MERRY CHRISTMAS

            MERRY CHRISTMAS & A VERRY HAPPY NEWYEAR           

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies

This year I had intended to make chai-spiced sugar cookies for my friends' annual holiday cookie swap. Then I changed my mind when I got to the grocery store and realized that the spices I needed were going to cost me $20. We've been trying to stick to a grocery budget since we bought our house, and somehow it didn't seem fair to purchase expensive spices when I won't let John buy his $4-per-can San Marzano tomatoes anymore (o, the sacrifices we've made). Luckily, I had just about everything I needed for these cookies already in my pantry.

Mexican hot chocolate has cinnamon in it, and often some chile pepper to add an extra kick. The chile powder is optional in this recipe, but if you do want to add some heat, make sure you're using chile (with an "e") and not chili (with an "i") powder. It's an important distinction. I omitted the chile powder, but I thought the cinnamon added nice warmth to these cookies without being overpowering. They're basically chocolate snickerdoodles.

Give these a try--they'll make a nice addition to your holiday cookie plate. If you're looking for other cookie recipes, check out last year's Christmas cookie posts:

Holiday Cookie Madness
Cookie Dough Truffles


Mexican Hot Chocolate Cookies
from MarthaStewart.com

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon chile powder (optional)

   
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Scrape down side of bowl. Add eggs and beat to combine. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined.

2. In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, and chile powder (if using). Using heaping tablespoons, form balls of dough and roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Place, about 3 inches apart, on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are set in center and begin to crack, about 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cookies cool on sheets on wire racks 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to racks to cool completely. (Store in an airtight container, up to 1 week.)

Makes 32 cookies

Download a printable recipe.
.

English Cottage Pie

We're back! We're no longer above the little Italian restaurant, but I can't say that we miss it. It's been quite a busy month, but we're (mostly) unpacked and loving our new house. After about a week of eating take out, we graduated to familiar, low-effort dinners. Now I'm finally getting my groove back in the kitchen and trying out some new recipes.

This cottage pie recipe from Cooking Light seemed like the perfect dinner for a chilly night. I made a shepherd's pie last winter, but we much preferred this one-it was easier to make and the flavors were a little more traditional (I say that like I have some authority on traditional English cuisine. Just play along. Jolly good then.).

I only made minor changes to the original recipe. Cooking Light often instructs you to saute your veggies in cooking spray. I think this is stupid, so I ignore them and use vegetable oil instead. I also used 1 teaspoon of dried thyme in place of a tablespoon of fresh. For the low-fat cheese called for, I really like Cabot 50% reduced fat cheddar. If there's anything I like more than a mashed potato crust, it's a cheesy mashed potato crust. Yum.

English Cottage Pie
adapted from Cooking Light


Ingredients

1  tablespoon  all-purpose flour
1  tablespoon  butter, softened
1  tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2  cups  chopped onion
1/2  cup  chopped carrot
1  (8-ounce) package cremini or button mushrooms, thinly sliced
1  pound  extra-lean ground beef
2  tablespoons  no-salt-added tomato paste
1  cup  fat-free, lower-sodium beef broth
1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
1/4  cup  chopped fresh parsley
1  teaspoon dried thyme
1/2  teaspoon  salt
Cooking spray
3  cups  leftover mashed potatoes
3/4  cup  (3 ounces) shredded reduced-fat sharp white cheddar cheese, divided
Paprika (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Combine flour and butter; stir well. Heat a large nonstick skillet and vegetable oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and carrot; sauté 5 minutes. Add mushrooms; sauté for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove vegetables from skillet. Add beef to pan; cook 5 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in tomato paste, and cook 3 minutes. Stir in broth and pepper. Return vegetables to pan, and bring to a simmer. Stir in parsley, thyme, and salt. Add flour mixture, and cook for 1 minute or until thick, stirring constantly.

3. Spoon meat mixture into an 8-inch square glass or ceramic baking dish coated with cooking spray, spreading evenly. Combine the potatoes and half of cheese; spread the potato mixture evenly over meat mixture. Top with remaining cheese. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until bubbly.

Yield: 6 servings


Download a printable recipe
.

Cakes

Ik bak heel graag taarten...wat echter niet wil zeggen dat ik dit perfect kan..... maar ik vind onderstaande taarten zalig om naar te kijken en stiekem zou ik dit ook wel willen kunnen maken...Het is misschien een beetje melig en gekunsteld, maar toch.....Oefening baart kunst, nietwaar?


Om te 'kunnen' oefenen heb ik ondertussen het boek 'Cake chic' van 'Peggy Porschen' aangeschaft. Zij is Duitse van geboorte en in 1998 verhuisd naar Londen om daar carrière te maken. Ze heeft onder meer gewerkt in opdracht van o.a. Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow,Stella McCartney, Anthony Hopkins & Elton John. Ze is ook de officiële leverancier van de bruidstaarten voor het chique grootwarenhuis 'Fortnum & Mason ' in Londen !


Voor wie solidair wil 'mee-oefenen': in het boek wordt  haarfijn uitgelegd hoe je zo'n kunstwerkje kunt maken !! Ik ben alvast fan en ben van plan om mij de komende periode  te verdiepen in het betere taart en stapelwerk ! Op haar website staan trouwens veel voorbeelden van haar werk. De moeite om daar alvast een kijkje te nemen en wat inspiratie op te doen !

bron:Martha Stewart

bron:Martha Stewart

bron:Martha Stewart





bron:Martha Stewart

Bloemen

Ik heb graag bloemen in huis....Vooral pioenrozen vind ik prachtig...geniet even mee.

Bron onbekend

Bron: Vero Suh Photography

bron: onbekend

Expositie 'Lucas Cranach' Bozar Brussel

Zaterdag zijn we eindelijk de expositie van Lucas Cranach in Brussel gaan bekijken....Adembenemend gewoon...Een echte aanrader ! Gewoon doen en daarna wat rondkuieren rond de Zavel na een lekkere lunch met een glaasje wijn...

   

                 

The World of Lucas Cranach

An Artist in the Age of Dürer, Titian and Metsys.

Woensdag 20.10.2010 > Zondag 23.01.2011

Paleis voor Schone Kunsten / Circuit Koningsstraat

Lucas Cranach is een van de belangrijkste Europese schilders uit de 16e eeuw. De eerste tentoonstelling rond zijn werk in een Benelux-land plaatst het oeuvre van deze grote naam van de Duitse renaissance in de sociale, culturele en artistieke context van zijn tijd. Cranach was hofschilder en stond in contact met belangrijke figuren als Martin Luther. Tegelijk bezong hij met zijn sensuele, onacademische stijl de kracht van de vrouw en het vrouwelijke naakt. Via honderdvijftig zelden getoonde schilderijen, tekeningen en prenten maak je kennis met Cranachs verfijnde, authentieke en originele kunst. Maar ook zijn nauwe banden met tijdgenoten uit Duitsland, Italië en de Nederlanden komen aan bod, bijvoorbeeld Dürer en Matsijs. Een reis door een fascinerend tijdperk in de Europese geschiedenis.
Curator : Guido Messling

Binnenkijken bij Edouard Vermeulen

Edouard Vermeulen heeft niet alleen een extreem goede smaak om een vrouw te kleden, maar hij heeft bovendien ook nog een een pracht van een woning....bekijk hier  het interview dat VTM met hem had over zijn passie voor mooi wonen....

Edouard Vermeulen: source photo unknown

A Year of Blogging... and Some News!

We're moving!!

 It's hard to believe we've been blogging from our little apartment above an Italian restaurant for a whole year. I'm here to report that we won't be blogging from here for much longer... we'll be blogging from our new kitchen... in our new house! A few people have asked us if we're going to change the name of the blog now, but that seems like too much effort: the name stays!

We probably won't be doing too much blogging for awhile, so I'm going to list some of my favorite things we've posted over the past year (speaking of favorite things, did anyone see the Sound of Music cast reunite on Oprah this week?? Ah-mazing!). It was hard to choose, since I don't put anything on this blog if I don't genuinely enjoy it, but I've narrowed it down as best I could.

Bec's favorite things:

Salad:
Pear, Walnut, and Feta Salad

Appetizer:
Roasted Garlic Hummus

Soup:
Italian Sausage Soup

Italian dish:
John's Homemade Ravioli

Indian dish:
Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken dish:
Chicken with Israeli Couscous, Spinach, and Feta

Pork dish:
Indoor BBQ Pulled Pork

Vegetarian dish:
Eggplant Rollatini

Cookie:
Caramel Filled Chocolate Cookies

Dessert:
Salted Caramel Ice Cream


Thanks for reading our little blog! I hope you've enjoyed our first year. Once we've moved (and unpacked the kitchen), we'll be back with lots of great recipes.
.

Classy....

Voor mij zijn er heel wat mensen, foto's, kunst, impressies & ervaringen die klasse uitstralen of een bepaald gevoel oproepen.......

Coco Chanel

Dior

Audrey Hepburn

Lauren Hutton

Grace Kelly





Richard Gere







Having tea at 'Laduree' in Paris



Having lunch at 'Café Marly' in Paris....





Having dinner at restaurant 'The First'-rue Du Rivoli in Parijs


In Antwerpen: ons lievelingsrestaurant 'Sir Anthony Van Dijck'




Palladio's 'Villa Rotonda'



Leonardo Da Vinci

     

Caravaggio



 Anthony Van Dijck



Laocoöngroep in Vaticaans museum 

Cheddar Corn Muffins

 For approximately five years now, my friend Stacie and I have been saying that we should take one of the cooking classes offered at Whole Foods. Last month, we finally made this happen and took a muffin-making class. The woman teaching the class shared some excellent recipes, including this one for cheddar corn muffins. The main thing we learned was not to overmix the muffin batter. I'd heard this before, but it helped to have someone demonstrate when exactly to stop mixing. I always have to mix until I can't see any spots of flour, but apparently I was over-mixing. When everything is just barely incorporated... stop! And you'll end up with fluffy, tender, delicious muffins.

We had some special guests for dinner last night: John's aunt Linda and uncle Mike. Linda is a faithful reader and commenter here on our blog, so we wanted to make a nice dinner for her. We made these to go along with our fabulous barbeque pulled pork. The muffins have an awesome crispy crust on the top, due to a generous sprinkling of cheddar before they go in the oven. There is more cheddar in the batter, along with some oregano and cayenne. The end result is a really tasty, savory muffin... I'll definitely be making these next time we have chili!

Cheddar Corn Muffins

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornmeal
1 Tbs. baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
pinch cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 1/4 cups sharp cheddar, grated

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously spray muffin tins. Combine all dry ingredients. Add half of the grated cheese.

2. In another bowl, mix together the melted butter, milk, and egg. Combine wet into dry, mixing only enough to incorporate the dry ingredients.

3. Fill muffin tins to 3/4 full. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and add an additional sprinkling of cayenne, if desired. Bake for 20 minutes, or until tops feel firm to the touch.

Makes 10-12 muffins.

Download a printable recipe
.

Pasta with Tomato and Almond Pesto (Pesto alla Trapanese)

Can I interest you in a fresh-tasting pasta sauce that requires no more effort than throwing a bunch of stuff in your food processor? I made a double batch of the pesto and froze half of it, which I would definitely recommend doing-it doesn't require any extra work, and you'll be glad you have it sitting in your freezer for the next time you need an easy dinner.

Pasta with Tomato and Almond Pesto
adapted from Cook's Illustrated

Ingredients:
1/4     cup slivered almonds, toasted
12     ounces cherry or grape tomatoes (about 2 1/2 cups)
1/2     cup packed fresh basil leaves
1     medium garlic clove , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 1 teaspoon)
1/2     teaspoon red wine vinegar
1/4     teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/3     cup extra-virgin olive oil
1     pound pasta , preferably linguine or spaghetti
1     ounce Parmesan cheese , grated (about 1/2 cup), plus extra for serving

Instructions:

1. Process almonds, tomatoes, basil, garlic, red wine vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt, and red pepper flakes in food processor until smooth, about 1 minute. Scrape down sides of bowl with rubber spatula. With machine running, slowly drizzle in oil, about 30 seconds.

2. Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Add pasta and 1 tablespoon salt and cook until al dente. Reserve ½ cup cooking water; drain pasta and transfer back to cooking pot.

3. Add pesto and ½ cup Parmesan to cooked pasta, adjusting consistency with reserved pasta cooking water so that pesto coats pasta. Serve immediately, passing Parmesan separately.

Serves 4

Download a printable recipe. 
.

'Home Interiors'

Sinds 1995  heb ik samen met mijn man Peter een interieurzaak in Sint-Niklaas. Vanaf de opening is onze zaak uitgegroeid van een 'decoratiewinkeltje' tot een zaak waar ons cliënteel terecht kan voor de volledige aankleding van hun interieur.We werken niet volgens bepaalde 'trends', maar volgen altijd ons hart...

Een 5-tal jaar geleden zijn we de trotse eigenaars geworden van een nieuw pand waar we uiteraard een groter aanbod kunnen aanbieden en waar we bovendien ook wonen.

Ik ben, net zoals mijn man trouwens,sinds jaar en dag groot liefhebber van alles wat met interieur te maken heeft. Onze zaak is 'geboren' uit die liefde...We zijn er ons  dan ook heel erg van bewust dat we bevoorrecht zijn om dit dag in, dag uit te mogen doen.Het is bovendien een job waar we dagelijks interessante mensen ontmoeten.

  

Ik ga via deze weg proberen een beeld te scheppen van alles wat ons bezig houdt en hoop dat jullie een beetje zullen meegenieten.....en dat ik jullie kan boeien in onze belevingen !

Enjoy !

Sabine

Pork Tenderloin with Pears and Shallots

Just when you've had it with summer and the f%#$*# air conditioning that barely works... bam, you suddenly find yourself having to wear a sweater when you go out at night. Ah, fall, how I've missed you. John's parents came over for dinner last weekend, and we wanted to cook something appropriate for the changing of the seasons. But before we get to that, allow me to introduce our newest (and tiniest) kitchen assistant, Penny:

Penny fits nicely in my apron pocket, and she looooves to eat. And now back to the cooking...

The finished dish looks pretty elegant, but it was relatively simple to prepare. You brown the pork tenderloin and then pop it in the oven while you prepare the pears and the sauce. The sauce contains pear nectar (find it in the International Foods aisle with the other Goya stuff), which adds just enough sweetness. We served this with some rice pilaf, roasted tomatoes and green beans, and my favorite fall dessert, apple squares.

Pork Tenderloin with Pears and Shallots
from Bon Appetit

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme plus fresh thyme sprigs for garnish
1 1 1/4-pound pork tenderloin
3 large shallots, each cut into 6 wedges through stem end, peeled
3 unpeeled small Bosc or Anjou pears, quartered, cored
4 teaspoons butter, room temperature
2 teaspoons all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups low-salt chicken broth
3/4 cup pear nectar

Preparation:  
Preheat oven to 475°F. Mix oil, garlic, and chopped thyme in small bowl. Rub mixture over pork, shallots, and pears. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork and shallots; brown on all sides, turning, about 7 minutes. Transfer shallots to platter. Transfer pork to baking sheet (do not clean skillet). Roast pork until thermometer inserted into center registers 145°F, about 10 minutes.
  
Meanwhile, add pears to same skillet and cook over medium-high heat until brown on cut side, turning once or twice, about 4 minutes. Transfer pears to platter (do not clean skillet).
  
Mix butter and flour in small cup. Add broth, pear nectar, and butter mixture to same skillet; boil until sauce thickens, scraping up browned bits, about 7 minutes.
  
Slice pork; arrange on platter. Surround with pears and shallots. Drizzle sauce over pork. Garnish with thyme sprigs.

Serves 4

 Download a printable recipe.
.