Fallen Souffle

Number 87- Take a spinning class-COMPLETED 10/23/2006

Yes, I have started getting up at 5:30am to go workout because I just don’t have the drive to do it after work. So I noticed there was a spinning class on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings at 6am…so today I got up the nerve to try it. Woah! I hope to be able to walk tommorrow! This class was intense…and ofcourse after the hour class one of the other guys comes over and tells me that this instructor is the hardest of the three that teach. Excellent! What a way to start off a Monday!

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So Evan’s birthday dinner consisted of:

Roast Beef with Horseradish Cream Sauce
Baked Potatos with cheese and real bacon bits
Ciabatta Bread
Salad (ok only I ate that)
Dessert-Fried Nutella Ravioli (that’s actually for tonight because we had ice cream cake at his parent’s house)

See the meat fest below, Evan was in carnivore heaven!

The roast beef was a first for me and a bit of a trial and error. I salt and peppered the roast (a rump roast) then laid three bacon strips over the top. Placed it on a roasting rack and roast it at 375 degrees for about an hour and a half. The temperature is suppose to register 135 degrees for rare meat. Well, I was a little impatient and Evan was getting hungry so I pulled it out a little early and put a foil tent over it to let it finish cooking, hence the rather rare beef. I would probably cook it a bit longer next time, but I figured we would be reheating it for sandwiches and such so it should be fine. Evan didn’t seem to mind though, and neither did the dogs who enjoyed a birthday treat as well.

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To the love of my life…I hope you have a wonderful birthday!

We have a quite a menu planned for today, which will not be posted until later because it is a surprise! But we started off the day with these:

(and a slice of Big Apple pizza that I picked up while in Greenville yesterday)

Recipe for the crispiest waffles from Crispy Waffle…she knows her waffles!

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My parents came to visit this weekend to go to the NC State Fair and see the NC State/Wake Forest football game. It would not be a true visit unless I made breakfast one morning. I had some leftover buttermilk from a cake I made and it always seems to go to waste because I can’t use the other 3 cups in time (they really should make buttermilk in smaller containers). But this time I was not going to waste it! I have been in a cleaning out the fridge and freezer mode so I also used some Eggbeaters I had in the freezer. These are from the Martha Stewart Everyday Food magazine from September. I never thought I would buy any of her magazines but I was quite surprised at the recipes in here. Granted there were still the typical only-Martha-would-ever-make-this-dish recipes (Broiled Polenta with Mushroom Ragout- she obviously doesn’t live with a man!) but I was really surprised to see some wonderfully simple recipes.

I originally picked this recipe out because she suggested creating a large amount of dry mix to keep on hand so you just spoon out what you want, add the wet ingredients and cook them up. I have been looking for short cuts in preparing meals now that I am a working girl (don’t worry Mom- not that kind of working girl!) so this is perfect for us!

These pancakes were light and tender with a lovely amount of flavor that complimented the real maple syrup quite well. Now I want to experiment with flavoring syrups…doesn’t that sound special!

Buttermilk Pancakes
1 cup all purpose flour
2 T. sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 T. oil or melted butter
1 large egg
oil or vegetable spray for pan

1. In medium bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.

2. Add in wet ingredients and mix until just combined, do not overmix!

3. Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of batter onto skillet or griddle and cook until some bubbles have appeared and the underside is browned.

4. Carefully flip (I had a time flipping these but my Mom definitely has the skills!) Cook for another 1-2 minutes. Serve immediately!

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The weather in NC is finally turning more fall like. Perfect timing for the State Fair which starts this weekend. I pulled out a sweater I have been dying to wear and decided this would be a great morning for some apple muffins hot from the oven. These muffins were highly rated on Allrecipes so I decided to give them a whirl. I changed the recipe a bit (changes not noted in the recipe) adding only 1/4 cup of butter and 1/4 applesauce so as to cut down on the fat and to add some more apple goodness.

These muffins were a hit at the office…I have no doubt you will love them! You must make the strudel topping, it adds a nice crunch and a bit of sweetness.

Apple Strudel Muffins
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped apples

1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan.

2. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.

3. In a large bowl, beat together butter, sugar and eggs until smooth. Mix in vanilla. Stir in apples, and gradually blend in the flour mixture. Spoon the mixture into the prepared muffin pan.

4. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture is like coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over tops of mixture in muffin pan.

5. Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow to sit 5 minutes before removing muffins from pan. Cool on a wire rack.

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The pretzel roll. Make your own version of the Bennegin’s Turley O’Toole with a pretzel roll…YUM! I got these for 99 cents a piece at A Southern Season which is an East Coast Gourmet Mecca! I never spend less that $50 and 2 hours in there…it rocks! Slap some good mustard and turkey on one of these and dinner is done!

PS-Pic to come…Blogger is sucking again!

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This is probably a Wilton developed day but nonetheless here is a wedding cake and birthday cake I made this weekend, incidently both were from people in my office, Congrats Jen and Happy Birthday Will!

Note- For some reason my pictures don’t want to work…I am trying to fix this now!

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I have decided to start making things I would normally buy, so that I can control the ingredients and the cost. I have become increasingly weary of foods that have high fructose corn syrup in them. Everyone has their things the look for in the food labels; fat, calories, gelatin (Stephie!) well I look for the evil high fructose corn syrup. This stuff is so bad for you it’s amazing so many people over look them. This stuff is in just about every convenience food you could think of. Evan has even stopped drinking sodas cold turkey after reading an article on its effects. Salad dressing is one food that typically has HFCS, especially those that are lower in fat and calories. I have started turning more towards whole foods instead of low fat foods in hope that it will lead to better health in general. So I have been dying for a greek salad and I found this recipe on Allrecipes. It’s pretty basic but I do like the flavor. I added a bit of sugar to offset all of the vinegar. You could also use balsamic vinegar or even lemon juice. The recipe says you don’ have to refridgerate it but I did just to be safe! Throw all of the ingredients in an old jar and shake it up!

Greek Dressing
1/2 cup olive oil
1-1/4 teaspoons garlic powder
1-1/4 teaspoons dried oregano
1-1/4 teaspoons dried basil
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon Dijon-style mustard
2/3 cup red wine vinegar

In a very large container, mix together the olive oil, garlic powder, oregano, basil, pepper, salt, onion powder, and Dijon-style mustard. Pour in the vinegar, and mix vigorously until well blended. Store tightly covered at room temperature (or fridge if you are neurotic like me!).

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Ok, here is the list. What started as a project by Michael Green has turned into quite a phenomenon. My sister originally told me about it, and I thought this was the perfect time to create one of my own. It is quite a challenge to come up with this list, I was stumped after number 37 I believe but I started to not think so broadly and more simply. So my list began on my birthday September 24, 2006 and my end date is June 21, 2009 so let’s see what I can accomplish!

My 101 List!

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I made these over a month ago when my sister was visiting and the only reason I haven’t posted it yet is because I could never get a good picture of it. So you are just going to have to live without a picture because they have all been gobbled up and frankly Evan said they looked like bird seed. But they are very tasty, easy to make in a food processor and oh so good for you!

Ellie’s Energy Bars
Cooking spray
1 cup quick cooking rolled oats
1/2 cup raw unsalted sunflower seeds
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup pitted dried dates
1/2 cup powdered nonfat dry milk
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9 by 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

Place all ingredients except the syrup and eggs in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is finely chopped. Add the syrup and eggs and pulse until the mixture is well combined. It will resemble a coarse paste.

Transfer to the baking pan and spread evenly. Bake until just done, about 20 minutes. Cut into 20 squares.

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