Chocolate for breakfast

Growing up Jewish we never celebrated Easter. Ever. Which means everything I know about Easter comes from what I imagine the day to be like. Now that I "celebrate" it with Jon, I've recreated Easter to fit the image I created. For me, Easter is about candy and decorating eggs. And most importantly, the holiday revolves around chocolate.

Which means, for me, Easter breakfast must contain ooey, gooey, chocolate. I had to make ours early since we're stuck having Easter at the inlaws, where Easter breakfast consists of waffles, served 1 at a time, 1 person at a time, so if you're the first person to get your waffle everyone watches you eat it and then you sit and watch the next person eat there waffle, and so on and so forth.

My way is much better.
And much chocolaty-er.

Orange Chocolate Rolls

3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup orange juice
10 Tbsp butter
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 Tbsp finely grated orange peel
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp rapid-rise dry yeast
4 cups AP flour
2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 Tbsp Triple Sec
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1) Butter 2 9 inch cake pans. Combine milk, orange juice, and 4 Tbsp butter in small saucepan. Stir over medium heat until butter melts.
2) Whisk eggs, 1/4 cup sugar, orange peel, and salt in large bowl.
3) Gradually add hot milk mixture to egg mixture.
4) Stir in yeast, then flour. Knead dough on floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place dough in lightly oiled boil, turn to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in warm, draft-free enviornment about 30 minutes.
5) Punch down dough and divide in half. Roll one piece on floured surface in large rectangle. Spread with 3 Tbsp butter. Sprinkle evenly with 1/3 cup chocolate chips and 1/4 cup sugar. Roll up from 1 long side, pinch log at sides to seal. Slice log into 12 rolls. Place rolls cut side down and side by side in single layer in cake pan.
6) Repeat with remaining dough, butter, chocolate chips, and sugar. Cover rolls loosely with kitchen towels and let rise about 30 minutes.
7) Preheat oven to 375. Stir cream and triple sec in small bowl. Drizzle mixture evenly over rolls. Bake until rolls are puffed and golden, about 25 minutes. Cool 15 minutes.
8) Whisk powdered sugar with just enough orange juice to make a thick glaze. Add orange juice 1 Tbsp at a time until desired consistency is reached. Remove rolls from pan and spread with glaze.

Serves 24.
Each serving has:

Calories		225.2
Total Fat		8.2 g
Cholesterol		35.3 mg
Sodium		144.5 mg
Potassium		90.7 mg
Total Carbohydrate		34.9 g
Protein		4.0 g

Spring Sandwich

It is officially spring. According to the men who have dictated when seasons shall begin and end. Mother nature, as usual, doesn't always choose to agree. Women are difficult like that. We don't like being told where to go and when.

Nevertheless, it is inevitable that warmer weather is on its way and that means one thing for me - PICNICS! I adore picnics. Something about eating outside. Growing up we had a picnic table in the backyard for summer dinners. In college, I'd drag Jon to the sculpture garden where we'd spread out a blanket and fight squirrels in order to enjoy our meals. Every trip to the beach for me is another opportunity, as are concerts in the park.

The ideal picnic food is something that can be thrown together easily and can be served cold, since most beaches/parks/gardens aren't microwave friendly. Usually this means one of my fantastic sandwiches. No really - I pack them for the boys when they go surfing and I'm "wife of the year!" I especially love fruits with meats - turkey sandwiches with sliced apples, ham sandwiches with sliced pears.....

This chicken salad is bright and colorful for a spring day, loaded with fruit, and a great way to use up leftover chicken. I like it in a pita, but Jon will eat the leftovers straight out of the bowl!

Fruity Chicken Salad

2 Tbsp veggie broth
1 Tbsp curry powder
1 cup Mayo
2 Tbsp mango chutney
1 Tbsp lime juice
2 breast cooked chicken, diced
1 cup apple, diced
1 cup pineapple, diced
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1/3 cup dates, chopped
1/4 cup golden raisins

1) Stir broth and curry powder in small saucepan over medium heat about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool.
2) Whisk mayo, mango chutney, and lime juice into curry paste.
3) Mix all the other ingredients in a bowl and add 3/4 cup of the curry dressing. Toss. (Add more dressing as necessary). Season with salt and pepper.

Serves 4.
Each serving has:

Calories		408.7
Total Fat		13.3 g
Cholesterol		77.2 mg
Sodium		622.6 mg
Potassium		632.4 mg
Total Carbohydrate		44.9 g
Protein		28.9 g

Watermelon, Hominy grits, An' shortnin' bread, Alligator ribs, Some pig tails, Some black eyed peas, Some chili, Some collard greens

I have a little confession to make. I got really excited when I got my recipe for this month's recipe exchange. This month the theme was "regional dishes" and my recipe came from Georgia!!!!!!!

I am a sucker for Southern specialties. Barbeque, Cajun, Soul - Just like the gourmands laud France for their indiscriminate love of butter, the South also enjoys food that is full of fat and goodness. Living in Florida, vacationing in South Carolina and Georgia I used to be able to get my fill of grits, hush puppies, pecan pie.......but here on the west coast these things are hard to find. And when you find them they're not nearly as good.

My second confession - I already had almost all the ingredients for my recipe. All I was missing was the collard greens (which as a rule I don't keep on hand, but they're easy enough to pick up). I emailed this fact to Melissa who was organizing this exchange, she laughed at me. I mean really, what California girl has grits in her pantry at all times? Although as I've said many times before, I am hardly a California girl.Jon gave me a really weird look when I put this bundle of goodies on his plate, right next to my chickpea crusted mango chutney chicken (I told you I'd post a picture Cara). But after a bite he was in love. What's not to love about cheese grits? They're almost perfect! So thank you to whoever submitted this recipe - it was great!

Grits-Stuffed Greens (Southern Living)

Prep: ~20 min
Cook: 35 min
Stand: 5 min

You can assemble these up to a day ahead and
refrigerate. Just steam them for an extra 5 minutes
when ready to serve.

Ingredients:
6 large fresh collard green leaves
1 cup 2% reduced-fat milk
1 cup low-sodium fat-free chicken broth
1/2 cup uncooked quick-cooking grits
3/4 cup shredded 2% sharp cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Preparation:
1. Rinse collard greens. Trim and discard thick stems
from bottom of collard green leaves (about 2"); place
greens in a steamer basket over boiling water. Cover
and steam 10 to 12 minutes or until greens are tender.
Cool completely.

2. Bring milk and broth to a boil in a medium saucepan
over medium-high heat. Gradually stir in grits. Cover,
reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring occasionally,
5 minutes or until grits are thickened. Remove from
heat; stir in cheese and next 3 ingredients, stirring
until cheese is melted. Let stand 5 minutes.

3. Place one collard leave on a flat surface, and
spread out sides. Spoon 1/2 cup grits toward bottom
center of leaf. Fold one side of leaf over filling.
Fold opposite side of leaf over filling. Beginning at
1 short side, roll up leaf tightly, jelly roll
fashion. Repeat with remaining collard leaves and
grits. (I also seal them with toothpicks)

4. Place bundles in a single layer in a steamer
basket; steam, covered 10 to 15 minutes or until
thoroughly heated.

Garfield would be thrilled

Growing up, I loved Garfield. It was my favorite comic and I had all the books. For my 12th birthday, my parents even got me a big, fat, orange tabby. Although, he started out as a little ball of fuzz. He didn't get big and fat for a long time (and don't tell him I said he was fat, he's VERY sensitive about his weight). Garfield had two true loves, his teddy bear Pokey, and lasagna.

While I love my teddy bears, I could give or take lasagna. Which is why I love to experiment with it. As soon as I heard about "lasagna rolls" on my cooking board I knew I'd have to try them out. It took me a while to finally get around to it, but I'm so glad I did. Lasagna rolls are a great alternative to lasagna because they take much less time and they're already individually servable!


Jon loooooved this. He went back for seconds. He ate the leftovers the next day. He licked the plate. It comes very highly recommended.

Lasagna Rolls

2 cups ricotta cheese
1 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 egg
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups shredded chicken
8 cooked lasagna noodles
1 1/2 cups tomato sauce

1) Preheat oven to 375. Mix first 8 ingredients (save 1/4 cup of mozzarella)
2) Lay large piece of plastic wrap on countertop. Lay noodles flat atop plastic wrap, top each noodle with a layer of ricotta mixture and 1/4 cup chicken. Starting at one end, roll one noodle at a time.
3) Fill the bottom of a baking dish with 1/2 cup tomato sauce. Lay rolls seam side down, cover with remaining tomato sauce and 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese. Bake for 20 minutes.

Serves 8.
Each serving has:

Calories		220.4
Total Fat		9.2 g
Cholesterol		87.1 mg
Sodium		521.1 mg
Potassium		402.9 mg
Total Carbohydrate		8.1 g
Protein		25.3 g

Southwestern chicken

This is just a quick update. It's been ages since I made fried chicken. If you recall, the last time I made it (which was the first time I ever made it) I thought it might be a little bland. So this time, as promised, I added some more spice. Same recipe, but with the addition of some cayanne pepper. Totally did the trick. The chicken was juicy, crispy, and so flavorful.

Of course, it didn't hurt that I topped it with some chorizo gravy - chicken chorizo sausage removed from its casing and cooked with cream, onion, flour, worcheser sauce, serrano chile, and thyme. Even if th chicken had been lacking in the spice department, this would have added whatever was lacking.
And for a smidgen more of a Southwestern flava. I added some roasted poblano chile in with the mashed potatoes. I went back to my usual method without the cream cheese, and yup it was sooo much better. I'll never go back to cream cheese again!

More than just a holiday

St. Patrick's Day is always a really big occasion in my household. Not because we're Irish, not because we're gnarly partiers, but because its also my mom's birthday! Because of that we actually never celebrate "St. Patricks Day." Years of growing up with green cakes were enough for my mom. And we all were told the warning story of the first birthday my dad spent with my mom where he tried to surprise her with a green cake and she burst into tears.

This year I indulged my mom's sweet tooth with a decadent chocolate cake. But I snuck in something to commemorate the "other" holiday - Guinness. It's Irish for beer. The result? Jon said it was the best cake I've ever made. If that's not a testimonial I don't know what is. And of course, my mom loved it too!



But since I'm married to an Irishman, there's no escaping the green in our own home:





And Jon wanted his corned beef and cabbage. *Cute story alert*. I finally gave in and told Jon I'd make it. I found a great recipe from Robin that wouldn't take very long. Jon wanted to help, so he called me in the morning and asked if he could pick up the ingredients for me. I gave him a list and he went and picked it up. On my way home, he called me and asked if he could get it started. I walked him through the steps over the phone. When it was ready, he served it to me with a giant smile on his face.
Me: It looks great!
J: So? Aren't you going to take a picture?

So here it is - Jon's very first fully cooked meal!

Chocolate Guinness Cake

2 cups Guinness
4 sticks unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups cocoa powder
4 cups all purpose flour
4 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 large eggs
1 1/3 cups sour cream
2 cups whipping cream
1 pound semisweet chocolate, chopped

1) Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter three 8-inch round cake pans with 2-inch-high sides. Line with parchment paper. Butter paper. Bring 2 cups stout and 2 cups butter to simmer in heavy large saucepan over medium heat.
2) Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
3) Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in large bowl to blend.
4) Using electric mixer, beat eggs and sour cream in another large bowl to blend.
5) Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine.
6) Add flour mixture and beat briefly on slow speed. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined. Divide batter equally among prepared pans. Bake cakes until done, about 35 minutes. Transfer cakes to rack; cool 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack and cool completely.
7) Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Remove from heat.
8) Add chopped chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. Refrigerate until icing is spreadable, stirring frequently, about 2 hours.
9) Place 1 cake layer on plate. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with second cake layer. Spread 2/3 cup icing over. Top with third cake layer. Spread remaining icing over top and sides of cake.

Serves 12.
Each serving has:

Calories		1,119.1
Total Fat		65.6 g
Cholesterol		219.2 mg
Sodium		670.4 mg
Potassium		444.3 mg
Total Carbohydrate		132.1 g
Protein		12.2 g

Going green

Tomorrow's St. Patrick's Day. You know what that means....green. Green green everywhere. Now I'm not really a fan of making food green, but that doesn't stop me from making green food! Green enchiladas are "naturally" green, without any artificial coloring so they make a great St. Patrick's day meal. Who cares if they're Mexican!

Green Chicken Enchiladas

2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 can diced green chiles
1/2 cup diced onion
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
1 can (19 oz) green chili enchilada sauce
1/2 cup sour cream
10 flour tortillas

1) Preheat oven to 350. In large bowl, combine chicken, green chiles, onion, and 1/2 cup shredded cheese.
2) In another bowl, combine enchilada sauce and sour cream until well blended.
3) Add 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce to the chicken mixture.
4) Add a small amount of the enchilada sauce over the bottom of a 9x13 in. baking dish. Evenly divide chicken mixture down the center of each tortillas. Roll tortillas up and place seam side down in dish.
5) Pour remaining enchilada sauce over the tortillas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake 25-30 minutes, or until hot.

Serves 6.
Each serving has:

Calories		458.1
Total Fat		21.0 g
Cholesterol		87.4 mg
Sodium		733.0 mg
Potassium		319.0 mg
Total Carbohydrate		35.1 g
Protein		31.6 g

Stay tuned for more St. Patty's Day fun tomorrow. Here's just a sneak peek of the goodness to come. My coworkers will all be enjoying these sugar cookies, courtesy of Martha Stewart via my kitchen: