Eggs? Who Needs 'Em? Best Chocolate Cupcake

When we found out my youngest son was allergic to eggs, I was scared, shocked and sad. It was scary to see him have a reaction, number one, and feel so helpless. Thankfully his body reacted properly and with Benedryl and a trip to the doctor he was fine. After testing we found he was severely allergic so it means absolutely nothing with egg.

Well, being the foodie and nurturing mom that I am, all I could think about was what I couldn't make for him. (We are praying that he will grow out of it, as egg allergy is the most common allergy to grow out of.) The first thought was baking. I mean how the heck do you bake without eggs? And what in the world was I going to do for his first birthday cake? And what about helping make cookies with me and his siblings as soon as he can stand on a stool?

I got on-line and to my surprise I found several egg-less cake recipes that got good ratings. I started seeing the hope shining through.

Then just the other day I got a newsletter from the Martha Stewart website and they happened to be featuring allergy free treats. You can check it out here. What I found was the most delicious chocolate cake recipe.

Normally I don't always test things out before I try them for the first time and much of the time it's when I'm having guests over. Maybe it's the thrill of it all...sorta like sky diving for foodies-major rush. But I didn't want to chance it for my son's first birthday. This weekend I tried this recipe out. WOW. It was so fantastic. I highly recommend it. These cupcakes were light and airy, chocolaty and moist.

I also used the recipe on her site for the icing that went with the cupcakes. It was okay. I had read the comments below the recipe and one lady said it was overly sweet. Initially I thought, "what a dumb statement," frosting is just that...extremely sweet, lady. But after I made it, I would have to agree that it was oddly, overwhelmingly sweet. I don't know if it was the ratio of butter to sugar, whatever it was, I just wasn't a big fan. So I've got a great cake, but I would love some ideas on egg-free frosting. If you have a good one, please share in the comment box below. I'm open to different flavors, types, just make sure it's egg-free. I know most are, but I just don't want any recipes for 7 minute frosting, ya know? (I have vivid memories of making that as a kid at my neighbors house. It was the best frosting I had ever had.)

Even if you don't have an egg allergy, you will adore this cake. And if you do, you will be super pleased to have this in your recipe box now. Delish!

Divvies Chocolate Cupcake

Oven: 350 degrees

Makes 1 dozen

1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)


3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/4 cups water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.


In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together oil, vinegar, vanilla, and water until well combined. Add flour mixture to the mixer and mix until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as necessary. Batter should look and feel more watery than normal cake batters.

Pour batter into prepared muffin tin, filling each cup 1/2 to 3/4 full. Transfer to oven and bake, rotating pan halfway through cooking, until a cake tester inserted into the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.

Immediately remove cupcakes from muffin tin and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool completely before frosting

A Tale of Hope After Turkey Gone Bad...What's Yours?

I had a bad experience with turkey. I love to eat turkey, but cooking it has been another story. Far from love, more like dread.

I will give you the history that turkey and I have. It's a short one. Two years ago, after Thanksgiving, but before Christmas, I decided I had not had my fill of turkey. My mom was staying with us and we tend to get into shenanigans together every time she visits. This time is happened to be of the poultry persuasion.

I had a received a free turkey at the grocery. It was some sort of meal-deal thing. Buy a ham, get a free turkey. Well, let me tell you, I now know why it was free. So we defrost the turkey like you should. The whole day I was dreaming of succulent turkey with stuffing, cranberries- the whole nine yards. There was a lot riding on that turkey, but evidently not enough.

Mom tells me that she's got this amazing, fool-proof recipe for turkey. She had it at friend's house but she had to call that friend to get the name of the lady to made the turkey so she could get the recipe. For some reason that didn't sound solid to me, so I started searching on-line for how to cook a turkey. I had never made one and was really pumped to do it. Well, my mom finally got her recipe. She was positive that it was a winner. So we tried it. There was something about 425 degrees, some aluminum foil and it being a luscious golden brown when it was done. What we saw as we lifted the shiny silver tent, was none other than the greyest, ugliest, saddest, rubbery steamed bird you've every seen. I mean it was nauseating. We took one look at each other and busted out laughing.

Regardless of it's appearance, we brought the turkey to the table and started serving it up. We give my husband the leg. He takes one bite and, well, he couldn't, it snapped back like a rubber band. Bless his heart. Mom and I were laughing so hard at this point I think we were snorting. The kids looked bewildered. No one ate it. So that's when the "Phoenix" went down into the ashes, as it were.

But yesterday was it's revival! I have been planning for months now, how do I make a good turkey? I was just as excited as I was scared. I was especially scared because now I had a $15 dollar, bone-in turkey breast staring back at me, laughing. I know she was laughing.

I got this idea to rub under the skin my favorite curry paste. I am new to Indian food. I've just recently really started to enjoy it. So I thought it would be a great way to flavor this bird. I take the entire contents of the packet and mix it will some olive oil.  I made a pocket under the skin and started grabbing handfuls of the curry paste and trying to spread it around. The most bizarre thing happened. It was sticking to my hands and not the bird. Before I know it, I'm wrestling with the birdy breast, half laughing, half talking to it. I feel like it knows. It knows I'm scared I will ruin it and the Phoenix will stay in the ashes for good. I press on, giggling every so often that my fingers now look like mini curry clubs. Finally I figure out a method that works: shove the curry under the skin and work it around by massaging it around on the outside of the skin.

I stared at the turkey, feeling quite like the new champion. I needed some where to perch my leg and then lift my arms in victory. Instead I threw it in the oven at 325 degrees and prayed.

The ending to this story is that my husband said it was the BEST turkey he's ever had. Sammy just doesn't make statements like that very often. I was flabbergasted. YES! I did it! The "Phoenix" arose from our plates to claim its rightful place in the category of "Best Ever". I must say it was delicious. Juicy, flavorful, soft and tender.

Do you have a victorious or just plain bad turkey story? I would LOVE to hear it. Or, tell me what you think is  the best way to make a turkey. I'm all ears!


Curry Crusted Turkey Breast with Yogurt Sauce

Prep time: 10 min.
Bake time: approx. 65-70 min.
Oven temp: 325 degrees
Serves: 4-6

1 pkg. curry paste, 3.5 oz. (my favorite is Taste of India, Butter Curry)
1 bone-in turkey breast, 2-3 lbs.
1 tbls olive oil

Mix curry and oil together. Rub under skin. Sear skin side down in a skillet over med.-high heat until nicely browned. Place skin side up on roasting pan and bake until thermometer says 160 degrees. I do not follow the sites that say 175 degrees, it would be a charcoal briquette!

Let the turkey rest. Seriously, for 10 min. I cut into it a bit to early and the juices were gushing out. So it would have been even better if I waited the whole 10 min. Do as I say, not as I do.

Yogurt Sauce

Prep time: 10 min.
Frig time: 15 min.
Serves: 6

2 c. of strained yogurt or Greek yogurt
2 small Persian, English or Kirby cucumbers, small dice
Zest of 1 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Big handful of fresh dill
Salt and pepper

Disclaimer: Now, I do not claim to be an expert on international cuisine. I know Indian food is often served with a raita and the Greeks love their tzatziki. My husband's family eats grape leaves with a similar sauce but it's made with dried mint instead of dill and tons of garlic. This is how I make it for our family. We like this version the best. No belching of garlic fumes and it's extremely refreshing with the spice of the curry.

Mix all ingredients together. Adjust to your tastes. It's so delish.

Aww, Shucks! Seared Salmon Over Fresh Corn Salad

As a continuation from yesterday's blog, I will be showcasing the goods from Whole Foods in these recipes- that sounded sorta snobbish and weird. I'm totally not snobbish about it. Use what you like dear ones, while I drink my Cristal in the comfort of my lush surroundings...oh, wait. (squealing tires) Sorry, minor lapse in judgement. Rather, I am flanked by my 3 year old son and daughter in the not-so-over sized recliner, trying to console my teething baby boy, while tiny, needle-like elbows jab me in the most unwelcome places. There is no Cristal, no comfortable seating, but lots of love...and repetitive questions.

Anyways, I got my kids to work in the kitchen...again. They don't see it as work. Well, maybe Lily. She has limited patience for chopping vegetables so I moved her over to shucking corn. That got her interest. Anything involving shredding or tearing is her kind of cooking. She appears to be using the corn as a baseball bat? All I know is that she enjoyed picking off all the strands of corn silk, sniffing the corn and then asking if she can eat it. Isaiah got into it as well. He was using his muscles ("just like Barney does"-it's the episode on fitness...okay, I have to say, lately, anything you say, Isaiah responds with the previous comment. So you could say, "wipe your face" or "put your cup in the sink" and the same response would ensue.) to tear off the corn husks, but in a real tough guy way. He even had his muscle shirt on. I love my kids.

What makes this funnier is the fact that my children are wearing the crowns they got from none other than Burger King. You may be thinking, is Burger King now serving organic foods? Ah, no. Yes, I do occasionally feed my children trash. Even more reason to eat organic the rest of the time. I never claimed to be a purist. Sometimes the cure for my PMS is a Whopper- hold the tomatoes.

So we whipped up a little fresh corn salad. I debated between making creamed corn or this, but I chose the fresh preparation because the corn was insanely sweet and crunchy, I mean, why would I alter it in any way? We tossed in the veggies, made a quick vinaigrette and done!

I simply seared the salmon in a pan with olive oil. I seasoned it with salt, pepper, rosemary and shhhhh...a pinch of sugar. It's something my mom does and it makes it so brown and caramelized on the outside, who could resist? (That was pretty much the recipe for the salmon. I don't need to write it out for you, do I? You're smart people. Just make sure your pan is super hot and cook for about 3-4 minutes per side.)

Fresh Corn Salad

Prep time: 15 min.
Serves: 4

2 ears fresh corn
1 small carrot, grated
1 green onion, thinly sliced
1/2 of large tomato, cubed
approx. 1/3 c. cubed cucumber
1/2 Hungarian hot wax pepper, minced (jalapeno would be good too)
3 tbls. rice wine vinegar
1 tbls. olive oil
8-9 basil leaves, thinly sliced
1 tbls. fresh dill, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Cut the corn off the cob, toss with all the other ingredients. Notice my ratio for a vinaigrette is backwards, I did that on purpose. Let fattening (gotta make up for that BK snafu), more flavor, but do it how you like. Let it set in the frig 15 min. for best flavor and forget about left overs...if your hubs or boyfriend is like mine, it will be eaten out of the Tupperware container before you can even think about having it for lunch the next day. Cheers!

P.S. I am lovin' all the comments on the last post! You guys have some great ideas and I love hearing your viewpoints!

Organic Challenge: What's Your View?

I set up a challenge for myself this weekend. I shopped at Whole Foods instead of my regular big, Texas grocery. My challenge was to see if I could stay within the budget and buy nearly everything organic. I was a little leery. Every time I've been to Whole Foods, I've been blown away by the prices and not in a good way.

My biggest reason for doing this is because of my kids. Knowing what I know about meats particularly, has made me want to make the change from conventional to organic. Hormones, steroids, anti-biotics, pesticides in the animal's food, poor living conditions etc. just doesn't sound tasty to me.

So here we were, the entire crew. My husband starts out pushing the wonky "car" cart, which I told my kids that we were NOT using, until I got to the door of the store and saw they had a less wonky version of what I was used to and then I said "okay". Oh how their little faces lit up. So easy to please at this age.

I'm in the hyper-mommy mode. Large cup of coffee, minimal breakfast, on a time crunch (my in-laws will be at the house at noon with lunch) and trying to wheel this ridiculously large cart around in a unfamiliar territory. I don't know where anything is. I'm trying to figure out which vegetables are organic and which are not. Flabbergasted by the price on the bell peppers. We mow through 3 a week, just snacking on them. Here I was looking a the price of $4.99 per lb and not even organic! Whoa. Okay. But then I saw the variety of organic potatoes, reasonably priced and I was okay.

It was a mixture of highs and lows. Re-adjusting my mental shopping calculator. I realized it's going to take some time to get used to this. I told myself, it's all worth it. If we end up eating less meat and more vegetable main dishes, it's okay. If we have to be less wasteful, that's probably a good idea. I will tell you this much. Because we paid $13.99 per lb. for salmon, free of all the bad stuff, you better believe I will treat it with the utmost care and make sure every bite is eaten. The turkey breast I got, will be used for dinner one night and sandwiches another.

Along with meats, dairy was also a big deal. I want my kiddos to have organic milk, or in Lily's case, organic soy milk. It's definitely more. But what I've done is cut back to where the kids have milk in the morning and water the rest of the day. My pediatrician told me to cut back on the milk, because I was giving it to them every meal. That's how I grew up. We don't drink juice at home, I think it's pointless. And when we go out to eat, getting apple juice is a big treat.

I'm making the mad dash through the store, crumpled list in one hand, fending off my baby boy from trying to steal it with the other, while telling the two "drivers" in the front to stop hitting each other. We finally make it to the freezer section (que angelic music) where they have a play area for tiny tots. So I drop off my husband and the three year olds to go and have fun, while Wil and I go to tackle the rest of the list. My cart is sixty pounds lighter and a bit quieter too! That play area alone has me coming back.

I know I looked like a tourist in the land of organic shopping. A very sweet employee walks up to me and asks if I need help. I tell him this is my maiden voyage here at Whole Foods. He asks if I got a flyer with coupons. I think I squealed with surprise and delight that they would have coupons! Seeing I was pushing the wonkster cart, he ran and got me one. I'm now moving at the speed of light. Rummaging through the coupon flyer looking for anything relevant. I see a couple for cereal. That's good, we eat tons of it. These coupons were substantial. Dollar coupons. I don't think I saw any for less than that. Score!

Side note: If I had the time, I would have spent hours just in the cheese section. Cheese, glorious cheese! Magnificent. Overwhelming. I grab some fresh mozzarella and tear myself away.

I finish up the trip by having a sample of God-knows-what, some energy, green drink that tasted good. Chatted with the lady giving out the samples for a moment. I must always chat with someone at the grocery. I can't help myself. I love talking to people.

I cut back through to pick up the rest of my family at the play area. The kids had so much fun. While other kids go to the pool this summer, we will be hanging out at the Whole Food freezer section play area.

Duh-duh-DUH! (that was supposed to be dramatic organ music) We roll up to the check out. I had been lazily adding up all the stuff in the cart to stay within budget. I know I missed some stuff but I was hoping for the best. After it was all rung up, after coupons (I saved $3.00 on stuff I was going to buy anyways), it was just a few dollars over. I was very impressed. The only thing now is, did we get enough food to last the week? Hmm. I will let you know. I think we can do it. I want to make this work. I want the best for my family.

Overall, my experience was very good. The staff is incredibly knowledgeable.  I love that there are butchers and fishmongers. They know everything about their product. I peppered them with so many questions it made their heads spin, but heck! I'm paying top dollar. I want to know what I am paying for. They didn't miss a beat. I will be going back this Saturday for sure.

So, that my foodie friends, is the "haps on the craps" as my hubs would say. What has been your experience with the organic thing? Or do you think it's a bunch of hot air? Either way, let me know what you think. I would love to hear your ideas.

So Slaw Me! Asian Broccoli Slaw

I'm giving you this slaw recipe on Friday, so you can make it this weekend. Trust me, you will want to. If you don't like raw broccoli, or broccoli at all, just hang with me for a moment. I'm pretty sure you will change  your mind about broccoli.

I'm am not a big raw broccoli fan. I adore it cooked, but something about it raw just...ick. But this salad, oh, it is beyond good. It draws me in with it's crunchiness, sweet and salty dressing, and for those who like it, a nice kick of heat.

Originally, I got this recipe from a Martha Stewart magazine, but over time I have switched it up so much that it's now my own creation. The basic idea of slaw is nothing new, even Asian style slaws are not new, but this one is so sweet and snappy, you feel like your eating it for the first time with every bite.

What's even more appealing is that it's easy. No shredding cabbage or grating carrots. Get yourself a bag of the broccoli slaw, (you can find it in the refrigerated produce section), slice some veg, make your dressing, toss and you're done! Add sliced grilled chicken on top and you've got yourself a meal! Great for these hot summer nights.

Enjoy your weekend, Foodies.


Asian Broccoli Slaw

Prep time:15 min
Cook time: 0 min.
Serves: 4

Dressing

1 tbls. chopped ginger
1 chopped green onion
1/4 c. plus 1 tbls. peanut butter
1/2 c. rice wine vinegar
3 tbls. soy sauce
3 tbls. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. canola oil

Slaw

1 bag broccoli slaw
1 green onion, sliced on bias
4-5 large radishes, sliced thinly in half-moon shapes
1 Kirby or Persian cucumber, sliced thinly in half-moon shapes
1/2 jalapeno pepper, finely diced
1/2 c. peanuts, crushed

For the dressing, simply blend all ingredients together in a blender, until it's very smooth. Set aside.

Mix together all slaw ingredients, except for peanuts. I save those for right before I serve it, because I like the peanuts to be crunchy, not soggy.

Toss dressing with slaw right before serving. Top with peanuts and if you like, a few slices of jalapeno.Try it out and let me know what you think!

Rose Water Yogurt with Black Cherry Syrup and Spiced Almonds

I seem to get the best ideas early in the morning, when my mind is half awake and I have the most things to remember...just see Morning Buzz Smoothie. It's really rather inconvenient. But I know if I do not attack the inspiration at that moment it will most certainly land as a scratchy scribble on a scrap of envelope, or even worse, one of my children's thoughtfully drawn pieces of artwork (cringe! yes, I have done that, not proud of it, just sayin') and never come to fruition. So, I pressed on, amidst the chaos and came up with this delightful little treat.

I don't quite know whether I should classify it as a dessert or snack. Maybe both. It is sweet, that's for sure, but yogurt always equals "snack" to me. Choose what you like. I'll leave it up to you.

I strained the yogurt the night before, not knowing what it would end up in, in the morning. I love strained yogurt. It's a cheap way of having Greek yogurt. It's so thick and luxurious, even if it's low-fat, that it seems like your eating something bad, so that's always a good thing.

I love my husband's family...a lot. But it may be possible that I love their food a tiny bit more. It is so good. You see, I grew up in the heart of the Midwest. Meat and taters, bread, gravy and something they called a salad, which was no more than some iceberg lettuce with slices of lonely, pink-ish, hot house tomatoes on top. Don't get me wrong, my mom was an excellent cook, my point is that the food I grew up with and my hubs grew up with are literally from two different worlds. He grew up eating tabbouleh, hummus and baba ganoush, while I scarfed down meatloaf and scalloped potatoes. I had a lot to learn when I came into his family. And I'm not just talking about every one's names.

I fell in love with exotic flavors. One being, rosewater. Well, I certainly didn't fall in love with it right away. I  hated it at first, along with grape leaves and lamb. I'm still working on a relationship with the lamb. But the more family gatherings I attended, the more I tasted. The more I tasted and fell in love with those who prepared it, the more I fell in love with the food. Seeing the love behind it all made it easier for me to find room on my stingy palate for these new found flavors. Rose water is now among one of my favorite flavors.

So I thought this morning, what could I add to this yogurt that would be a surprising element and meld well with the fruit I had laying around? There was a sad-looking bowl of cherries staring at me from the corner of my counter tops, so I guessed they would be going in. Okay, fine, what else do I have? I scrounged around in the pantry hoping to find walnuts but all I found was a half a bag of whole almonds. Not bad. I decided these would play the role of crunch-factor. There must always be a crunch-factor.

I will quit the rambling and give you the recipe. It turned out far better than I expected. Oh, and about the almonds, the recipe makes more than what you will use on the yogurt, but make the whole recipe anyways because I couldn't stop snacking on them.

Rose Water Yogurt with Black Cherry Syrup and Spiced Almonds

Prep time: 10 minutes Bake time: 20 minutes Oven temp: 350 degrees
Serves: 4 small servings or 2 big ones

Rose water Yogurt

32 oz. plain, low-fat yogurt, strained
1/2 tsp. rose water (you can find this at Middle Eastern stores)
1 tbls. honey

Set a mesh strainer lined with cheese cloth or paper towel over a larger bowl to catch the liquid. Pour in yogurt. Fold over cheese cloth over the top of the yogurt. Let it set in frig overnight.  Discard liquid and dump out thicken yogurt into a fresh bowl. Add rose water and honey, mix. Set aside.

Spiced Almonds

1 c. whole, raw almonds
1 tbs. honey
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. salt
pinch cloves
4-5 cranks of the pepper mill

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cookie sheet with parchment. Pour honey over almonds and mix. Mix together all spices and salt, then sprinkle over almonds. Mix to coat. Pour onto cookie sheet. Bake for 10 min. give a stir with a spatula and bake 10 min. more, until almonds are nice an fragrant. Set aside to cool completely.

Black Cherry Syrup

2 c. fresh pitted black cherries (Bing cherries)
1/2 c. sugar

Place both ingredients in a heavy bottomed saucepan over med. heat. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. As the juices come out of the fruit and mix with the sugar it will make a syrup. This takes about 10- 15 min. As I was in a hurry, I placed the cherry syrup in an ice bath to chill. It took only 10 min.

Arrange the yogurt, almonds and cherries however you like. I tried several different ways. A parfait looks beautiful, layering the cherries between the yogurt with the almonds on top. I thought though, the yogurt in the middle with the cherry syrup around and topped off with the almonds looked the nicest and I was able to control the syrup to yogurt ratio in each bite I took. Delish!

A Small Dough-nation

I'm not asking for donations, but I am offering one to you in the form of pizza dough. The only thing small about this dough is the ingredient list and the difficulty factor. It serves up big-time in the delish department. I feel every cook should have a good pizza dough recipe blessing their kitchen with a base on which to create endless masterpieces.

I've been fascinated with pizza since...forever. It's easily on the top 5 of my fav foods. Trips to Napoli only reinforced the love. It's embarrassing to divulged the amount of pizza I could eat at a sitting...so I won't. I think what draws me in is the crust. I adore food with crunch. If the crust is crunchy, it may be possible to toss anything on top of it and I would eat it, just to get to the crust. Okay, maybe not anything. My husband would be tossing anchovies, raw oysters and seaweed on there...things he always tries to get me to eat, because he loves them so.

Oh, and a note on instant yeast. If you have not used it...try it. It's amazing. I love it because I don't have to let it proof in the sugar and water until it's puffy. Nope, just toss it into the flour with everything else. It's cheap at your local wholesale club and it keeps forever in the frig. Just sayin'.



Pizza Dough

Prep time: 10 minutes plus 45 minutes to rise, plus 15 minutes to rest (for the dough, not you:)
Makes: 2 pizzas

2 c. flour
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
3 tbls. olive oil
2 tsp. instant yeast
1/2 c. warm water (110 degrees)

Dump all ingredients into your stand mixer with dough hook attachment, turn to medium speed and let it rip! If the dough looks a little dry, add a tsp. water. If it looks wet, add a bit of flour.

When it pulls together in a ball, that is when you start the timer for the 5 minutes of kneading. Just let the mixer do the job for you. You can also do this by hand.

After the five minutes, you should have a soft, elastic dough, the expression, "soft as a baby's bottom" would be appropriate here, and in most cases the bowl will be "clean" as in all the dough pulled away from the sides.

Pour in a tsp. of olive oil into your bowl. Coat the dough ball in the oil, this prevents it from drying out.

Cover the bowl with a dish towel and set in a warm place to rise. I happened to put mine outside because it was warm and toasty, much warmer than my air conditioned house...it would have taken forever! So after rising in a warm place for 45 minutes (it should double in size), punch it down and divide into two balls. Let them rest for 15 minutes more. Don't skip this part, trust me. I've gotten antsy pants around this time, skipped this part and it was like trying to roll out an inflatable inter tube. (Okay, weird analogy, just roll with it) It was snapping back, not obeying my rolling pin and just overall difficult to work with. SO, let it rest that 15 min.

Then you're ready to make some pizza! Ciao! P.s. stay tuned for my next video, I will be making pizzas with my kids...trust me you'll want to watch that one.