Oyster Mushrooms

I made it in time to grab the last of the Oyster Mushrooms

One problem, I've yet to be inspired to use them...

Any suggestions??

What is your favorite mushroom recipe?

Teddy

Cupcakes and Stout Party

STOUT and cupcakes party??
Ever since I laid eyes on Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World's recipe for cupcakes that were made with stout, I knew that I should, nay MUST, have a cupcakes and stout party. It's about time eh?! Stouts and dark beers are usually my beverage of choice. I invited Cara and my roommate, Crystal, to assist and they were a large part of the quality control testing of this all female, no-boys-allowed get-together.

Granted there were a fair few number of people who turned their nose up at this idea- beer and cupcakes??- but I assure you, these beer baked brown goodies were much better than even I expected. Photographic evidence of such may be viewed below...

Above is the world's most adorable apron, the finished cupcakes and my tasty stout.




Before baking could begin we sampled a chocolate stout with vanilla ice cream- aka a beer float. My roommate and I discovered this beverage over the summer and both were blown away by the fact that it was actually NOT BAD, good in fact.




With our whistles wet we read and mixed all the ingredients. I won't lie, I added more cocoa powder than the recipe called for but I always do that because I think there is no such thing as too much chocolate flavor.



The cupcakes fresh out of the oven. See?? They look normal right? And no taste of beer.




I made the butter cream frosting and tinted it pink for the girls only theme. A cherry top makes any cupcake irresistible.



Piping frosting is a new part of baking for me. Normally my cupcakes are given a slight schmear of frosting with a butter knife. I need a little practice at it but not completely terrible for my 2nd or 3rd time ever using a piping bag.

Cara is just showing off her quality assurance skills here.

Girls only cupcakes and stout parties need to be the new phenomenon!


Teddy

Preview Post

Kitty is just waiting to hear (and perhaps taste??) all about these adorable cupcakes

Sunny, warm, and finally spring here in Southern California.

How can I be expected to sit inside on the computer on a day like this? Well, I can't :)

Thus, enjoy this PREVIEW post of the cupcake and stout party I had last night...


See you soon!

Chickn Pitas

If you've been an avid reader of my blog- which I'm sure you ALL are, because who wouldn't be?- you may have noticed I have a friend named Cara.
Cara is awesome with a capital A and the bomb with a capital B... Why?
Because one night a week, she cooks for ME!
We've been trying to meet up one day a week at her place to have a "girls night"- no boys allowed, sorry!
When I come over, she's kind enough to feed me.
Pita pockets filled with morning star chickn patties, romaine lettuce, and pepper jack cheese with a vegan ranch chipotle sauce was her offering to me.
DELICIOUS
And ready in only a few minutes time.

Thank you Cara!


Teddy

ps my parents cooked for me this week too! I'm getting spoiled ;)

Garlic Stir Fried Kale

Garlic-y kale is a treat.

Honestly- I LOVE it. But then again, anything steeped in garlic is a treat right?

The mixture was a little dry for my liking and I was craving something with a sauce so I added some stir fry sauce. *Poof* magic delicious, garlic stir fried kale on top of steamed white rice.

It's Wednesday and I'm most definitely working for the weekend! Hope your week has been going well


Teddy

Shiitake Soup

One of the best features of the infamous Irvine farmers market that I often mention on here are the mushrooms. They're cheaper and much more fresh than most mushrooms found at a grocery store. Tragically, I arrived late at to the farmers market this week. I had hoped to pick up some oyster mushrooms but those are always the first to go.
Actually, I think my favorite mushrooms are a tie between shiitake and oyster; however, I was jonesing for oysters.
Anywho- This girl was fortunate enough to grab a handful of shiitakes.



There was a bit of a cold/rainy weekend recently so I made a lunchtime soup out of the shiitake. The dish included garlic, unchicken broth, ramen, with green onion and toasted sesame top it off. It very much hit the spot and was comforted me through the rain. There is nothing better than a warm blanket, a bowl of soup and a movie on a rainy day. I look forward to rainy days- they are a get reason to do absolutely nothing here.

I've had several MORE birthdays pop up- you can can expect to see more cupcakes soon!

Teddy

Samosa

Trader Joe's is a mecca for fast frozen wonders. This time I tried their samosas. Samosas are my favorite Indian food. They are filled with curried potatoes and veggie bits. You can learn more here.





Preparing a quick frozen meal can sometimes leave me with pangs of guilt for not really cooking. To make up for this, I kicked up my rice by adding some saffron. Perhaps it's not coming across in the pictures but that rice is YELLOW with saffron goodness.

Hope you had a Happy Easter!


Teddy

Baby Garlic

This is another gift of the Irvine farmers market. I've become quite fond of it.
Last week, while exiting the market I saw a sign that read "baby garlic $1.00. How can anyone pass up a deal like that?!

I most definitely could not. I found that this baby garlic was very mild and almost onion like when cooked. My suggestion is to eat it raw, uncooked- the flavors will stand out more that way. Next time I will throw it on top of a spinach salad (spinach and garlic-can you go wrong??).


Teddy

Golden Beets

I like beets.
Roasted, pickled, any way I can get them.
When I spotted these golden beets at my local farmers market I was eager to give them a try.

You would think that golden beets would be a new favorite veggie. Unfortunately, these golden beauties do not hold a candle to their ruby cousins. They lacked the sweetness of red beets and this girl was a little disappointed.

From now on, I'm sticking to red beets!

However, if you think you don't like beets, give golden beets a try. Their flavor is less intense and your body will thank you for the nutrients.

Teddy

Kick it off with a cupcake

Now that I'm back in the habit of cooking for myself again I figured I'd start my new posts with what I enjoy doing most- BAKING...

This week happened to be a co-workers birthday and that is the only excuse I need to bust out my baking supplies. These cupcakes are vanilla with a lemon frosting.

Now normally I am a pure chocolate loving cupcake baker but for some reason this person enjoys any and everything lemon. I decided to mix it up (no pun intended- unless you like that sort of thing) and try a something outside my norm.

I think they turned out quite well!

What are you favorite cupcakes?

Teddy

Thank you!

Hi there

Some of you may have noticed my lack of posting for the last month. My apologies for the hiatus. I've recently had someone pass in my family so I needed a break.

Hope everything is well with y'all.

Thanks for your comments, I plan on returning this week- full force!


Teddy :)