The Art of Food Coloring

Frozen Mint Brownies, originally uploaded by mud pie gourmet.

I'm a natural girl. Well, I love a nice pair of leather shoes (in peacock, please) as much as the next person, but I recycle, I use my own bags at grocery stores, I get after the kids for wasting water and electricity (and sometimes my hot husband, too. Uhh, sorry about that. I swear, I'm not a nag), I try not to buy foods with preservatives or added colors. But, I just can't do mint brownies without adding the green food coloring. I've tried it. It messes with my mind. It's almost like they don't taste as minty just because they don't have green icing. You see yellow, you think, "Lemon." Red--Cherry or Cinnamon, Purple--Grape. Green is mint. You can try and keep them natural and just go with the white icing, but yours just won't taste as good as my green ones.

Frozen Mint Brownies

Brownies:
3 squares unsweetened chocolate
1 1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
3 eggs
3/4 cup flour and dash of salt

Frosting:

3 T butter
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 T milk
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
2-4 drops green food coloring

Glaze:
2 sq unsweetened or semi-sweet chocolate
2 T butter


Melt chocolate and butter together for the brownies. Beat eggs and add sugar. Add chocolate and butter mixture and mix. Add extract, flour, salt and mix thoroughly. Spread in a 9x13 greased pan and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool completely (I rush cooling process by putting them into freezer).

Mix frosting ingredients together and spread on cooled cake. Cool in fridge, covered (or freezer for faster).

Make glaze by melting chocolate and butter. When at room temp, spread on top of frosting.

Place in freezer for 5 minutes to set chocolate. Cut brownies. Place in a container and keep in the freezer until you eat them! They are best right out of the freezer.

Peachy Keen

Peach and Blackberry Crostata, originally uploaded by mud pie gourmet.

Everything is just Peachy Keen, here! We are having a busy summer and doing lots of local things. Hence, flog is the first thing to go. At night I am sleeping hard and having crazy dreams because of it. I sometimes have dreams (well, nightmares, really) about 20 page papers that I have to turn in, but haven't started, terrorist attacks (hey, I live in D.C., what can I say?), and dreams where I have to sing and dance to a song that I don't know the words or the dance moves to. Can you relate to any of those?

Okay, how about this one: peach picking in July in Virginia. Seriously, I do have dreams about this. But, I also have done it. When I was a teenager my mom would drag us out of bed on a HOT July morning to go peach picking. Let me tell you something about Virginia in July: Hot. Humid. Now, add PEACH FUZZ to that equation and you get = MISERABLE. Gnats, other bugs and peach fuzz sticking to you. It was not my idea of a great time. My mom has since learned: You go to the farm and pick UP the peaches. Ahhh, you still get that farm fresh taste without the torture. I'm sure someday I will wake my kids up at the crack of dawn to go to some farm over an hour away just to pick peaches, but until then, I'm going to let my mom pick my bushel up for me. And then I am going to enjoy those peaches every meal. I froze about half of the peaches, ate a lot fresh, and then I came up with a crostata with them and some blackberries. I hope you have dreams about this crostata instead of showing up to school neck-ed (yes, I meant to write neck-ed).

Peach and Blackberry Crostata

Dough:
(Barefoot Contessa's recipe from her Apple Crostata--why mess with a good thing?)
Makes 2 tarts

2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 lb cold, unsalted butter, diced
1/4 cup ice water

For the pastry, place the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse a few times sto combine. Add the butter and toss quickly with your fingers to coat each cube of butter with the flour. Pulse 12-15 times, or until the butter is the size of peas. With the motor running, add 1/4 cup ice water all at once through the fee tube. Keep hitting the pulse button to combine, but stop the machine just before the dough comes together. Turn the dough out onto a well-floured board and form into 2 disks. Wrap with plastic and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

For the filling:
3 cups sliced fresh peaches
1 cup blackberries (fresh, or frozen ones that have been thawed work)
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp orange zest
1 T fresh lemon juice

Combine above ingredients and let sit while preparing topping.

Topping:
1/3 cup flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
6 T cold butter, diced

Combine above ingredients in a bowl.

Roll the pastry into two circles on a floured board. Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (you will need 2 pans). Divide peach mixture in half and place on the two pastries (leave excess liquid in bowl), leaving a 1 1/2 inch border. Top each pastry with half of the flour mixture and toss. Add remaining flour mixture to the top. Gently fold the border over the peach mixture, pleating to make a circle.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Nantucket Weekend GIVEAWAY!!!!

This is totally off from cooking, but talk about SWEET.  This amazing woman makes D-Aaaaaa-R-L-I-N-G clothing and gives it away.  Yes, please.  

Nantucket Weekend GIVEAWAY!!!!  

Get Thee to a Factory

A Cheesecake Factory!! I'm taking time in our busy summer schedule to go to the Cheesecake Factory today for $1.50 cheesecake (Dine-in only). Just wanted to let you know so you could share in the sweetness.

Berries with Lemon

Berries with Lemon, originally uploaded by mud pie gourmet.

I have a theory. If prostitutes just spent a little money and bought themselves a nice, elegant, form-fitting (but not too tight or too short) black dress, their business would increase a hundred-fold. This does not mean that I condone prostitution, quite the contrary, actually, but, come on!! Simple is more elegant and appealing. Which brings me to my recipe...

Berries with lemon and a little sugar. That's it. So simple, but so yummy and elegant and appealing. My little black dress in a bowl. Here are the measurements:

Berries with Lemon

3 cups blackberries
3 cups strawberries, sliced
2 cups raspberries
1/4-1/3 cup sugar (depending on sweetness of the berries)
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Combine all ingredients and let sit to let the lemon flavor soak into berries (30 minutes-overnight). Serve plain, with ice cream or whipping cream.

You can play this up a little with blueberries or grapes (halved).

Yogi's Love

Jicama Slaw Sandwich, originally uploaded by mud pie gourmet.

HELLLLLLOOOO!! I am finally back. Our camera broke and the new one has arrived. I couldn't post recipes without pictures (this is why I love the Barefoot Contessa books--a picture for every recipe!).

With the fabulous weather we have been having here in the hometown we have been going on picnics. The kids get so excited when I tell them that is the plan and they immediately help me get things ready. What is it about picnics? Yogi loved them, and during college I went on 3 dates in one week where the guy took me on a picnic (seriously--did they think they were original?), and on the Bachelor they always have a date where they have a picnic. Basically, who doesn't like picnics?!

Here is a great sandwich for enjoying these Spring days. I used jicama slaw to give it a good crunch. It has a Mexican flair in celebration of Cinco de Mayo.

Garlic Chicken Sandwich with Jicama Slaw

Chicken:
Serves 4

2 chicken breasts cut in half
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 T lime juice
1 T olive oil
1/8 tsp cumin
Kosher salt and ground pepper

Combine all ingredients in a ziplock bag and marinate for at least 30 minutes.
Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat (or use a grill). Saute chicken for about 4 minutes on each side or until cooked through. Remove from heat.

Jicama Slaw

3/4 cup jicama, julienned
1 T finely chopped onion
1 T chopped cilantro
1 tsp lime juice
1/8 tsp cumin
2 T plain yogurt
1/2 tsp minced jalapeno or serrano pepper
Kosher salt and ground pepper

Combine ingredients.

Toppings:
Tomato
Avocado
Pepper Jack Cheese
Whatever else you love!

Place chicken on good bread. Top with sliced tomatoes, avocados, Pepper Jack cheese and jicama slaw.

The Bun is Out of the Oven

Here's the reason I haven't posted in so long. I'm getting used to having 3 kids and hopefully I'll get some recipes up soon. Photo is by the fabulous Reb.

We celebrated St. Patty's day yesterday w/ the in-laws--Corned beef, potatoes, carrots, cabbage and of course: Rainbow Jello! Thanks Mom Mud for the food, and sorry we didn't help clean up. I'm off to eat my Jello leftovers.

Puffed Full of Love

Puff Pancake, originally uploaded by mud pie gourmet.

I know I have taken a sabbatical without telling anyone. For the past month I have stepped up my hours for the Not-for-Profit that I do part-time work for (add that on top of Seminary, being 9 months pregnant...). I never work when my kids are awake so my "down time" at night has not been "down time." Hence, no time for posting on the flog.

I used to think Valentine's Day was so cheesy. Why should you have a day to tell those you love how you feel when you should do so everyday? Now I know why--for an excuse to go out to dinner without the kids. B. said that maybe next year we could all go out for dinner for Valentine's Day. I explained that we love her and Little Man, but sometimes it's nice for mommies and daddies to go out alone, too because we love each other.

This Valentine's Day was one to be remembered--S. got me a Pampering Prenatal Massage. It was a nice surprise. He had his mom (THANKS, MOM MUD) come watch the kids so I could go. It was so relaxing, and it even helped with my back pain for a few hours. He made sure there wasn't a limit to how far along you were. I wonder if they'd let me have one now that I am officially past my due date (BOTH due dates). And a thanks to my sister for watching the munchkins while we went to dinner.

S. had to settle for a combined birthday/V-day present of the Wii (I had been searching for one for weeks and finally found one in stock on V-day) and breakfast. Here's the recipe for the breakfast Puff Pancake I made. It is so easy. I found it years ago in Parenting magazine.

Puff Pancakes

1/2 stick butter (divided)
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup flour

Toppings: (your choice)
1 lemon, sliced in half
powdered sugar
Strawberries
Peaches
Buttermilk syrup

Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Divide the butter between two 8-inch round cake pans, and put them in the oven to melt. Mix eggs, milk, and flour in a blender until smooth.

Remove pans from oven and pour half the batter into each pan. Return pans to oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until pancakes are very puffy, firm, and golden-brown on edges.

Add desired toppings and serve.

Banana Nana Fo Fana

WW Banana CC muffins, originally uploaded by mud pie gourmet.

My kids tend to go through phases of what they will gorge themselves on. Example: Little Man will eat 2 bananas in two minutes, but will not want any the following day. Boo will eat a heap of green beans one night, but another night she won't have touched them. They are good at trying new foods, yet have their favorites. Still, sometimes they don't even want their favorites if they are not in the mood. Hence, sometimes I don't have any bananas when we need them, other times they just sit on the counter getting brown and black. Here's my cure for not wasting those "nanas."

Whole Wheat Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

1/4 cup olive oil
4 T softened butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup applesauce
1 cup mashed, ripe bananas
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1-1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line or grease muffin tins.

Combine olive oil, butter and sugar and mix until combined well. In another bowl combine flour, soda, and salt. Add eggs, applesauce, bananas and vanilla to butter mixture. Add dry ingredients and combine. Mix in chocolate chips by hand.

Place batter into muffin tins (I use a cookie scoop so they are the same size). If you are using miniature muffin tins cook for about 20 minutes, if you are using regular muffin tins cook for 25 minutes.