cold peanut sesame noodles

So I have been in a peanut kick these past couple of days. Anything from peanut butter lollipops (heaping spoonfuls of Skippy) to peanut butter cookies. So you can imagine how satisfying this recipe from smitten kitchen was to me. Now of course I had to "tweak" a few things in the original recipe. Since I can't afford a blender or food processor I just bought a satay peanut sauce from the grocery store. I'm also not the biggest fan of red peppers so I cut that out as well. It came out really well, and there's definitely something about cold noodles that I love.

Give it a try!

Ingredients:

4 scallions thinly sliced

1 cucumber sliced

Tofu (however much you want to add)

1 package of thin spaghetti

5 tablespoons of satay peanut sauce

Recipe:

Add thin spaghetti to boiling salted water and cook for 6-7 minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Add cucumber, tofu, scallions and pasta to peanut sauce and combine.

Enjoy!

Love,

Us.

Mozzarella, tomato, and basil panini's

Sometimes the tastiest treats to make are the most simple! All we did was add fresh tomato, mozzarella, basil, extra virgin olive oil and vinegar to toasted french bread and wallah- perfection.

Sorry for the poor quality--pictures were taken on my Iphone.

So why not try this tasty treat for dinner tonight!

Enjoy!

Love,

Us.

Marble Brownies

It was my bosses birthday at work this week and her birthday "request" was marble brownies. I thought I could just add cream cheese to the batter and that would be that. Wrong. Called my Mom and she had a better idea...

Use any old brownie box recipe (Duncan Heines is usually our go-to) then in a separate bowl combine 1 egg, 3 tbs. of sugar, 1 tsp. of vanilla and 8 0z. of room-temp. cream cheese. Combine brownie mix as stated on the box and spread into a 12X 8 non-stick baking pan. Then drop dollops of cream-cheese mixture on top of the brownie batter. Take a knife or toothpick and swirl the mixture into the batter.

Tip--do not mix completely because then you'll have a gray batter, just swirl gently! Follow the baking instructions, mine took about 50 minutes. Let stand to cool. Cut into squares and enjoy!!

Love,

Us.

Ps my boss loved them!

Crispy black bean tacos with feta and slaw

I found this quick & east recipe while perusing another one of my favorite cookie sites smitten kitchen. You can find the original recipe here or my own version down below!

Ingredients:

1 can of Goya's canned black bean in sauce

1 tsp. of red pepper flakes*

5 tsp. olive oil, divided

4 tbs. fresh lime juice

2 cups coleslaw mix

2 green onions, thinly sliced

4 white tortillas

1/3 cup crumbled feta cheese

Recipe:

Place beans and red pepper flakes in small bowl; partially mash. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Mix 2 teaspoons olive oil and lime juice in medium bowl; add coleslaw, green onions and toss to coat. Season slaw to taste with salt and pepper.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in large nonstick or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortillas in single layer. Spoon 1/4 of bean mixture onto half of each tortilla, cook 1 minute. Fold tacos in half. Cook until golden brown and crispy about 1 minute each side. Fill tacos with feta and slaw.

A few quick notes

* Cumin in EXPENSIVE. I called my Mom to ask what a cheaper alternative might be, she said she sometimes uses Curry instead, which was still $6.69 for a small container. She said it was fine to use the red-pepper flakes. Honestly, it wasn't too spicy and if you feel like your bean mixture is lacking in flavor, load up the salt & pepper.

Other than that, this recipe was very fast and I was surprised how much food there was!

Enjoy!

Love,

Us.

Bruschetta Sandwiches

So one of the main reasons we started this blog was because we saw "Julie & Julia". We loved the idea, my Mom loves Julia Child, and boom here we are. In the beginning of the movie, she makes this recipe for dinner and I couldn't find it so I improvised. HaHa. This is perfect for an appetizer, but with a bigger portion and a nice big glass of wine it was perfectly fine for dinner.

Ingredients:

1 fresh french baguette

3 large tomatoes

1 yellow pepper

1 red onion

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

pinch of oregano

2-3 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil

2 tbs. butter

Recipe:

Wash and let stand dry all your vegetables. Chop tomato, onion, and yellow pepper into fine squares then let sit in a colander so juices will drain. Once drained, add your vegetables to a large bowl with pepper, salt, and oregano. Stir ingredients but be gentle because the tomato is very fragile. After this is combined, drizzle extra virgin olive oil on top of the bruschetta and let it stand.

You want to make the brushcetta before you grill your bread because it'll give your ingredients extra time to blend and become very flavorful.

Add butter to a medium-sized skillet over high heat. Slice your bread as thin as you wish. Once grill is heated, place your bread onto the skillet and grill. Depending on how thick your bread is, you may have to press it down with a spatula. Once bread is golden brown remove from the skillet.

Place your bruschetta onto your bread and wallah!

Enjoy!!

Love,

Us.

Memories of a Cupcake...

Ok so my favorite blog happyladyeats just posted this adorable post on eating cupcakes. I think we all know the feeling of finishing a cupcake...not fun. Haha. Check it out!

Love,

Us.

How cute is this little guy? We have so much in common.

Cupcake Bakeries!

I found this great article while perusing my favorite "New York City" site, Time Out New York. It talks about all the best bakeries and the best cupcakes in those bakeries in the tri-state area! I will be checking these out this weekend, for sure!

http://newyork.timeout.com/articles/own-this-city/82137/photos-of-cupcakes-from-new-york-city-bakeries

Enjoy!

Love,

Us.

Homemade Pasta

Over the holidays we made homemade pasta. Fresh pasta is so so easy to make it is surprising that we don't make it more often. No matter how good the fresh or dried pasta you buy is, it generally doesn't match the flavor of good homemade pasta. Give it a whirl and being a homemade pasta maker is definitely something to brag about!

Ingredients:

2 large eggs

1 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour

pinch of salt

Recipe:

To make the dough by hand, make a well in the flour on a clean, flat surface. Break the eggs into the well and add the salt. Working with your hands or a fork, begin incorporating flour into the eggs at the center. Before long you'll have a workable dough, which should be kneaded for several minutes. The goal at the end of kneading is to have a well-formed, elastic dough that is very smooth. Roll out each piece of dough into long, flat, rectangular sections and process through your machine. Once that is finished, be sure to keep the pasta separated from each other because fresh pasta does have a tendency to stick. When your water is boiling add your pasta! Keep in mind that fresh pasta only takes about 2 or 3 minutes to cook compared to 10-11 boxed pasta takes to cook--so keep a close eye on your pasta!

Enjoy!

Love,

Us

just cause...

Design Inspiration

Switching topics for a quick second...I can't get over this design for mirrors. Love it...

Check out more pictures here---

http://cupcakesandcashmere.com/mirror-mirror/

Glazed Lemon Pound Cake

Ingredients:

2 cups sugar

1 cup butter, softened

4 fresh eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 tablespoon grated lemon peel

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Lemon-Glaze Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

2 teaspoons lemon juice

1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Recipe:

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees F. Beat sugar and butter in large mixer bowl at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy (2 to 3 minutes). Continue beating, adding eggs one at a time, until well mixed (1 to 2 minutes).

Reduce speed to low. Beat, gradually adding flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt alternately with buttermilk and scraping bowl often, until well mixed (2 to 3 minutes). Add lemon peel and 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Continue beating until well mixed (1 minute).

Spread butter into greased and floured 12-cup Bundt pan or 10-inch tube pan. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pan. Cool completely.

Stir together powdered sugar, 2 teaspoons lemon juice and enough milk for desired glazing consistency in small bowl. Drizzle over cooled cake.

Enjoy!

Love,

Us.

Strawberry Whipped Sensation

If you have a big party coming up and you want to make something ahead of time--this is it! So simple and easy to make, just pop it in the freezer and take it out whenever you need it! Also, the cold strawberry flavor is refreshing after a huge meal. haha

I would also like to point out that at the end of the night my lovely sister flipped the cake over and enjoyed the oreo crust all to herself. Added bonus if you have some left-over.

Ingredients:

4 cups fresh strawberries, divided

1/4 cup lemon juice

1 tub (8 oz.) Lite Cool Whip

8 Oreo Chocolate Sandwich Cookies, finely chopped

1 Tbsp. butter, melted

Recipe:

Line 8X4-inch loaf pan with foil. Mash 2 cups of strawberries in large bowl. Stir in condensed milk, juice, and 2 cups of lite cool whip; pour into pan.

Top with combined chopped cookies and butter; press into mixture. Cover.

Freeze at least 6 hours. To serve, invert onto plate. Remove foil. Frost with remaining lite cool whip. Top with remaining strawberries, sliced.

Makes 12 servings.

Enjoy!

love,

us.

Cappuchino Crinkles

*Recipe adapted from "100 Best Cookies".

Ingredients:

1/3 cup butter, softened

1 cup packed brown sugar

2/3 cup unsweetened coca powder

1 tablespoon instant coffee crystals

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 egg whites

1/3 cup vanilla low-fat yogurt

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flower

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl beat butter with an electic mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add brown sugar, cocoa powder, coffee crystals, baking soda, and cinnamon. Beat until combined, scraping side of the bowl occasionally. Beat in egg whites and yogurt until combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Using a wooden spoon, stir in any remaining four.

Place granulated sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Toll balls in sugar to coat. Place balls 2 inches apart on an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes or until edges are firm. Transfer cookies to a wire rack; cool.

Makes about 32 cookies.

Enjoy!

Love,

Us.