ORANGE-WHITE CHOCOLATE CREAM CHEESE FROSTING

This frosting goes so perfectly with orange cupcakes (above).  I've also used it on chocolate cupcakes. Orange-White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting  Rating:  9.5 out of 10 Click for PRINTABLE PAGE

6 oz. Philadelphia brand Neufchatel cheese or cream cheese 4 oz. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter 4 oz. good-quality white chocolate (should contain cocoa butter, no hydrogenated oils) 2 tsp. finely grated orange zest 1/2 tsp. vanilla powder, or vanilla extract 1 to 1-1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar Cut cream cheese into 8 pieces and place in medium bowl.  In 1-quart heavy pot, melt butter and chocolate over low heat.  Stir to combine.  Refrigerate 1/2 hour.  Beat softened cream cheese at medium speed till smooth and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.  Gradually add flavorings and sugar and beat till again smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes.  Gradually add chilled butter and chocolate and continue to beat till again smooth, about 5 – 6 minutes.  Spoon into piping bag with decorator tip and pipe onto cupcakes, or use spatula to frost cupcakes.  Yield:  enough for 24 cupcakes

BEEF TIPS MARSALA WITH NOODLES AND PEAS, FOR TWO

Have you ever searched your supermarket for marked-down packages of meat?  Beef tenderloin is a tapered piece of meat, starting out fat and wide at one end and tapering down to a very narrow piece at the other end.  That narrow piece, cut away from the tenderloin, is many times offered for sale at a reduced price.  Here is a way to use it.   Served with a side salad, this is a filling and comforting meal. 

Beef Tips Marsala with Noodles and Peas  Rating:  9.5 out of 10 Click for PRINTABLE PAGE

8 oz. wide noodles (I used No Yolks) 1 Tbsp. olive oil, divided use 8 oz. beef tenderloin, tip end, cut into 3/4” – 1” chunks 1/4 tsp. Diamond kosher salt + 2 tsp. salt for noodles 1/4 tsp. black pepper 2 Tbsp. finely chopped shallots 8 oz. mushrooms, sliced 1/4 cup Florio Fine dry Marsala wine* 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. beef broth (may use chicken broth) 1/4 tsp. Dijon mustard 2 tsp. butter+ 1 Tbsp. butter for noodles 2 Tbsp. heavy cream or half and half 1/2 – 1 cup frozen peas 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley In large pot, heat water for pasta.  In 10” or 12” heavy skillet, heat 1 tsp. oil using medium-high heat.  Salt and pepper meat and add to hot pan.  (If necessary, cook the meat in batches so it’s not crowded.  If the meat is crowded, it will steam rather than brown.)  Brown meat 1-2 minutes each side.  Remove to plate and keep warm.  Add remaining 2 tsp. oil to pan with shallots.  Cook shallots about 1 minute, till starting to soften, then add mushrooms and cook another 5 minutes, or till tender.  While mushrooms are cooking, add 2 tsp. salt to pasta water which should be boiling now.  Add noodles.  Set timer for noodles, following package directions.  (Remember to stir pasta often during cooking.) Back to the veggies:  Pour the Marsala over the veggies, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer 2 minutes.  Raise heat to medium high, whisk in the broth and mustard and bring to a boil.  Boil about 5 minutes, or till reduced by half.  Add meat and any juices and reheat gently for about 1-2 minutes.  Off heat.  Stir in 2 tsp. butter and 2 Tbsp. cream.  Cover and keep warm.  Add frozen peas to noodles about 1 minute before they are done cooking.  Drain the pasta and peas and stir in remaining 1 Tbsp. butter and parsley.  Spoon pasta and peas onto plates and top with beef tips, spooning some of the sauce over.  Serve with a side salad and, if you’re a carb lover, some hot crusty rolls.  Me?  I go light on the noodles and skip the rolls.  But, then, I’m pre-diabetic and my carb-loving days are what got me here. *Florio Fine Marsala wine is what I recommend, though you may substitute other Marsala of choice.  Florio is the original, and considered the best, Marsala .   Marsala wine is found in the fortified wine section, near the sherries and ports.  It will keep in your fridge for at least six months.  I’ve kept it successfully for a year.  You can use it to make Chicken Marsala, which can be made with either sweet or dry Marsala.

CHOCOLATE LOVE RECIPES FOR YOUR VALENTINE’S DAY

Chocolate Almond Cream Pie is dessert made in heaven.  A tender and flavorful almond graham cracker crust holds a rich and chocolatey filling with a mild almond undertone.  The whipped-cream topping is spiked with almond liqueur and sprinkled with chocolate shavings.  It has my highest rating and will make any celebration memorable.

Banana Chocolate Cupcakes are easy to make.  You don’t even need to get your mixer out, because these are mixed like muffins, with one quick mix by hand.  Full of chocolate flavor, very light and moist, this one is a definite winner!

Chocolate Hazelnut Pudding  is silky smooth and creamy with a mild hazelnut flavor hiding under the chocolate. You can certainly dress this up with some lightly sweetened, whipped heavy cream that’s spiked with hazelnut liqueur.  You could even shave some dark chocolate or chopped toasted hazelnuts over the cream.  I chose to eat the pudding as is and savor every sweet, delicious mouthful.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Whoopie Pies are fudgy, tender and flavorful, and hold a wonderfully light peanut butter-mallow filling that really steals the show.  These cookies are sweet, rich-tasting  and utterly delicious.

Chocolate Guinness Cake is everything you ever wanted in a chocolate cake.  The ale bumps up the chocolate flavor and delivers moistness as well.  This is one cake you’ll remember for a long time.

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins are moist, chocolatey, flavorful and even have fiber and some food value.   One muffin will definitely fix your chocolate craving, and you won't blow all your calories.  They have my highest rating and they don’t taste healthy!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Icing are sure to please almost everyone.  Moist, tender, velvety and not-too-sweet chocolate cupcakes are topped with fluffy peanut butter frosting.  Buttermilk and sour cream make the cupcakes tender and moist; coffee and brown sugar enhance the chocolate flavor; and the peanut butter icing is creamy, sweet and delicious.

Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chip-Heath Bits Cookies are delicious cookies with a nice peanut-butter flavor.  The pecans and semisweet chocolate chips tone down the almost cloying sweetness of the Heath bits.  Just enough crunch, just enough sweetness.  With crispy edges and insides that are soft and almost chewy, these are sure to become a favorite.

100% Whole Wheat Chocolate Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting are light and moist.  And no one is the wiser…..unless you tell them.  You can make these even healthier by using a sugar substitute and nonfat Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream.

Nutella Mascarpone Cheesecake with Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust  is a rich, creamy, firm, New York-style cheesecake that delivers a subtle Nutella flavor from Nutella that is spread over the cooled crust before adding the cheesecake filling.  The filling, itself, has hazelnut liqueur added, and the cheesecake can be topped with shaved chocolate or more Nutella.  Either way, it’s absolutely delicious.
Lava Rocks are chocolatey, chewy delicious little morsels that are also low-fat.

Happy Valentine’s Day, y’all

CHOCOLATE LOVE, A HISTORY

The cacao tree has been around for a long time; but chocolate, derived from cacao beans, is another story.  The credit for finding chocolate goes to the Mayas, but their discovery was limited to a liquid -- the Old World’s “energy drink.” The Aztecs dubbed the thick, cold, unsweetened drink xocoatl (“bitter water”), and they flavored it with spices and hot chili peppers. It was a drink only for royalty, believed to impart wisdom and health.

About 1,000 years later, Columbus found the New World and discovered that cocoa beans were being used as currency and to make an exotic drink, but failed to see the potential that had fallen into his lap.  A later explorer, Hernando Cortez, was underwhelmed with the bitter, spicy beverage, but enthused about converting cocoa beans to golden doubloons.  On a return trip to Spain, Cortez established a cocoa plantation, thinking he would be cultivating money.  He also started mixing the brew, then called “chocolatl,” with sugar, vanilla, and spices, starting a new culinary trend in Spain for the nobility.

Eventually, chocolate swept through Europe, becoming the prize of European aristocracy for centuries, while cocoa beans continued to be used as currency till the 17th century.  It wasn’t until the 18th century, after the steam engine was invented, that chocolate became affordable for the masses.  But it was still used mostly as a drink, until the 19th century when the chocolate bar was created.

The Mayans would be amazed at how far the cocoa bean has come. Chocolate is a worldwide industry; one of the most affluent. And now we’ve come full circle, right back to the Mayan/Aztec belief that it’s healthful -- dark chocolate, that is.  But don’t get carried away yet; there are some downside risks.  While dark chocolate acts as an antioxidant, reduces blood pressure, increases circulation and energy and enhances mood, it also contains theobromine, an energy lifter that can overstimulate some people, especially diabetics and the chemically sensitive.  Ever eat a chocolate dessert only to stay awake all night?  Blame it on theobromine.  There’s also a question about how much lead is in chocolate, and how much of it can be absorbed into the human system.  So, no matter how good you think it is for you, exercise temperance.  And listen up:  if you have a family pet, please don’t share the love – chocolate is known to be toxic to many animals.

Find some of my older chocolate recipes in this 2010 post on Valentine's Day.  How will you be celebrating National Chocolate Day this year?

SICILIAN PARSLEY POTATOES

My Sicilian mother-in-law introduced me to these wonderful potatoes, made with or without peas.  As the potatoes cook down, the broth and olive oil combine with potato starches into an aromatic sauce.  As the title implies, parsley is added, and it definitely adds another depth of flavor to this dish, but I was out of it.

I’m not really sure if the recipe originated in Sicily, but I decided to credit her homeland in her honor.  This is a simple side dish, but one that everyone will love.

Sicilian Parsley Potatoes Rating:  10 out of 10 Click for PRINTABLE PAGE

INGREDIENTS: 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil 1/2 cup chopped onion 2 medium-size starchy potatoes, such as Russet or Idaho, peeled, chopped in 1/2” cubes 1/2 tsp. Diamond  kosher salt, or table salt if preferred  1/8 tsp. black pepper (1/4 tsp. if you can handle more black pepper) 1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth 1 cup frozen peas (optional) 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley In a 2-quart saucepan, saute the onion in oil 3-4 minutes over medium-high heat, till onions start to sizzle.  Add the potatoes, stir and cook 1-2 minutes, or till they are well coated and sizzling.  Season with salt and pepper.  Pour broth over all and bring to a boil.  Cover the pot, reduce heat to a simmer and cook about 10 minutes, or till potatoes are tender and liquid thickens slightly.  Add peas and parsley and cook another 4-5 minutes, or  till peas are tender.  If liquid is too thin, remove cover during last few minutes of cooking time to reduce liquids and thicken.  Yield:  3-4 servings

ANNE BURRELL’S ROCKIN’ BAKED BEANS, adapted

One of my favorite chefs is Anne Burrell, who currently teaches at the Culinary Institute of America in addition to hosting several Food Network shows.  On a recent episode of “Secrets of a Restaurant Chef,” Chef Burrell made her “Rockin’ Baked Beans.”  I increased the sugar in the recipe slightly and thought they were just right, but my hubby wanted them sweeter.  If you’re like my hubby and want your beans on the sweet side, add an additional 1/4 cup of brown sugar.  The original recipe calls for canned beans, but I opted for dried beans that I cooked first.  If you want to shorten your cooking time, use canned beans. 
I liked the complex flavors of this hearty dish.  The vegetables and meats with the sweet-hot tones were tasty and satisfying enough to be used as a main dish.
  

Anne Burrell’s Rockin’ Baked Beans, adapted Rating:  8.5 out of 10 Click for PRINTABLE PAGE

INGREDIENTS: 2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil 1 medium-large onion, cut into 1/2” dice 1/2 of a large green pepper, cut into a 1/4” dice kosher salt, to taste 3 garlic cloves, grated on a microplane grater 2 links hot Italian sausage, casings removed 1/3 cup tomato paste 3/4 tsp. ground cumin 1-1/2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard 1-1/2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar 4 Tbsp. molasses 1/4 cup brown sugar 5 cups cooked navy beans (1 lb. pkg.), or 3 15-oz. cans navy beans 2-1/2 cups bean liquid, or bean liquid and water to equal 2-1/2 cups, divided use 5 slices bacon Coat an oven-safe pot with 2 Tbsp. olive oil and put over medium-high heat. Add the onions and peppers.   Season with salt, to taste, and cook until the onions and peppers are soft and aromatic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Add the sausage and use a spoon to help break it apart. When the sausage is brown, add the tomato paste and cumin and cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the Dijon, apple cider vinegar, and molasses, then add in the beans and 1 1/2 cups of water.  Taste and season with salt, if needed. Bring to boil, then reduce the heat and simmer the beans until they are nice and thick and taste really good, about 15 to 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, add the remaining cup of water. Top the beans with the bacon slices.  Bake until the beans are nice and thick and the bacon is crispy, about 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve.

You might also want to try Company Baked Beans.  They're mild and flavorful and downright good.

Maple Baked Beans for a Crowd have a nice kick with a little sweetness.

Baked Beans with Ground Beef are a real man pleaser, with ground beef and bacon and a nice tang from a little brown sugar and some apple cider vinegar.

HERE COMES THE SUPER BOWL!

This year, we planned on hosting a Super Bowl party until our friends offered to have it at their (much larger) house.   We’ll bring a meat and cheese tray, assorted rolls, lettuce, tomato, mustard and mayo.  They and other guests will provide potato salad, baked beans, chips, dips and drinks. 
So what will be on our meat and cheese tray?  Well, Saturday night, I’ll make a glazed spiral-cut ham. 

Sunday morning, I’ll cook Soy-Apple Brined Grilled Turkey. 

Before the party, I’ll slice the turkey and ham for the meat part of the tray.  American and provolone cheeses will make up the cheese part. 
If time is on my side, I may bring some sweet stuff, like yummy Peanut Butter Mousse Brownies.


Or there’s always New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies with Pecans.


What  will you be doing for Super Bowl Sunday?