bad bloggers

ROOTBEER FLOAT CUPCAKES



VANILLA CARDAMOM PEAR PIE



I have to admit that Michael and I are horrible Bloggers. We've been eating delicious meals and not sharing them with anyone. Here is a taste of what we've been consuming...

Here are some other delicious recipes we've tried (but didn't take pictures of):

ASPARAGUS-FINGERLING POTATO - AND GOAT CHEESE PIZZA

PORK CHOPS WITH CURRIED APPLE & ONION SAUCE

WILD MUSHROOM RISOTTO


Some restaurants we've eaten at:
Citizen Cafe - Delicious!!!!
Michael ordered the Butternut Squash Lasagna
I ordered the Portabella Burger
We shared the best cheesecake - it had dark chocolate with roasted pistachio brittle on top... YUMMY!

Al Vento - Always our favorite. The menu changes daily -
Here's an example of what we had last night:
Proscuitto with squash fontina cheese and egg pizza
Grilled hanger steak with truffled potato and red wine demi
For dessert:
semi frozen pistascio custard with chocolate and roasted pistachios

Doolittles Woodfire Grill -

French Meadow Bakery - the website was down - sorry, no link available at this time.

Sweets Bakeshop

Based upon a recommendation from Coca, we went to this lovely little bakery in Saint Paul.


Kettle Corn:
"Dense cornmeal cake featuring a crispy top and soft and tender crumb topped with honey buttercream and candied corn."
This cupcake was a little bland. We walked out the door with a box full of flavors. Some that we'd been dreaming of for days (black currant) and some were last minute whims. Kettle corn was a whim. By the time we were in the car, we had forgotten some of our choices. The aroma seeping from the box forced us to eat one on the drive. We looked at the spread and grabbed the one we couldn't put a name to. "What is it?" we asked one another. As we attempted to tear the paper cup away, we could only determine on thing. This one is sticky. Once we bit in we knew, too, that it was sweet. Sticky and sweet. That's all we could figure. Dumbfounded and distracted from the road, Erin clumsily pokes at my iPhone. She's digging for their daily menu. "KETTLE CORN!" I suppose kettle corn is sticky and sweet, but this flavoring didn't lend itself to cake well. I don't know if we saved best for last, but we had the least amazing first.


Snowball:
"Coconut cake topped with coconut buttercream and coconut shavings."
After a delicious dinner at Brasa, we felt we were entitled to another road cupcake to settle our tummies. We plucked Snowball from the box. This was the prettiest one. A red marzipan dot atop a mound of snow white coconut frosting, felled upon an earth of coconut cake. If you love coconut and you love sweet, you'll really love snowball cupcakes. Erin took her first messy bite and passed my "half" to me in between gear shifts. Half was questionable. SWEETS makes normal and small cupcakes. We got some of both. This was a small and so was Erin's bite. She passed it and I had the rest. I'd wager that the split ended up 60/40, but she'd argue it was a more drastic ratio. A score she'd attempt to settle with each following bite.



Black Currant:
"Chocolate cake topped with black currant buttercream and candied almonds."
With the fear that our minimal after dinner activity may have burned some calories, we made sure to have another cupcake before bed. We wanted to make sure the sugars would be stored for winter, next year. The black currant frosting was so smooth, but a little tart. The dark chocolate of the cake was a little bittersweet, or just tasted so next to the frosting. Like one spoon of sugar versus two. Very delicious all around, but an inch and a half of cake wasn't enough to offset the inch of frosting. This was probably the tastiest of the bunch, but a little moderation could be used with the frosting to make the perfect bite.



Breakfast:
"Vanilla cake filled with salty bacon, topped with sweet maple buttercream."
The best part of waking up is CUPCAKES. By now the sugar high is wearing off and we're picking our skin and grinding our teeth like my crackhead buddies at the jail. Luckily, our fix is in the fridge. The morning calls for a bacon/maple cupcake. When you look at this one you know you're in for something different. I spire of bacon shoots out of the top of this tower of flavor. A first bite reveals a cross section maple cake with a little frosting center complete with bacon dust. A wonderfully salty compliment to the intense sweetness of maple. This one is scary on paper, but you'll want more once you've tried it.



Triple Chocolate:
"Chocolate cake filled with chocolate ganache topped with chocolate buttercream."
Of course when coming off an addiction, you tend to set terms and bargain. We decided that we could swear off cupcakes, only if we could have a little more cupcake. So, before we washed its flavor from our palettes with lunch, we had our last cupcake. Triple chocolate was delicious and a perfect pick for a chocolate lover. The only thing better than one chocolate is two. This had three and was divine. It could have used a little salt to offset how sweet it was. Maybe next time I'll add some bacon. Maybe I'll start adding bacon to everything. Unless it's too salty. Then I'll add chocolate. We could just start adding bacon and chocolate to EVERYTHING. Maybe not.
By the way. Next sweets purchase at Byerly's is Dark Cholcolate Bar with Bacon. Yum!

Pork Chops with Onion Compote

Pork Chops with Onion Compote

Tastes:

The pork chops turned out so soft. We cooked them medium-rare, which we've heard is not recommended for pork. It was awesome anyway. The onions were mouthwateringly delicious and would be good on just about anything from a burger to a piece of chicken.

Tweaks:

There is no need to make any changes to this recipe. The onions were so delicious, that I would double the onions and make half of the meat.

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/pork-chops-with-onion-compote

Oatmeal Cookies

Soft Oatmeal Cookies with Craisins and White Chocolate Chips


Tastes
The only problem with this recipe, is that I cannot stop eating them. I make them one day, and by morning they're gone. Each cookie has it's own unique flavor depending on what proportion of craisins and white chocolate end up in it. The thick little gobs are soft and gooey in the middle with slightly crisp edges which makes for a delicious texture when you taste them. Cinnamon and white chocolate is one of my favorite combinations, but with the hints of fruit it becomes irresistible.

Tweaks
This recipe was fantastic just as it was, but I decided to add one cup of white chocolate chips and one cup craisins. Be sure to make the dough balls the size of a walnut. When they get closer to golf ball sized, they either don't cook all the way through or they get to dark. Walnut sized makes 'em just right. There is also no need to flatten the cookies with a fork, if you leave them in little balls, you'll get a thicker and chewier cookie.



http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Soft-Oatmeal-Cookies/Detail.aspx

truffles.

Chocolate-Covered Raspberry Truffles

Tastes
These truffles are tasty. My mouth waters just thinking about them! They had a rich chocolate taste and the surprise of a whole raspberry inside. The recipe is simple and extremely easy to follow. Everyone who tried them, loved them. For someone who has never made truffles before, I was completely shocked at how easy it was. Now, the problem is knowing how easy they are to make.

Tweaks
The recipe calls for 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, I reduced it to one tablespoon and it was still too much. Next time I make the recipe (which will be tonight already!), I will only use one teaspoon of the unsweetened cocoa powder.
The ganache was also a bit runny when I first melted the chocolate. So, I waited a few minutes until it thickened up a bit. This also allowed for a thicker layer of chocolate around the raspberry.
My last recommendation would be to keep them in the refrigerator. The chocolate ganache gets a little gooey at room temperature.

www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/reviews/Chocolate-Covered-Raspberry-Truffles-231219

The Perfect Start

Black Pepper Crusted Filet Mignon with Toasted Goat Cheese and Twice Cooked Red Chile Sauce

Tastes
This recipe turned out delicious. It was probably the best thing we've made together, so far. It serves as the perfect meal to start our blog. Every bite was the perfect bite.
The pepper sauce turned out far more mild than expected. The goat cheese we bought also happened to be quite mild. Luckily the pepper crust on the beef was strong and complimented the subtle flavors well.


Tweaks
Fresh peppers are recommended for the sauce, but hard to find. We ended up using dried peppers and it turned out fairly mild. Fresh peppers may have resulted in a bigger kick.
The recipe calls for 6 - 8 c. of chicken stock, but we used about 5 1/2 c.
It was a bit expensive with 4 thick cutlets of tenderloin. You could cut the recipe in half, if you're cooking for two. Otherwise, this recipe makes a great double dinner date. To round out the meal, we made baked asparagus with parmesan & slivered almonds, and a rosemary baguette in olive oil.

With the two cutlets left over, we had enough to prepare breakfast this morning. We sliced the meat, paired it with goat cheese & scrambled eggs, then rolled in a tortilla. It was just as delicious this morning, as it was last night.






http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/black-pepper-crusted-filet-mignon-with-toasted-goat-cheese-and-twice-cooked-red-chile-sauce-recipe/index.html

The Beginning.

This was Michael's idea. He made the suggestion of starting a blog dedicated to the delicious food we eat. I've also fallen in love, and forgotten many recipes that have crossed my path. This blog will help me remember why I made that chocolate raspberry cake two years ago, and where I found that recipe. I will share recipes, as I hope you share suggestions...