers:

NB. The sponge layers can be prepared in advance and stored interleaved with parchment and well-wrapped in the fridge overnight.

1.Position the racks in the top and centre thirds of the oven and heat to 400F (200C).

2.Cut six pieces of parchment paper to fit the baking sheets. Using the bottom of a 9" (23cm) springform tin as a template and a dark pencil or a pen, trace a circle on each of the papers, and turn them over (the circle should be visible from the other side, so that the graphite or ink doesn't touch the cake batter.)

3.Beat the egg yolks, 2/3 cup (81g) of the confectioner's (icing) sugar, and the vanilla in a medium bowl with a mixer on high speed until the mixture is thick, pale yellow and forms a thick ribbon when the beaters are lifted a few inches above the batter, about 3 minutes. (You can do this step with a balloon whisk if you don't have a mixer.)

4.In another bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 2/3 cup (81g) of confectioner's (icing)sugar until the whites form stiff, shiny peaks. Using a large rubber spatula, stir about 1/4 of the beaten whites into the egg yolk mixture, then fold in the remainder, leaving a few wisps of white visible. Combine the flour and salt. Sift half the flour over the eggs, and fold in; repeat with the remaining flour.

5.Line one of the baking sheets with a circle-marked paper. Using a small offset spatula, spread about 3/4cup of the batter in an even layer, filling in the traced circle on one baking sheet. Bake on the top rack for 5 minutes, until the cake springs back when pressed gently in the centre and the edges are lightly browned. While this cake bakes, repeat the process on the other baking sheet, placing it on the centre rack. When the first cake is done, move the second cake to the top rack. Invert the first cake onto a flat surface and carefully peel off the paper. Slide the cake layer back onto the paper and let stand until cool. Rinse the baking sheet under cold running water to cool, and dry it before lining with another parchment. Continue with the remaining papers and batter to make a total of six layers. Completely cool the layers. Using an 8" springform pan bottom or plate as a template, trim each cake layer into a neat round. (A small serrated knife is best for this task.)

Directions for the chocolate buttercream:

NB. This can be prepared in advance and kept chilled until required.

1.Prepare a double-boiler: quarter-fill a large saucepan with water and bring it to a boil.

2.Meanwhile, whisk the eggs with the sugar until pale and thickened, about five minutes. You can use a balloon whisk or electric hand mixer for this.

3.Fit bowl over the boiling water in the saucepan (water should not touch bowl) and lower the heat to a brisk simmer. Cook the egg mixture, whisking constantly, for 2-3 minutes until you see it starting to thicken a bit. Whisk in the finely chopped chocolate and cook, stirring, for a further 2-3 minutes.

4.Scrape the chocolate mixture into a medium bowl and leave to cool to room temperature. It should be quite thick and sticky in consistency.

5.When cool, beat in the soft butter, a small piece (about 2 tablespoons/30g) at a time. An electric hand mixer is great here, but it is possible to beat the butter in with a spatula if it is soft enough. You should end up with a thick, velvety chocolate buttercream. Chill while you make the caramel topping.

Lorraine's note: If you're in Winter just now your butter might not soften enough at room temperature, which leads to lumps forming in the buttercream. Male sure the butter is of a very soft texture I.e. running a knife through it will provide little resistance, before you try to beat it into the chocolate mixture. Also, if you beat the butter in while the chocolate mixture is hot you'll end up with more of a ganache than a buttercream!

Directions for the caramel topping:

1.Choose the best-looking cake layer for the caramel top. To make the caramel topping: Line a jellyroll pan with parchment paper and butter the paper. Place the reserved cake layer on the paper. Score the cake into 12 equal wedges. Lightly oil a thin, sharp knife and an offset metal spatula.

2.Stir the sugar, water and lemon juice in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over a medium heat, stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved into a smooth syrup, turn the heat up to high and boil without stirring, swirling the pan by the handle occasionally and washing down any sugar crystals on the sides of the pan with a wet brush until the syrup has turned into an amber-coloured caramel.

3.The top layer is perhaps the hardest part of the whole cake so make sure you have a oiled, hot offset spatula ready. I also find it helps if the cake layer hasn't just been taken out of the refrigerator. I made mine ahead of time and the cake layer was cold and the toffee set very, very quickly—too quickly for me to spread it. Immediately pour all of the hot caramel over the cake layer. You will have some leftover most probably but more is better than less and you can always make nice toffee pattern using the extra to decorate. Using the offset spatula, quickly spread the caramel evenly to the edge of the cake layer. Let cool until beginning to set, about 30 seconds. Using the tip of the hot oiled knife (keep re-oiling this with a pastry brush between cutting), cut through the scored marks to divide the caramel layer into 12 equal wedges. Cool another minute or so, then use the edge of the knife to completely cut and separate the wedges using one firm slice movement (rather than rocking back and forth which may produce toffee strands). Cool completely.

Angela's note: I recommend cutting, rather than scoring, the cake layer into wedges before covering in caramel (reform them into a round). If you have an 8” silicon round form, then I highly recommend placing the wedges in that for easy removal later and it also ensures that the caramel stays on the cake layer. Once set, use a very sharp knife to separate the wedges.

Assembling the Dobos

1.Divide the buttercream into six equal parts.

2.Place a dab of chocolate buttercream on the middle of a 7 1/2” cardboard round and top with one cake layer. Spread the layer with one part of the chocolate icing. Repeat with 4 more cake layers. Spread the remaining icing on the sides of the cake.

3.Optional: press the finely chopped hazelnuts onto the sides of the cake.

4.Propping a hazelnut under each wedge so that it sits at an angle, arrange the wedges on top of the cake in a spoke pattern. If you have any leftover buttercream, you can pipe rosettes under each hazelnut or a large rosette in the centre of the cake. Refrigerate the cake under a cake dome until the icing is set, about 2 hours. Let slices come to room temperature for the best possible flavour.

Batata Harra

2009-08-18T17:58:00.000-07:00

literally translated: Spicy Potatoes

These potatoes are great when you are getting bored with the same old side dishes; they are intensely flavorful and completely different than a typical potato dish. I like to make these if my hubby and I are going to have leftovers because it spices things up and adds some much needed freshness to what would otherwise be a recycled meal.

The amount of Cayenne I add makes these only slightly spicy; you can add more Cayenne pepper or less if you are a wimp (that's okay because I am a bit of a wimp when it comes to spiciness so I won't judge you). You can even substitute Parsley instead of Cilantro for a different flavor.

Here are a few tips:

I've made these with Russet and Yellow potatoes successfully so any potato should work.
These are really garlicky so adjust as needed. If you don't care for Garlic I'd recommend going with 1-2 cloves not 4!
These are so flavorful they tend to compete with a well seasoned main dish so don't serve them with one. I usually serve them with leftovers or some marinated chicken but your mileage may vary. They'd be really great with some hamburgers off the grill and cut in wedges instead of cubes. Yumm!

Recipe for Batata Harra
adapted from "The New Book of Middle Eastern Food" by Claudia Roden

5-7 Red Potatoes cut into chunks
1/2 tsp. Red Cayenne Pepper
4 cloves minced Garlic
fresh ground Pepper to taste
1 1/4 tsp. Salt (adjust to taste)
1/8-1/4 cup Olive Oil
juice of half a Lemon
1/2 cup of finely chopped Cilantro

Place potatoes on a cookie sheet covered with greased aluminum foil. Bake in the oven until they are cooked through and slightly crispy on the outside, about 30 minutes at 400 degrees Farenheit.

When the potatoes have about five minutes left, add the oil, garlic, salt, pepper, olive oil, lemon juice and cayenne into a large skillet. Cook on low until the garlic is cooked, then add the cilantro and mix together well. Finally add the potatoes into the pan and combine them. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Tiramisu Cupcakes

2009-08-12T09:10:00.000-07:00

I made these for a work potluck and they were a huge success. Everyone wolfed them down and went for seconds. I found the recipe online and these cupcakes are even made from *gasp* a boxed mix. They do take a lot of elbow grease and determination but they technically aren't hard to make, just labor intensive. It took me five hours of pretty constant work to make 22 of them but they really were worth it. They had a completely different flavor and were much tastier than any cupcake I'd ever eaten.

I have a few tips for you all if you decide to make this recipe (learn from my mistakes pretty please!!)

1. If you are planning to pipe the frosting on top; double the butter/cream cheese frosting. If you are just going to spread it with a knife, a single batch should be sufficient. I ran out of frosting midway through and had to run out and buy more cream cheese. Then I had to mix the frosting up by hand once again. I think whipping the second batch of frosting gave me mild carpal tunnel. I swear one of these days I will buy a mixer and be cool and wrist pain free like the rest of America.

2. Do poke more than three holes in the tops of the cupcakes with a fork. About five or six should do. Three wasn’t adequate enough to allow the coffee mixture to soak in.

3. Don’t try and just pipe the filling into the cupcakes without some form of a hole. Without a hole all I could get to fit into the cupcake was about one microgram of the tasty filling and then it splooshed out the top; it would have been a complete tease.

"Oh wow these cupcakes have filling, this is so great! Wait where'd the filling go?!? I swear I just tasted some! Wahhh!!!"

Little teaser bits of filling are a disappointment and you don't want your cupcakes to disappoint. I solved the problem of too little filling by using an apple corer and removing a good chunk of the center of the cupcake and then filling it.

4. Tiramisu is supposed to be a coffee soaked dessert, now I don’t like squishy but my first tester cupcake was dry with the tiniest tease of the coffee, it wasn’t even damp. Tiramisu has to be damp. So I solved this by putting a good amount of the coffee mixture on the bottom and sides of the apple corer hole, then filling it with the Mascarpone/whipped cream mixture. I didn’t even bother re-plugging the hole with the core because if you’ve ever had traditional Tiramisu you would know that it’s normally about 50:50 lady fingers and mascarpone mixture. Therefore leaving the hole filled with the filling and not re-plugging brings the cake/filling and frosting ratio to a much more pleasing 60:40.

5. Use aluminum cupcake holders, paper ones will get soggy.

Tiramisu Cupcakes

Recipe from here (Makes 24 cupcakes):

Cupcake

* 1 (18 1/4 ounce) package white cake mix prepared as directed on box. I used Duncan Hines extra moist french vanilla cake mix.

Liquid Coffee Layer

* 2/3 cup water, boiling
* 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
* 1 1/2 tablespoons instant coffee

Mascarpone Filling

* 1 cup mascarpone cheese (from tub)
* 3 tablespoons Kahlua (or coffee extract)
* 1/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
* 1 (8 ounce) container french vanilla cool whip or regular cool whip with some vanilla extract added in.

Frosting (double this if you are going to be piping the frosting on top)

* 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
* 1/2 cup butter, softened
* 2 cups confectioners' sugar
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* chocolate shavings or cocoa powder (to garnish)

Directions

1. Make Mascarpone filling mix first & allow to chill 4-6 hours or overnight.

2. Mascarpone filling: Beat mascarpone, Kahlua and condensed milk until well blended. Fold in cool whip. Chill 4-6 hours.

3. Prepare cupcakes as directed on box of white cake mix & bake accordingly. While these are baking prepare the liquid coffee as below.

4. Liquid Coffee: Boil 2/3 cup water in microwave (or boil on stove) and stir in instant coffee then powdered sugar & allow to cool to tepid.. Once cooled, use a fork to poke holes into cupcakes so that they will absorb the liquid coffee & then brush liquid coffee onto each cupcake using silicone baking brush.

5. Fill pastry/icing bag with Mascarpone filling & inject about 1 spoonful via bag directly into top-center of each cupcake.

6. Prepare Cream Cheese/Buttercream Frosting: Beat butter and cream cheese until creamy with hand mixer on low. Slowly add powdered sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add vanilla and increase mixer to medium. Blend until frosting is fluffy.

7. Frost each cupcake with frosting & garnish with chocolate shavings (use dark chocolate bar & cheese grater).

Enjoy!!!

Katie Kinser's French Bread (No Knead)

2009-07-31T05:34:00.000-07:00

Baking bread always reminds me of my Grandma; she was a really wonderful baker and would always make beautiful Foccacia and Challah bread. When she was going through chemotherapy for Leukemia my brother and me spent a lot of time with her. She was too sick to do much besides lay on the couch and she didn’t have much of an appetite. She would always get a hankering for one thing at a time and we would do our best to make it or buy it for her.

For awhile she liked a cool glass of buttermilk, then she wanted fresh baked bread. For about a month we made bread all of the time using her Baking with Julia book.

The longer she was sick the more she missed cooking and baking for herself and others. Because Grandma was good at whatever she did, she of course became the world’s finest backseat baker. If I let my mind go back that far, I can still hear her feeble voice calling from the couch as she supervised the bread making:

“you’re kneading it too much, that’s enough.”

“Add more flour.”

“It needs more liquid.”

Baking bread always reminds me of those days and nights in my grandma’s house. They are bittersweet memories but the more time goes by the sweeter those memories become.

A lot of times Grandma wouldn't even eat the bread after it was made, but she liked to watch us make it. I think it made her proud that her Grandchildren were making bread and she was helping us even when she was sick. Before she became sick she loved to show us how to make different dishes in the kitchen. To grandma being a good cook was very important. She had a golden rule that she taught everyone, "never return a dish empty." and she always stuck to that.

I think if she had been born a little later and been a bit more tech savvy she would have been a food blogger. I know she'd be thrilled if she knew I was doing this blog and she'd probably have a bunch of recipes picked out for us to do for it.

In honor of Grandma I went hunting for a good French bread recipe about a month ago and found this recipe at La fuji mama’s blog here. I pretty much followed it exactly with a few, slight modifications: I oiled the bowl while waiting for the bread to rise, I didn’t stir while the dough was rising, and I also added the yeast before the flour on accident. It’s different than most bread recipes because their isn’t any kneading involved, I was a little hesitant but it turned out to be very tasty. It’s a really good bread recipe, soft and moist on the inside with a nice crust. I know my grandma would have approved.

The yeast, frothy and bubbly

I used 5.5 cups of flour and it made a very sticky dough, I would highly recommend greasing your bowl well because the dough will be very sticky. I set my dough outside because I live in the desert and dough rises really, really well in 110 degree heat. Also don't worry if you don't have a mixer, I don't. It takes a bit more elbow grease but that just means you get to eat a few more pieces of bread because you worked out. At least that's what I tell myself. I recommend using a non stick spatula like the pink one pictured below.

I apologize for the following pictures, I don't have any windows in my kitchen so these have bad lighting.

Look at this monster dough! The yeast is alive and doing well, it liked it's patio rising spot.

Enjoy your freshly baked bread!

Recipe
From La Fuji Mama

1 1/2 Tbsp. or 2 packets (1/4 oz./7 g each) dry active yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
2 cups hot water
3 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. salt
1/2 cup oil
5 - 6 cups all-purpose flour

1. Dissolve yeast, warm water, and 1/2 teaspoon granulated sugar in a small bowl.

2. In a large bowl or stand mixer, combine hot water, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, salt, and oil. Add 3 cups of flour to the mixture in the large bowl/mixer and mix well. Stir in yeast mixture.

3. Add 2 - 3 cups more flour and mix until well blended. (At this point your dough will still be quite sticky) *. Leave in bowl and let rise for 1 hour, mixing a few strokes a couple of times during the hour.

4. Divide the dough into two or three equal portions and roll out. Then roll the dough up like a jelly roll and tuck the ends in.

5. Slice the dough across the tops diagonally a few times and then brush egg whites across the tops.

6. Let the dough rise for thirty minutes before putting it in the oven.

7. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 25-30 minutes.

* I added approximately 2.5 cups and that worked well.
** Make sure to grease the bowl well or you'll have a sticky mess. I also didn't mix the dough at all while it was rising.

My Favorite Salad, Fattoush

2009-07-26T19:43:00.000-07:00

For my first ever BeckysBaking blog post I decided to post a recipe near and dear to my heart. I grew up in Michigan outside of a city called Dearborn which has been affectionately nicknamed ‘Little Lebanon’. While dating my husband we ate at some of the best Arab restaurants in Dearborn and maybe in the entire United States.

One of my favorite things to order was Fattoush, it's traditionally made in the Middle East as a tasty way to use up stale pita bread. It’s healthy, refreshing and incredibly flavorful. My life was wonderful until I moved to Arizona and realized with horror that their was no decent Fattoush to be found in the entire state. I would be at home planning my next meal and nothing roused my appetite except the thought of Fattoush. Just contemplating the delicious crispness of the lettuce paired with the fried pita bread and the savory dressing would have me drooling uncontrollably.

Driven by desperation I attempted to recreate the salad I loved. My first two attempts at formulating a recipe for Fattoush were not satisfactory but the third time was the charm and my tastebuds rejoiced. It’s about as close to the real thing that you can find outside of an authentic, high quality Arabic restaurant and it’s incredibly delicious. I don’t even really like salad especially not enough to crave it, yet I adore this. So come on give it a try! I promise it won’t disappoint you.

What you need:

Sumac is a seasoning made from ground up sumac berries used in Middle Eastern cooking (no it’s not poisonous, I swear!). It has a really odd bitter, salty taste which I love. In my opinion Sumac is pretty darn essential to a good Fattoush. If you can’t find it the salad will still be very tasty but it won’t be an authentic Fattoush. You can find a decent sized bag for cheap at most Middle Eastern grocers. To find a Middle Eastern grocer near you go to www.zabihah.com

Combine all of the ingredients in the second picture and pulse in the food processor until it’s well combined. To be honest the dressing isn’t going to be pretty and it doesn’t even taste that great on its own. I am just forewarning you all before you stop at this step and pitch the dressing because it tastes funny. As wrong as this sounds it's going to taste odd and that's okay. I pinky swear it is. The smell though will be vibrant and garlicky so give it a taste, if it’s too sour add a bit more sugar or if you want a more intense flavor add more garlic, salt or mint. The dressing needs to sit and let all of the components meld and dance together for a few hours in the fridge. Once it’s drizzled on the salad and combined with the fried pita bread it will become an amazingly delicious metamorphosis. Trust me on this.

I like to use the combo of veggies above but you can do anything that will make your heart happy. The only essentials are the tomatoes, parsley, cucumbers and romaine so go ahead and be creative. Now chop up your choice of veggies, combine them well and put the salad bowl in the fridge to get nice and chilly. The only thing worse than bad Fattoush is good Fattoush that is served lukewarm.

Finally you are going to fry up some pita bread. If you have the ability, try to buy Arabic Pita bread. It’s called Khobs or Aish in Arabic and it’s thinner and larger than the typical pocket pita bread you find in the U.S. supermarkets. If you can’t find it pita pockets will work fine, just pull the layers apart before frying. You can try and bake the bread in the oven to be more healthy but it’s just not the same. I swear it’s not and trust me you want the full, delicious, crunchy experience.

I don’t have a deep fryer so I just take a pan and fill it up with vegetable or canola oil and tear the bread into 1” pieces and fry them in the oil until they are golden. Pat the oil off of the pitas with a paper towel and let them cool completely. The awesome thing about these little chips is that they will keep for a very long time. I can make them up and store them in a Ziploc baggie in the fridge for around a month and they remain crisp and tasty.

Once your salad and dressing are cold combine the dressing, pita chips and salad then serve immediately. You’ll also want to sprinkle some sumac over the top as a garnish.

I make up the Fattoush in single servings when I want to eat so that I don’t waste any of this lovely creation. The fried bread, like all good things has a short life once it gets drenched in the delicious dressing. I recommend the single serving method but if you are having company it’s a really pretty and impressive salad to serve up in a big, fancy bowl with the beautiful red Sumac sprinkled over the top.

Fattoush Recipe

Ingedients:

Salad
3-4 tomatoes
2 bunches of Romaine lettuce
2 salad cucumbers
2 green peppers
1/4 of a Sweet yellow onion
1 bunch parsley

Dressing
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice about 3-4 lemons
2 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar
2 tsp. dried mint
2 cloves garlic minced
1 1/2 tsp. sugar
3/4 tsp. salt
10 twists of a pepper shaker (about 1/4 tsp.) fresh ground black pepper
1 heaping tsp. Sumac
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh parsley (just grab a handful, don't worry about only getting the leaves. Some stems are fine because they'll be chopped up super tiny in the food processor)

Pita Chips
2 cups canola oil
2 large Arabic pitas torn into 1" pieces

Chop up the salad fixings and combine well, put in the refrigerator to get cold. Take the dressing ingredients and place them all in a food processor. Process until the ingredients are well combined and their are no large pieces. Place into a container and let sit in the refrigerator for two hours. Heat the canola oil in a pan until the oil is rippling, place the pitas into the hot oil and fry them until they are a golden brown. Let them drain on a paper towel. When they are cool place them in a ziploc bag and store them in the refrigerator.

To prepare the salad, toss the dressing with the salad mixture and then top with a generous helping of the fried pita chips. Sprinkle sumac generously over the top. Enjoy!