Single Serving Pear-Maple Cobbler

Sometimes you just need something sweet. For me, this often happens when Ryan is at work and it is just me home alone for the evening. Why?? Because I'm bored. I don't keep ice cream or cookies in the house so when I want a treat I have to make it from scratch. So instead of making a big batch of something sinful, I have started coming up with some single serving desserts that will satisfy my craving but not totally wreck my whole week of healthy eating.

This pear-maple cobbler is a perfect dessert on a fall evening and is a very generous serving so one could share, but I don't recommended it! And if you wanted to make it even more indulgent, I'm sure ice cream or whipped cream would make this even better.

Ingredients

Cobbler Filling

• 1 pear, peeled, cored, and chopped
• 1/8 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 Tbs all-purpose flour
• pinch salt
• dash vanilla extract
• pinch ground nutmeg
• pinch ground cinnamon
• 1 pat butter

Cobbler Topping

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• a little less that 1/2 tsp baking powder
• pinch salt
• pinch ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 Tbs chilled unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 1 Tbs whole milk
• 1 Tbs maple syrup
• dash vanilla extract
• 1 tsp sugar

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425. Combine the pear, maple syrup, four, salt, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir well place in a ramekin and top with one pat of butter. Bake until heated through and bubbly, about 18-20 minutes.

To make the topping, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and chilled butter into a bowl and using a fork, cut the butter into the mixture until well combined. Combine cinnamon, and sugar in a small bowl and set aside. Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter and set aside. Add the milk, maple syrup, and vanilla, and stir until just combined. Drop by spoonfuls over the warm pear filling and sprinkle with the reserved sugar mixture.

Bake 14 minutes, until golden-brown and firm to the touch. Serve warm.

Recipe by me.

Chicken and Wild Rice Soup

Well the school bus is yet again holding me up in the mornings....yep fall is here. I just adore fall but I would have liked a little more summer. I recently saw on the news that every holiday weekend this summer was rainy!! Boo! Oh well, I'm burning my pumpkin spice candles, already made an apple pie from my parents' orchard and starting to make some nice hearty dishes for dinner. Bring on fall.

This is just the perfect soup to welcome fall. It is thick, rich, healthy and will keep everyone full. If I liked mushrooms I would have added them to this soup. They would probably go perfectly, so if you like the fungi toss them in. I make my soups really nice and thick so beware that the next day I usually have to add a little extra water or broth to loosen this up again. Give this soup a try when fall calls you to make some comfort food.

Ingredients

Makes 8 servings

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 onion, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

2 ribs celery, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup flour

6 cups chicken broth (homemade if you have it)

1 1/2 cups uncooked wild rice

1/2 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

1 teaspoon fresh thyme

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 cup orzo (I tossed this in on a whim, optional)

2 cups shredded or cubed cooked chicken ( I used the left over chicken off a roasted whole chicken, then made homemade broth from the carcass.)

1 cup whole milk

Directions

1. Add olive oil to large, heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the onion, celery, carrots and garlic and saute for about 5 minutes. Then add the the flour and stir well. Let the flour cook for a minute or two. Slowly add the chicken broth a cup at a time, stirring constantly. Bring just to a boil and then reduce heat to a simmer to let the soup thicken up.
2. Next, add the rice, salt, curry powder, mustard powder, thyme and ground black pepper. Simmer on low for about 30 minutes then add the orzo (if using) and simmer for another 25 minutes until rice is tender. When rice and orzo is tender, add the chicken and milk and allow to heat through. Serve with fresh parsley if desired.

Recipe by me.

Jungle Animal Cupcakes

I don't have a recipe to share but thought I would post these fun jungle animal cupcakes my sister and I made for my brother's baby shower. We used this tutorial I found on YouTube but changed the monkey up a bit, made some fun owls just because and I did one special butterfly cupcake for my Grandma's 80th birthday (which was also the day of the shower). The cupcakes

were a lot of fun to make and they were liked by all.

Paella

A few weeks ago we had another get together of some of my landscape architecture college friends. It looks like this is going to be a annual event and it is so much fun. We all gather at my friend's parents' house that is in Gig Harbor right on the water. We always go clamming and get so many clams. We really have a blast and our group are quite the foodies. We were all joking about when we are all going to quite the landscape architecture thing and open a restaurant.

With all those clams, I made a really good clam chowder for dinner with the help of a few sous chefs. It was so fresh and creamy. We all really enjoyed it. Even though that chowder used up a cooler of clams, we still had a lot left over so we were able to bring a lot of clams home with us. I steamed and froze most of the clams I brought home for use in future chowders but I saved a few so that I could try making a Paella. Paella is a Spanish rice dish that often has seafood, chicken, sausage and various vegetables. I had the clams, some shrimp in the freezer and some spicy sausage so that is what I used. People can make Paella out to be a big deal but they really can be simple and very delicious. You don't really need a special Paella pan and you can really add what you wish.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings

3 1/2 cups chicken stock, preferable homemade

Pinch of saffron threads, optional

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 medium onion, minced

1 yellow pepper, cut into strips

1/2 cup frozen peas

2 cups short or medium-grain rice, preferably Arborio

2 cups peeled shrimp

about 15 butter clams

2 cooked spicy sausages, cut into 1/2 inch chunks

Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Preheat the over to 500*F. Warm the stock in a saucepan with the saffron if you're using it. Place an ovenproof 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat and add the oil. A minute later, add the onion and cook, stirring until translucent, about 5 minutes. Then add the pepper and cook another 3 minutes.

2. Add the rice and cook, stirring occasionally, until glossy, just a minute or two. Season liberally with salt and pepper and add the warm stock, taking care to avoid the rising steam. Stir in the shrimp, clams, sausage, and peas and transfer the skillet to the oven.

3. Bake for about 25 minutes, until all the liquid is absorbed and the rice is dry on top (it's nice if it browns a little on the bottom, too. Garnish with parsley and serve immediately.

Recipe adapted from The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman.

Grilled Halibut with Pesto

I don't think I ate enough halibut while I was in Alaska because I have been craving it ever since we got back. Halibut is one of my favorites and unfortunately it is a little pricey here but I splurged and got two large fillets. My basil plant was about done and needed to be used so I decided to make a pesto to slather on the fillets. I served the fish on top of a bed of greens dressed with a lemon vinaigrette. This was a delightful summer dish.

Ingredients

2 large halibut fillets

1 tablespoon olive oil

pinch sea salt

pepper

2 large handfuls of basil (I apologize for the approximation but this is how I do it)

1 large handful of flat leaf parsley

1/2 cup toasted walnuts

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon sea salt

a few grinds of pepper

about 1/2 cup olive oil

Directions

Heat the barbecue to medium-high heat. Brush the halibut fillets with oil and season with sea salt and pepper.

In a food processor, add the basil, parsley, walnuts, cheese, garlic, salt and pepper. Pulse the machine on and off until the ingredients look coarsely chopped. With a rubber spatula, scrape down the side of the work bowl. Continue pulsing the machine and slowly pour in the olive oil until the pesto is fully pureed but still has a little texture to it.

Grill the halibut until it just starts to flake apart (about 4 minutes per side). Just before you are about ready to take the fish off the grill, spread a nice layer of pesto over the fillets(there will be lots of extra pesto, refrigerate use in other dishes). Serve immediately.

Recipe by me.

Halibut

Flag Cupcakes

I hope everyone had a good 4th of July. My husband had to work so I thought I would make a big batch of festive cupcakes for him to bring to the fire station and a batch to bring to the family BBQ. I was searching for inspiration when I came across this blog. Kellyn is a girl after my own heart! Right there on her "about me" section of her blog she says " I don't believe in sweets that are made to look pretty but don't taste good! ". I say AMEN to that. That is exactly why I refused to have fondant on my wedding cake. These cupcakes look very impressive but are very light and they sure do taste great. I love using whip cream as a frosting. I'm not a huge frosting fan unless it is chocolate or cream cheese so this was perfect and reminiscent of shortcake. I do have one warning on these bad boys, serves these on a plate with a folk or they will be all over you and your guests!!!

Ingredients

Makes about 17 cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1 recipe of your favorite yellow cake or 1 package of yellow cake mix
1 package of fresh blueberries
1 package of fresh raspberries
Whipped cream frosting and filling:
4 cups of heavy whipping cream (might need to make this in two batches, it makes a lot)
1/3 cup of sugar
3 tsp of almond extract
Raspberry Drizzle:
1 (12 oz) package of frozen raspberries thawed and drained, juice reserved
1/4 cup of white sugar
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons of raspberry liqueur (I did not have any so don't worry if you don't)

Directions

• Preheat you oven to 350 and center your rack.
• Mix the cake batter according to directions.
• Line your cupcake tray with liners and fill 3/4 of the way to the top so that when baked you get a nice domed top that is high enough to cut off and use later for tops.
• Bake for about 15-18 min. Cool completely on a rack, once cooled carefully cut the top of each cupcake off using a serrated knife.
• While the cupcakes are cooling make your raspberry sauce. Add enough water to reserved raspberry juice to measure 1 cup (make sure you do this otherwise it will be way to thick in the end) Stir together sugar and cornstarch in a 1-quart saucepan. Stir in juice and raspberries.
• Heat to boiling over medium heat. Boil and stir 1 min; strain out the seeds and let cool completely, your done. If you want you can add the liqueur after you strain it.
• In a stand mixer fixed with the whisk attachment, whisk together your whipped cream ingredients - cream, sugar, and almond extract until stiff peaks form. About 2-3 min.
• In a pastry bag fitted with a small round tip fill with about a quarter of the whipped cream mixture and insert into the center of the cupcake bottoms to fill the centers with cream.
• In a larger pastry bag fitted with a large round tip put a layer of frosting on the top of the cut cupcakes. Place a small handful of blueberries on top of the cream layer on each cupcake.
• Put your cupcake tops back on top of the blueberry cream layer. Using the rest of the whipped cream frosting pipe a mound of whipped cream on top of it as high as you want.
• Put the raspberry drizzle in a ziplock bag and cut a tiny tip off and drizzle that way. Top each one off with a fresh raspberry and your done!

Recipe from K Bakes.

Roast Chicken with Balsamic Bell Peppers

We just got back from Alaska, and even though we had some great food on our trip, like the “Elks Crossing” specialty wood stone brick oven pizza made with homemade elk meatballs from Prospectors Pizzeria and Alehouse in Denali, I was ready to come home and make some healthy dinners. This dish highlights Italian flavors like oregano, balsamic and fennel. The recipe does not call for a lot of balsamic so I highly suggest using a high quality one. My in-laws brought us back some amazing balsamics from Napa valley. I used an 18 year old pomegranate-balsamic for this recipe and the peppers were amazing. Anything with this balsamic is amazing. It is so good I can just sip on it.

I served the roasted chicken and balsamic peppers over mashed Yukon Gold potatoes. I made the potatoes with plain yogurt and a little bit of horseradish. The potatoes had a slight tang which was perfect to cut the sweetness of the balsamic.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 3/4 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• 4 (6-ounce) skinless, boneless chicken breasts (I used two whole, on the bone chicken breasts with skin)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• Cooking spray
• 2 cups thinly sliced red bell pepper
• 1 cup thinly sliced yellow bell pepper (I had to use green)
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots (about 1 large) (I used half of a sweet onion)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450°.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Combine 1/2 teaspoon salt, fennel seeds, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, garlic powder, and oregano. Brush chicken with 1 1/2 teaspoons oil; sprinkle spice rub over chicken. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons oil to pan. Add chicken; cook 3 minutes or until browned. Turn chicken over; cook 1 minute. Arrange chicken in an 11 x 7–inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 10 minutes or until done.

3. Heat remaining olive oil over medium-high heat. Add bell peppers, shallots, and rosemary; sauté 3 minutes. Stir in broth, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Reduce heat; simmer 5 minutes. Increase heat to medium-high. Stir in vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper; cook 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Serve bell pepper mixture over chicken.

Recipe from Cooking Light