KALYN’S SAVORY ZUCCHINI MUFFINS

Posted in Breakfast & Brunch, Pizzas & Small Dishes, Vegetarian-friendly, Veggies by sallybr

I’ve been following food bloggers for a very long time. Many stopped blogging, but a few of my favorites still hang on over many years. Kalyn is one blogger who passed the 15-year mark (a milestone I am going to hit in a few weeks…). For the most part she focuses on low-carb recipes and everything I cooked from her blog has been delicious. No lack of flavor, no odd textures. Back in 2022 she shared a recipe for zucchini muffins and I finally made them. They delivered all that she promised. No matter your take on amount of carbs, these are great. The almond flour makes them moist and quite tender. I made a few minor changes from her published version.

FLOURLESS SAVORY ZUCCHINI MUFFINS
(from Kalyn’s Kitchen)

1 small zucchini
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp Herbes de Provence
salt and black pepper to taste
3/4 cup cottage cheese
1/2 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese
8 eggs, well beaten
2 cups almond flour
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
2 T baking powder

Heat oven to 375F.

Cut stem and blossom end off zucchini, then cut in fourths lengthwise. Then on each piece, trim off and discard part of the white center part of zucchini, so you have zucchini strips with skin and about 1/4 inch of white. Cut those pieces into thinner strips, then dice to make small cubes around 1/4 inch square. You will have about 1 + 1/2 cups diced zucchini. Heat olive oil in non-stick frying pan and cook zucchini seasoned with the Herbes de Provence, salt and pepper until it’s softening and just starting to brown, about 3 minutes.

Put cottage cheese in a fine strainer placed in the sink and rinse with cold water, then let it drain well.
Beat the eggs until yolks and whites are well-combined.

In a bowl combine the cooked zucchini, cottage cheese, Parmesan cheese and beaten eggs.
In a smaller bowl mix almond flour, flax seed meal and baking powder.

Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, adding only part at a time and stirring each time until the mixture is combined. Fill muffin cups, dividing the mixture evenly among 9 muffins cups. Bake about 27 minutes, or until muffins are firm and slightly browned.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I omitted feta cheese because I did not have any. I made bigger muffins and instead of twelve I ended up with nine. These jumbo silicone liners are absolutely great! If you don’t have a jumbo muffin pan, they will still stand upright on a regular baking sheet. You can find a link to get them in Kalyn’s blog, I’ve had mine for a while. Love the colors also, as you might imagine…

They would be pretty nice with chunks of feta in the crumb, so consider adding that. The crumb is very delicate and they are perfect for a light lunch. The muffins freeze well, you can microwave them for 1 minute, and enjoy good as fresh.

Kalyn, thank you for yet another great low-carb recipe!

ONE YEAR AGO: Springtime Cupcakes

TWO YEARS AGO: Eggplant-Hummus Phyllo Rolls

THREE YEARS AGO: Happy Easter!

FOUR YEARS AGO: Brioche Pepin

FIVE YEARS AGO: Sakura Buche du Printempts

SIX YEARS AGO: Clay Pot Roast Chicken

SEVEN YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2017

EIGHT YEARS AGO: Secret Recipe Club: Chicken Korma and a Bonus Recipe

NINE YEARS AGO: Josey Baker’s Olive Bread

TEN YEARS AGO: Almonds, A Cookbook Review

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Pomegranate-Molasses Glazed Carrots

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Codruta’s Rolled Oat Sourdough Bread

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: Roasted Corn and Tomato Risotto

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Light Rye Bread

3Apr2024

IN MY KITCHEN, SPRING 2024

Posted in In My Kitchen by sallybr

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In My Kitchen posts are hosted by Sherry, from Sherry’s Pickings. Please visit her site to see whateverybody else is sharing this month. I join four times each year, on the first day of January, April, July and October. If you are a food blogger, considering taking part of this fun event. It is chance to share those little things you bought or received as gifts and that make your life in the kitchen easier.

Starting with gifts….

As you will notice, my friends know very well what moves me…

In our recent trip to Brazil, my sister Norma and my niece Camila offered us these super special gifts, inspired by our beloved pups… Notice the black patch on the eye… Reminds you of someone? And yes, my sister did the embroidery… amazing, right?

From our friends Lorne and Wasu, a super cool Birthday gift for this humble baker! Decorating pens (and also a nice bag of vanilla pods from Madagascar!). Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The best Birthday cards ever, from my dear friend Elaine! Look at those cutie pies!

From my friend Caro, a Birthday gift to warm my heart forever… It is already hanging in our kitchen, of course!

Yet another Birthday gift, from The Haydens, this super special (and with the right amount of flexibility) spatula to inspire my bakes! THANK YOU!

In our kitchen…

We have dreamed of a Marzocco espresso maker for what seemed like forever. Finally, the husband took a deep breath and ordered one. It does take a while to arrive, as they build the machine, test it, and then finally ship it from Italy, but wow, we are totally in love with it! Here you see the very first espressos we made…

In our kitchen…

A concha press, which I intend to try very soon… I do have a recipe in mind, so stay tuned for a blog post once I go for it.

In our kitchen…

I finally caved and bought containers to proof bread dough, from King Arthur. They come in sets of two, and are the perfect size for most baking projects. On the left you see dough for kolache after overnight fermentation, and on the right the initial stage of fermentation of pizza dough. I am totally in love with these containers… Link to get them found here.

In our kitchen…

Total impulse buy from yours truly. I could not resist it. Do we entertain a lot? No. I have no explanation for falling into temptation. If you have a good therapist to recommend, contact me ASAP.

In our kitchen…

I do a lot of chicken parmigiana and have always wanted to get a nice set of pans to use as “breading station”. They are perhaps just a tad too big, but the advantage is that things stay contained and by the time I am done, there is no mess on countertops. I found mine on eBay, they don’t seem to be available anymore, but they are also on amazon, although quite a bit more expensive. Check them out here.

In our kitchen…

This was not cheap, but it is a game changer for cookie decorating. It is from The Sweetest Tiers, and available on etsy. I am so glad I bought it, because I can finally use stencils with Royal icing and get perfect results. It also works great for air-brushing. Excellent quality product.

In our kitchen…

A gift I offered my beloved husband. We have oysters often when in they are in season, and he works super hard to get them ready for us, so these gloves make his job a lot safer. You can order them here, several sizes (I have one to use with my mandoline).

In our kitchen…

These are too cool! I saw them online and realized I could not live without them. Ok, at least I could not bake brownies, loaf cakes, sheet cakes without them. You clip them to the edge of the pan to hold the parchment paper folded away from the surface of the cake. Works like a dream! Order them here.

In our kitchen…

This is a simple gadget recommended by America’s Test Kitchen to sharpen knives. We love it so much we bought a few to take as gifts to family and friends in Brazil. All our knives are back into great shape, and it is so simple to use! Ordering info and a video showing how to use it can be found here.

Take a look at this old knife we’ve had for 10 years!

In our kitchen…

These are licky-pads for the pups… You smear peanut butter or cheese (from spray cans) and let them have some fun. Unfortunately, Osky does not care for them, so we got a set of four, but two would have been enough. Many styles, sizes and shapes available online, just google them.

Speaking of pups…

Well, I guess I have no choice but to allow them into my blog.
Reluctantly, I shall do so…

As you may have read in my last post, we had a fun backyard party for our Little Shiny Star, as she turned one year old on March 25th. Check out the festivities and the special cake recipe baked by yours truly with a click here.

During this year of life, and 9 months with us, Star has been one amazing pup! Fun, loving, full of personality and enough energy to power the known universe… Sometimes, just sometimes, she does get in a bit of trouble… Particularly when faced with uncooperative dog beds, mud, and wool gloves left too close to her territory.

But how on Earth could we resist such a face?

Oscar begs to differ…
That face? If you want irresistible, I’ve got irresistible for you!

Oh, THAT is hilarious!!!!

Star does have a point. Clearly, our boy was in desperate need of grooming…

But grooming did happen, and right after that ordeal was over, what can only be explained as The Grooming Miracle! A very rare image of Osky laying next to another, lesser canine. Mind-blowing stuff.

It is far more common for our Dominant Alpha Male to claim all beds for himself…

Yeah, let me bark very clearly now:

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Prince and Star are just inseparable, and bonded in ways that make us so happy! They are great golf companions, both outside and inside!

They hang out together 24/7 and will often fall asleep in the exact same position, after getting exhausted from playing hard…

We could not get a more compatible pair of pups…

Yes, for sure! Clouds only gather on the horizon because Prince is a slow-chewer, and well, his sister does not take well to the fact she is done with hers… So we close this post with one small example of the Opera Singing we go through, pretty much on a daily basis… Wanna move in with us? Never a dull moment, my friends… Never a dull moment…

That’s all for now, folks!

.
ONE YEAR AGO: In My Kitchen, Spring 2023

TWO YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2022

THREE YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2021

FOUR YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2020

FIVE YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2019

SIX YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2018

SEVEN YEARS AGO: First Monday Favorite

EIGHT YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2016

NINE YEARS AGO: Spring has Sprung with Suzanne Goin

TEN YEARS AGO: Chai Brownies

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Pomegranate-Molasses Glazed Carrots

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Braised Brisket with Bourbon-Peach Glaze

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: The Real Vodka Sauce

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Spring Rolls on a Spring Day

31Mar2024

HAPPY EASTER TIMES THREE!

Posted in Breads, Chocolate Bonbons, macarons by sallybr

Sourdough, Chocolate-Covered Oreos and Macarons for you today…

EASTER SOURDOUGH BREAD
(recipe as published here)

For this sourdough boule, I made a decoration using wafer paper and food safe pens, with a little stencil to help me out. Then a bit of scoring with my Sonic blade, and into the oven it went…

I love how the colors stayed during baking, it was my first time using food pens, until now I have relied on colors designed for air-brushing.

HAPPY EASTER CHOCOLATE-COVERED OREOS

I had so much fun with these! First, I made fondant decorations as little Easter eggs, and used a new set of food pens to paint them (they will be featured in my upcoming In My Kitchen post). Then I dyed white compound chocolate with oil-based green food color, and covered the Oreos. Once that set, I used thick Royal icing and a grass tip as the base to glue the eggs on the surface.

This is the full batch, donated on Good Friday…

EASTER EGG LEMON MACARONS
(recipe as published here, filling as published here)

Sometimes a bake goes exactly the way I plan. It is rare, but it happens. These macarons turned out this way. I used a mixture of three colors (yellow, pink and blue), added them to the same piping back to get a tie-dye effect. After baking the details were piped with Royal icing, and in some I added sparkling sugar right away. Most were left plain, and got just a little spray with PME luster for some shine. That step is optional. They look nice without it.

I hate to pick favorites, but I must say of the three bakes I shared today, these macs might very well be the winners for me!

I hope you enjoyed this trilogy of bakes… The macaron design can be used on regular round macarons, piping flower shapes for a springtime version, so keep that in mind. I might just have to re-visit the method soon!

ONE YEAR AGO: In My Kitchen, Spring 2023

TWO YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2022

THREE YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2021

FOUR YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2020

FIVE YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2019

SIX YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2018

SEVEN YEARS AGO: First Monday Favorite

EIGHT YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2016

NINE YEARS AGO: Spring has Sprung with Suzanne Goin

TEN YEARS AGO: Chai Brownies

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Pomegranate-Molasses Glazed Carrots

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Braised Brisket with Bourbon-Peach Glaze

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: The Real Vodka Sauce

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Spring Rolls on a Spring Day

27Mar2024

HELEN FLETCHER’S PINEAPPLE KOLACHE

Posted in Breads, Breakfast & Brunch by sallybr

I am going to say something quite daring, so here it goes: this might very well be the best thing I’ve baked in a whole year! If you follow my blog, you probably know I am quite fond of Helen’s recipes, because not only they always work, but her explanations are crystal clear, and make you comfortable to try something even if it seems complex or out of your skill level. I had never made kolache, but following the method described in this post, I had no issues. They turned out fantastic! Check her post for all sorts of variations for the filling, or go with the one I chose: pineapple. Tart, bright, fresh, perfect contrast with the slightly sweet bread dough. A winner. I promise you.

PINEAPPLE KOLACHE
(from Helen Fletcher’s Pastries Like a Pro)

for the pineapple filling:
1 cup well drained crushed pineapple
⅓ cup sugar
1 teaspoon potato starch or cornstarch
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon melted butter

Whisk together the sugar and potato starch or cornstarch. Combine all ingredients in a small pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 1 minute. Cool completely. Refrigerate until needed.

for the dough:
½ cup butter (1 stick, 114 grams)
½ cup sugar (100 grams)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream (225 grams)
2 teaspoons instant yeast
½ cup lukewarm water
2 eggs
4 cups all purpose flour (560 grams)

Cut the butter into pieces and place in a small saucepan along with the sugar and salt. Heat until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat and let it sit until it is lukewarm. Add the sour cream. Whisk it into the butter mixture. Add eggs and yeast, whisk them in. Lastly, add the water. Transfer to the bowl of a mixer. Add the flour and, beat until it comes together. Knead in the machine for 3 minutes, turning after about 1 ½ minutes as the dough will adhere to the top of the dough hook and not get beaten. The dough will be very soft and more of a batter.

Place it in a greased bowl or container, cover with plastic wrap and allow it to rise until doubled, about 2 ½ hours. After it has risen, punch it down, re-cover it and refrigerate overnight so the butter can firm up.

for shaping and baking:
Refrigerated dough
1 egg, well beaten
pineapple filling

Line three baking sheets with parchment. Set aside. Punch the dough down if risen and divide the dough in half (585 grams each). Shape each piece into a rectangle. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove one piece of dough from the refrigerator and roll it out so it is ½ inch thick. The dough will be very firm. With a 3″ cookie cutter (or whatever size you want) cut out rounds and place them on the parchment about 1 inch apart. Repeat with the second piece of dough. Reroll and cut additional rounds. Cover them with tea towels and allow to rise until almost doubled.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. With your fingers, make a deep well in the rounds about ½ inches in from the edge of the dough but do not go through the dough. Start by making a hole in the center. Expand the well by pressing the dough down. Brush the top edges of the Kolache with the beaten egg. Fill the wells with 1 to 1 ½ tablespoons of filling. Bake on a double pan for about 20 minutes for the 3″ size until the top of the dough is well browned. Reduce the time for smaller pastries.

Makes about 20 – 3″ rolls with re-rolling the dough.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: I highly recommend you visit Helen’s site to get her step-by-step photos and instructions, especially if you’ve never made enriched bread dough. The dough is very nice to work with, a bit sticky, but I urged the temptation to add more flour and all ended well in the end. I was intrigued by the pineapple filling because I rarely use pineapple in baking, but it was much better than I expected. I made the filling the day before, right after mixing the dough and placing it in the fridge for overnight proofing. Next day the whole thing was a breeze, just rolled the dough, cut circles, filled and baked. I donated them all, but sampled one for “quality control”. It was hard to stop, but I exercised herculean self-control.

Helen, cannot thank you enough for so many great recipes I’ve made from your site!

ONE YEAR AGO: Blood Orange and Cranberry Mini-Cakes

TWO YEARS AGO: Simnel Cupcakes

THREE YEARS AGO: Oat and Sesame Seed Sourdough

FOUR YEARS AGO: Moroccan Turkey Pie with Olive Oil Crust

FIVE YEARS AGO: Another Twisted Sister of the Shepherd’s Pie

SIX YEARS AGO: Cashew Chicken, My Way

SEVEN YEARS AGO: Two Deliciously Simple Salads

EIGHT YEARS AGO: In My Kitchen, April 2016

NINE YEARS AGO: Spring has Sprung with Suzanne Goin

TEN YEARS AGO: Chai Brownies

ELEVEN YEARS AGO: Pomegranate-Molasses Glazed Carrots

TWELVE YEARS AGO: Braised Brisket with Bourbon-Peach Glaze

THIRTEEN YEARS AGO: The Real Vodka Sauce

FOURTEEN YEARS AGO: Spring Rolls on a Spring Day

25Mar2024

BIRTHDAY CAKE FOR A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY

Posted in Cake, Desserts, Desserts, Sweets by sallybr

Someone is having a Birthday today!

DOG FRIENDLY BIRTHDAY CAKE
(adapted from this blog post)

1 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/8 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup natural peanut butter (Do NOT use a peanut butter with Xylitol, as it is very toxic for dogs)
3/4 cup applesauce go with plain, unsweetened
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
FROSTING
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1/4 cup peanut butter

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine flour and baking soda.
In a separate bowl mix together vegetable oil, peanut butter, applesauce and pumpkin puree. Once combined, mix in egg and mix well. Mix wet and dry ingredients and stir until no dried bits of flour are visible.

Pour mixture into an 7 inch square pan that has been greased with oil. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly.
Allow to cool on a wire rack prior to removing from pan. After cooling, add frosting if desired.

For the frosting: Mix Greek yogurt and peanut butter until well combined. Spread over cake. If not serving immediately, store in refrigerator.

ENJOY!

to print the recipe, click here

Comments: This is a super easy treat to bake, and we actually tried the cake (without the frosting) and it is not bad at all! We cut three circles to offer the pups, and the leftover was cut in cubes and saved for later. Tiny Milk Bones to decorate are optional, but dog-appreciated… Our Birthday girl gave it two paws high up!