A Lil' Bit of Cupcake Fun!

RED, WHITE, and BLUEberry cupcakes!

Brad and I had a fantastic day yesterday, celebrating the Fourth of July. We got to explore a place called "Old Cahaba" in Selma, AL. I've included some info HERE.

The first state capital of Alabama was established at "Old Cahawba" in 1820. Today, only ruins remain, but you can't help but imagine what took place there as you walk through the historic old town. One of the neatest things is that the Cahaba River and Alabama River flow into each other right next to Old Cahaba.

My favorite thing was walking under the huge, beautiful mossy trees. They are massive in size, and look so beautiful with the breeze flowing through their branches. Here's a photo that Brad took in Selma during one of our visits...

Now, on to the cupcakes! I had a batch of the red velvet cupcakes from Sprinkles Bakery in my pantry. Sprinkles is a famous bakery out in California, and I adore their mixes...you can find them at Williams-Sonoma. I got to thinking that the RED cupcake mix and WHITE icing would be perfect for the holiday. I added red sprinkles and a cute little blueberry to the top of each cupcake so that they would be red, white, and blue! They were even better with homemade vanilla ice cream. Here's another photo...

STRAWBERRY CUPCAKES WITH SPRINKLES!
Last weekend, my cute-as-a-button niece Dakota got to spend the night with her "Aunt Les" (a.k.a. me)! This was her first time spending the night away from home. She was an angel the entire time, and we had a lot of fun! I always look forward to baking with her. It reminds me of all the time that I spent with my Grandmother when I was little, baking all sorts of cakes, cookies, and other desserts. I think that's one of the main reasons I love cooking so much.

After an entire day playing at the waterpark and riding rides at Alabama Adventure (tons of fun!!!), we made the cutest little pink cupcakes with sprinkles that night. Dakota did a great job helping, didn't she?

Chicken Georgia...My Way!

***A few months ago, I had lunch at this wonderful little cafe in Huntsville, AL. I can't remember the name of it, though. I ordered their "Chicken Georgia." I thought the combination of peaches with chicken sounded different, but really good. They served a chicken breast smothered with a delicious mixture of peaches and pecans.

After Googling "Chicken Georgia" I just couldn't find anything that was like what I had in Huntsville. Paula Deen has a Chicken Georgia recipe on The Food Network's site, but it had mushrooms and just wasn't what I was looking for.

The following recipe comes very close! You would think that the peaches and pecans would make this dish too sweet, but the basil and garlic really keeps it on the savory side. Enjoy!***

***Also, I am so excited to enter this recipe into Joelen's Fruit Frenzy blogging event! Be sure to check out her awesome site at: Joelen's Culinary Adventures.***

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp EVOO
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon seasoned pepper
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 cup orange juice
3 fresh, sliced peaches
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon dried leaf basil
1 clove garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup chopped pecans



Directions:
Heat EVOO in a skillet over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add chicken to skillet and brown on both sides...until chicken is almost cooked through (it will continue cooking in next step). Remove from skillet and place on a plate.

Next, add a little more EVOO to the skillet if needed; add garlic and saute for 30 seconds...be careful not to burn it! Combine orange juice and peaches with brown sugar, cinnamon, and basil and add to skillet. Return chicken to the mixture. Cover and simmer over medium heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through.

Place chicken on a plate, placing the peach mixture over each chicken breast. Top with chopped pecans.

Serve hot!

Beautiful Danish Pastry Braid!

This is my 5th Daring Bakers Challenge, and I have to say that this was my favorite! I've always wanted to try baking a pastry, so when I found out what this month's challenge was, I was pretty excited! After completing this challange, I've added a few new words to my baking vocabulary such as "butter-laminated dough", "Beurrage", and "Detrempe."

FYI:

Laminated Dough - layered dough created by sandwiching butter between layers of dough

Beurrage – butter block (this is the butter that is sandwiched in the dough)

Detrempe – ball of dough

Interesting, huh?

I only wish that the process of making these braids and pastries were faster...it ended up being a 2-day process. I can't complain though, because that only makes you savor the final product more! This was my first attempt at laminated dough. I found completing the "turns" and folds to be fun. My butter block stayed in place, which made the process pretty easy. It just takes a lot of patience.

The cardamom and orange zest added such a wonderful, authentic flavor to these danishes. The original recipe called for an apple filling, but we were allowed to choose our filling as long as it was homemade. I chose to make a mixed berry filling for the Danish Braid, and I drizzled a hazelnut-coffee glaze over the top. Both of these ideas came from this very helpful video:

Instructional Video - Just click on "Danish Pastry Braid" after following the link.

Another great idea would be to make a savory filling instead of sweet, such as cheese, spinach, etc.

Our gracious hosts this month were Kelly of Sass & Veracity and Ben of What's Cookin'?.

You can find the entire recipe HERE

I think I'm going to let these photos do the rest of the talking...this braid was SO good...I will no doubt be making this time and time again. Sorry there are so many photos...can you tell I had fun with this challenge??

After cutting the strips...

Close-up of the mixed berry filling (raspberry, blueberry, blackberry, and strawberry)

After completing the braiding...

After the final rise...ready for the oven!

A croissant ready for the oven...

Hot and fresh out of the oven!

With the hazelnut coffee glaze...my favorite! I made it by mixing a little coffee with confectioner's sugar.

Fresh croissant...

Just look at those layers inside!

A platter of goodies...

Purple Potato Gratin

So, I'm strolling the produce section at Whole Foods last week, and what do I see?...Purple potatoes! I didn't think twice...I snatched them up, excited about making some sort of fun, purple dish.

I googled purple potato recipes and a plethora of different things came up. I decided to not go too crazy...I mean, I was using PURPLE potatoes after all...haha. I chose to stick with a classic gratin recipe. I came across THIS recipe at "Eating Out Loud." It looked and sounded delish.

Sadly, I didn't have any bacon on-hand. I know...tragic, right?? This dish would have been so much better with the bacon. I also didn't have any shallots, but I used an onion instead.

DID YOU KNOW?

"Purple Potatoes also called Blue Potatoes or Delta Blues truly are naturally purple! This is from the same powerful antioxidant that give blueberries their brilliant color. Purple Peruvian Potatoes were some of the first potatoes harvested. They were saved for Inca kings. Used in Mexican cooking, purple potatoes are gaining popularity in the U.S. They have a naturally creamy flavor and texture and hold their shape well for salads."

Source: http://www.deliciousorganics.com/recipes/potatoes.htm

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups milk

1 tablespoon butter

2 tablespoons flour

2/3 cup grated cheese

2 lbs purple potatoes, unpeeled and sliced thinly

1 cup sliced shallots (I used one onion)

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 slices bacon

1/2 cup grated parmesan

Salt & Pepper, to taste

Directions:

To make the gratin sauce place the butter into a small pan and melt. Add flour and stir to combine, cooking over medium heat for about 1 minute. Whisk in the milk and stir until thickened. Stir in cheese, when melted remove from heat. Salt and pepper to taste.

In a frying pan, add the olive oil and shallots. Sautee until shallots are slightly brown and carmelized. Remove from the pan. Add bacon and cook until cooked through but not crispy (it will get crispy in a later portion of the recipe, don't worry). Cut bacon into 1 inch pieces.

Grease a gratin dish or shallow baking dish. Add half of the sliced potatoes to the dish. Sprinkle the shallots over the potato layer. Add the remaining potato slices to the dish. Pour the gratin sauce over the top of the potatoes, spooning into any visible cracks and crevices. Top with parmesan cheese. As a final step, add the bacon over the top. Place into a preheated 350 degree oven for 40 minutes.

Source: Allen's Food Blog @ Eating Out Loud

Giada's Chicken Piccata

***This dish is not only pretty...it is delicious! It had been awhile since I've made one of Giada's recipes, so I thought I'd give this one a go. I've been wanting to try capers...I'd never had them before making this. I was worried that Brad wouldn't like them, but this actually turned out to be one of his favorite meals! I'll no doubt be making this one again.


After reading the reviews on http://www.foodnetwork.com/, I found that a number of people thought the 1/3 cup lemon juice was too much. I only used the juice of 1 medium lemon...I'm not sure how that compares to 1/3 cup, but it turned out perfect! It had a mild, lemony (is that a word?) taste without being over-powering.***

In the skillet...

Ingredients:
2 skinless and boneless chicken breasts, butterflied and then cut in half
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
All-purpose flour, for dredging
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/4 cup brined capers, rinsed
1/3 cup fresh parsley, chopped


Directions:
Season chicken with salt and pepper. Dredge chicken in flour and shake off excess.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter with 3 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add 2 pieces of chicken and cook for 3 minutes. When chicken is browned, flip and cook other side for 3 minutes. Remove and transfer to plate. Melt 2 more tablespoons butter and add another 2 tablespoons olive oil. When butter and oil start to sizzle, add the other 2 pieces of chicken and brown both sides in same manner. Remove pan from heat and add chicken to the plate.

Into the pan add the lemon juice, stock and capers. Return to stove and bring to boil, scraping up brown bits from the pan for extra flavor. Check for seasoning. Return all the chicken to the pan and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove chicken to platter. Add remaining 2 tablespoons butter to sauce and whisk vigorously. Pour sauce over chicken and garnish with parsley.


Source: Giada De Laurentiis - http://www.foodnetwork.com/