They were utterly and completely delicious. Ina Garten never disappoints.

SO delicious, I sent my dad a box full of them for his B-day.  My mom has complained he refuses to share.

I sent him a total of 27 cookies.  A day and a half in he was down to 19.  My mom was forcefully limited to 3.

I also sent some chocolate-covered Alfajores (dulcet de leche filled cookies). Same buttery cookie – different filling – all out of this world.

Ingredients: 

• 3 sticks (1.5 cups) unsalted good-quality butter, softened (since I am very impatient, I placed my cold butter in a mixing bowl, cut it up in small chunks, and placed it in the oven at 180 degrees for about 5 minutes.  Just don’t let it melt– you want it soft.)
• 3.5 cups flour
• 1 tbsp real vanilla extract
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Filling
• 2 eggs
• Coconut

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Mix butter and sugar until creamy with a whisk. Add vanilla.
3. In second bowl, mix flour and salt.
4. Add butter mixture to flour.  Mix together with your hand (or with a fancy mixture if you have one)
5. Roll into a disk, cover with parchment paper and freeze for 15 mins.
6. Roll into little balls
7. Dip in egg mixture
8. Roll in coconut
9. Indent middle of cookie with finger
10. Fill with favorite jam
11. Place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
12. Bake for 11-17 minutes, depending on thickness.  Coconut should be brown.
13. Enjoy!

BEER BATTERED COD 

Ingredients: 

• 1 lb cod fish, cajun seasoning, salt, pepper
• Batter: 1 1/2 c. flour, 1 can beer, cajun seasoning, lemon zest
• 1/2 c. flour
• 2 c. Canola oil for frying

Ingredients: 

• Frozen steak fries
• olive oil
• dijon mustard
• rosemary
• salt
• pepper
• parmesan cheese (or romano or mozzarella)

CHOCOLATE CHERRY & ALMOND CAKE

For the cake I used Julia Child’s Chocolate Almond Cake.  I was very disappointed with the cake. It was dry and tasteless. But, the cherry filling made with red wine and oranges was fantastic, as well as the chocolate frosting.

HERB AND CHERRY TOMATO TART

Orgasm in your mouth! Buttery dough covered with mustard, parmesan, and herbs topped with sweet and juicy cherry tomatoes – topped with mozzarella and basil. Make this before tomato season ends!

PESTO TORTELLINI 

Simple yet amazing.

BEEF BOURGUIGNON

GNOCCHI CAPRESE PASTA

Pan fried gnocchi with a bit of garlic, tossed with lemon pasta, cherry tomatoes with a bit of white wine and olive oil. Finish off with little mozzarella balls and fresh basil, and balsamic vinegar. The perfect summer pasta.

SALMON TACO SALAD

May I present you with the most irresistible crumbly buttery cookie filled with gooey cajeta (dulce de leche).  Pair with a cup of coffee for a mid-afternoon snack.  Ahh, perfection!

Ingredients:

• 3 sticks (1.5 cups) unsalted good-quality butter, softened (since I am very impatient, I placed my cold butter in a mixing bowl, cut it up in small chunks, and placed it in the oven at 180 degrees for about 5 minutes.  Just don’t let it melt– you want it soft.)
• 3.5 cups flour
• 1 tbsp real vanilla extract
• 1 c. sugar
• 1/8 tsp salt
• Cajeta or dulce de leche

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Mix butter and sugar until creamy with a whisk. Add vanilla.
3. In second bowl, mix flour and salt.
4. Add butter mixture to flour.  Mix together with your hand (or with a fancy mixture if you have one)
5. Roll into a log and cover with plastic wrap/parchment paper. Place in freezer for 30 mins.
6. Cut log in thin circles. Place in cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.
7. Bake for 11-15 minutes, depending on thickness.  Cookies should barely be brown on the outside, white in the middle.
8. Let cookies cook completely.  Place a teaspoon of cajeta in middle and top with another cookie.  Dust with powdered sugar.
9. Try not to drool during the process.
10. Enjoy!

Cajeta, better known as “Dulce de Leche” in South America and Spain, is a rich caramel sauce and a staple in every Latin American home.  It is the Nutella of Europe and the peanut butter of the United States. We eat it for breakfast with a piece of toast and coffee, we use it as fillings in cookies and cakes, or, it is simply eaten by the spoonful.

It’s incredible how food or smells can bring back certain memories you would otherwise not recall.  Like my mom’s arroz con leche or avena.  The smell of the simmering sweet milk and cinnamon takes me back to our small home in Mexico.  I can see my mom standing over the stove stirring while I attentively watched every step impatiently waiting for my warm bowl.  Or Pozole, which instantly takes me to my grandmother’s ranch where she would ritually kill and feather a chicken while I hid in horror and proceeded to pretend my delicious chicken soup was vegetarian. The cajeta, however, reminds me of my grandpa.  Every time he came to visit us in Guadalajara he brought my mom and I a jar of homemade cajeta.  And as long as we had that jar, our mornings always started just a little bit sweeter.

I know they now sell “dulce de leche” in grocery stores, but it doesn’t come close to the real thing.  Although making it is time consuming, it is sooo worth it.  So grab a good book, make yourself a cup of coffee, and be prepared to stir (off and on) the entire afternoon.

I you don’t have the time, however, here is a little trick – and no, it does not consist of boiling a can of condensed  for 4 hours risking an explosion with cajeta all over you ceiling and walls (yes, I have seen it happen).  What you do is place the contents of a can of condensed milk into a baking dish and place it into a nice water bath.  Bake in the oven at 425 for about an hour until it is a nice caramel color.  You’re welcome.

Ingredients:

• 4 c. Goats Milk
• 4 c. Whole Milk
• 1 can evaporated milk
• 2 small cans media crema (table cream), or 1 c. heavy cream
• 3 c. Sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/8 tsp  salt
• 1/3 c. bourbon
• 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Place milk, cream and sugar on med heat in BIG saucepan (to prevent it from spilling over). Stir occasionally.
2. When it starts to boil, add baking soda and salt, stir.
3. Turn the heat down to low and stir every 30 mins or so.
4. Cook until you get a deep caramel color. (Mine took about 4 hours on super low.  If you cook on med heat it should take about 1.5-2 hours).
5. When the color is where you want it, add the bourbon and vanilla.
6. Let cook for an extra 15 minutes. Take off heat.
7. The cajeta will thicken as it cools.  Transfer the Cajeta into a jar let cool completely. Place in refrigerator.

I know, I come up with pretty weird recipes, but most of them work–(at least the ones I choose to post)–I promise!! =)

I recently had an idea that I can turn many classic dishes into a noodles dish. I told Mark about my idea and, as I suspected, he didn’t think it sounded too good.  So I made his favorite meal, Buffalo Chicken, into pasta.  Guess who loved it? After finishing off his plate he immediately turned to me and said “sorry I doubted you, it was amazing!”.  Now I am wondering if he does this on purpose to get me to cook something he wants…I think I underestimate him sometimes.

Buffalo Fettuccine Alfredo Ingredients:

• Cooked Fettuccine, al dente
• Your favorite alfredo recipe
• + blue cheese
• + buffalo (“Frank’s Red Hot”) sauce
• + red pepper flakes
• + artichoke hearts

Buffalo Chicken Ingredients:

• Buttermilk + paprika or cayenne
• Flour + salt & pepper + paprika
• Panko bread crumbs

Directions: Combine chicken strips in buttermilk, then in flour mixture, again in buttermilk, and finally in the panko bread crumbs.  Fry until golden. Make sure it is completely cooked through.

I love lentils.  I could seriously eat them for every meal.  Problem is Mark is not too fond of them.  But I think I have solved the problem!  This was my first time using red lentils. These are much smaller than green lentils, and I found they weren’t as overpowering.  Because of their miniature size, they are not front-and-center.  The soup really looked more like a vegetable soup, which doesn’t really help me much since Mark does not really like soup either.  I was prepared for Mark’s picky self to refuse to eat dinner, but to my surprise he ate his entire bowl, and then asked for another!  He did note, however, that these would be even better with spicy portuguese sausage.  And I agree. Even though I don’t eat meat, I think the addition of sausage would be fantastic in this soup.

What makes this lentil soup special is the addition red wine, balsamic vinegar, and yams. The balsamic and yams give the soup a slight sweetness to it, while the red pepper flakes gives it heat (the spicy sausage would also serve this purpose). Best lentil soup I have made thus far.

Lentil Soup Ingredients:

• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, grated
• 4 celery stocks, diced
• 3-4 carrots, diced
• 1 sweet potato or yam, diced
• 1 can crushed tomatoes
• 1 package spinach, thawed
• 1 1/2 c. red lentils (or 1 c. green lentils)….red lentils are smaller than the green ones
• 4 c. water
• 3 c. chicken or veg. stock
• 1 c. red wine
• 1/2 c. balsamic vinegar
• Seasoning: salt, pepper, oregano, italian seasoning, cumin, red pepper flakes
• Topping: plain yogurt (or sour cream), parmesan cheese
• (optional) spicy italian or portuguese sausage

Directions: Saute veggies for about 10 minutes in light olive oil.  Add lentils and crushed tomatoes.  Add liquid and spices. Cover and cook on med heat for about 1 hour. Serve with plain yogurt (or sour cream) and parmesan cheese.

This dish has two of my favorite ingredients: spinach and feta!  I can never get enough. Super easy to make, just make sure you fully thaw the phyllo sheets (for about 2 hours!). I was not patient enough, coincidentally, many of my phyllo sheets tore. But no big deal, I used the leftover torn sheets to make yummy baklava!

Spanakopita Ingredients: (Bake at 350 for 30 minutes)

• 1 red onion, chopped
• 3 clove garlic, grated
• 2 packages frozen spinach, thawed and moisture free
• 1/2 package cream cheese
• 1 4 oz package feta cheese
• Salt + Pepper
• Red pepper flakes
• 8 Phyllo pastry sheets, thawed
• Olive oil (to brush on pastry sheets)

Directions:

1. Saute onion in pan. Add garlic and spinach (without the excess water). Place in bowl and add cream cheese and feta. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.
2. In a greased pie pan, place 1 sheet of oiled phyllo dough. Over lap with 3 more oiled sheets for a total of 4. Place spinach filling inside and top with 4 more oiled phyllo sheets. Tuck the edges in and cut into desired servings. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

I know, another pumpkin recipe.  But I feel like I am allowed to be slightly obsessed with pumpkin this time of year, as is everyone else.  I haven’t made pancakes in a while, and I had buttermilk I had to use up so woke up this weekend determined to make these.  Originally I was going to make pumpkin pancakes with chocolate chips (Mark’s favorite), but I decided there was not enough pumpkin in these.  That’s when I came up with the stuffed with “pumpkin pie” idea with the leftover pumpkin puree. I still made Mark’s with chocolate chips topped with maple syrup, but mine were regular pumpkin pancakes topped with nutella. I think mine was better.

This pumpkin filling would also be great with crepes.  I think I may just try that for tomorrow’s breakfast! Update: I tried this crepe recipe with the leftover pumpkin filling…to die for! Even better than the pancakes, in my opinion.

Pumpkin Pancake Ingredients:

• 2 c. flour, sifter,
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp baking powder, sifted
• 1/2 tsp baking soda, sifted
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp pumpkin spice (or nutmeg)
• 1 c. buttermilk
• 3/4 c. pumpkin puree
• 3/4 c. club soda
• 2 eggs, at room temperature and lightly whisked
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Semi sweet chocolate chips (optional)
• Toppings: nutella or maple syrup (optional: nuts, whipped cream)

Directions: combine wet ingredients and dry ingredients in separate bowls. Combine the two GENTLY and let sit for about 10 minutes. On buttered or oiled griddle pour 1/4 c. batter and lightly spread out. Cook on med heat, flip and cook all the way thorough.

Pumpkin Pie Filling Ingredients:

• 1/4 c. cream cheese
• 2/3 c. pumpkin puree
• 1/4 c. cool whip
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• Cinnamon + pumpkin spice

Directions: Combine until smooth and creamy. Spoon 1/4 c. in between 2 pancakes and top with a layer of nutella OR maple syrup.