Chocolate Ganache Frosting

This ganache is for spreading, not for pouring. I am putting it on cupcakes. It is pretty delicious. I am tempted to make a bowl just to eat by myself. : )

What You'll Need: 

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
5 1/2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sugar
Pinch of salt


How to Make It: 

Put the chocolate and the butter in a medium bowl, and set aside. Combine the cream, the sugar, and the salt in a saucepan and bring to a simmer (just before it starts to boil- but don't scald it!) Let the cream mixture simmer for 4 minutes, stirring frequently. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and the butter in the bowl. Whisk everything together until the chocolate and butter are melted, and the ganache is silky smooth. Let it sit on the counter (without stirring) for 2-3 hours, or refrigerate for about 45 minutes. If you refrigerate it, bring the ganache to room temperature before stirring it and spreading it on cake, cupcakes, you name it.

Actually Tasty Onion Dip

I have made several onion dips in the past (I won't eat potato chips without it!) and this is the first homemade version that I actually really liked. I hope you like it, too!

What You'll Need: 

2 tsp olive oil or 1 tbsp butter
1 medium to large onion, diced
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 1/2 cups sour cream
3/4 cup mayo
1/4 tsp garlic powder
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

How to Make It: 

Heat the oil or butter in a medium pan over medium heat. Add the onions and the salt, and let the onions caramelize, stirring occasionally (it took about 25 minutes on my stove.) The onions should be golden brown and they should be reduced in size- but not burned to a crisp! Remove the onions from the heat and let them cool a little. Meanwhile, in a bowl, combine the sour cream, mayo, garlic powder, and salt and pepper. Add the onions and stir well to combine. Cover the dip and refrigerate at least an hour to let the flavors mingle. Stir the dip again before serving.

Cheesy Pecan Chicken Casserole

I made this for dinner tonight with roasted carrots and cannellini beans. It was pretty yummy!

What You'll Need: 

1 cup all purpose flour
2 cups finely shredded cheddar cheese, divided
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1/3 cup vegetable oil
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
1 cup chicken broth
4 cups diced cooked chicken
1/2 onion, finely diced*
1/4 cup mayo
1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce, or more to taste
1 tbsp dijon or spicy brown mustard

How to Make It:

Preheat the oven to 350. In a bowl, combine the flour, 1 cup of the cheese, the pecans, salt, paprika, and vegetable oil. Set aside about 2 cups of the crumb mixture for the topping. Press the remaining crumb mixture on the bottom of a greased 13x9 baking dish. The crust will be crumbly- don't worry about it! Bake the crust for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, lightly beat the eggs. Add the remaining ingredients and stir well to combine. Pour the mixture over the baked crust, and sprinkle it with the remaining cheesy pecan crumbs. Bake the casserole for 25-30 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Let the casserole stand for 5-10 minutes before serving. This will make 8 very generous servings!

*I don't even bother dicing onion anymore, unless I can throw it in my food processor with something else. Invest in a decent box grater (cheese is better when you grate it yourself, anyway) and just grate the onion. You don't have to touch it as much and it takes a lot less time!

Balsamic and Brown Sugar Glazed Pork Loin

Drop everything you're doing, go to the grocery and get the ingredients for this right now. It is so good. I want to make batches of the sauce and put it on everything- I have a feeling that it would be very yummy on chicken, as well.

What You'll Need:

1 2 lb boneless pork loin

1 tsp ground sage

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 garlic clove, crushed

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp cornstarch

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup water

2 tbsp soy sauce

How to Make It:

Combine the sage, salt, pepper and garlic in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture over the pork. Place the pork in a slow cooker, and pour the 1/2 cup water in there with it. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. About an hour before the pork loin is done, combine the brown sugar, cornstarch, balsamic vinegar, water and soy sauce in a small saucepan, and heat the pan until the mixture thickens. Stir the sauce frequently so you don't get little lumps of cornstarch in it. Brush the roast with the glaze two or three times in the last hour of cooking, and serve the roast with whatever sauce you have left over. Or you can be like me and double the sauce recipe so you'll have plenty to go around!

Glazed Lemon Pound Cake

Be sure to properly grease and flour your cake pan. I wasn't paying attention, missed a spot, and my cake broke in half. It was still good, though!

What You'll Need:

For the cake:

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup shortening

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

1 cup milk

Zest of 1 lemon

1 tsp vanilla

Juice of 1 lemon

For the glaze:

Powdered sugar

Lemon juice

How to Make It:

Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Beat the butter and shortening at medium speed until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating just until combined after each addition. Sift the flour, baking powder and salt, and add it to the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in the lemon zest, vanilla, and lemon juice. Pour the batter into a greased and floured Bundt or tube pan. Bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a long wooden skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool the cake on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert the pan onto a serving platter, and top with the glaze.

For the glaze, start with a healthy amount of powdered sugar- I used 1 1/2 cups, but you might want to use a little less. Add lemon juice to the powdered sugar and whisk until it's a nice, glaze-y consistency. You can use the bottled lemon juice for this, or freshly squeezed lemon juice. Either way, you're going to use several tablespoons of juice. When your glaze is finished, drizzle it over the cake, and you're done!

Raspberry Truffle Brownies

Really more truffle than brownies, these are super yummy and very rich. Be sure to cut them into tiny pieces!

What You'll Need:

3 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped

1/3 cup butter

1/4 cup seedless raspberry jam

2 eggs

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 tbsp whipping cream

2 tbsp butter

4 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped

1 1/4 cups raspberries, optional

How to Make It:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease an 8 inch square pan, line it with foil, then grease the foil. In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the unsweetened chocolate, butter, and jam, stirring constantly, until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat. In a bowl, whisk the eggs and sugar until frothy. Slowly whisk in the chocolate mixture, then the flour, mixing until smooth. Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the brownies are set, about 25-30 minutes (but don't try the "toothpick test" with these brownies- if you wait till the toothpick comes out clean, the brownies will be way overdone!) Let the brownies cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.

In a small saucepan over low heat, heat the cream, butter and semisweet chocolate, stirring until smooth. Let this chocolate mixture cool slightly, then pour it over the brownies and spread it evenly. Top the brownies with the raspberries, if you're using them, and chill the pan until the brownies are cold. Lift the foil out of the pan, cut up the brownies and serve.

These brownies need to stay refrigerated as long as possible- if you let them sit out on a serving plate for too long, they get too soft and they're hard to eat!

Buffalo Chicken Calzones

What You'll Need:

1 can (8 oz) pizza sauce (I like Muir Glen)

2 tsp plus 1/2 cup hot sauce, divided

1 1/4 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast, cubed

3 tbsp butter

A dash of Cajun seasoning (I used Emeril Lagasse's recipe, scaled down)

2 tubes (10 oz each( refrigerated pizza crust dough

1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese

2 oz very finely crumbled blue cheese, optional

Cornmeal

How to Make It:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a bowl, combine the pizza sauce and 2 tsp hot sauce; set aside. In a skillet, saute the chicken in the butter for 3-5 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink. Stir in the Cajun seasoning and the remaining hot sauce, cover the pan and let it simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until everything is heated through. Unroll the pizza dough and divide each portion in half. On a floured surface, roll each dough portion into an 8 inch circle. Spread the pizza sauce mixture over half of each circle within 1 inch of the edge of the dough. Top the sauce with the chicken mixture and the cheeses. Fold the dough over the filling and pinch the edges to seal. Sprinkle a greased baking sheet (or two, if you need it) with cornmeal. Place the calzones over the cornmeal, and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown.