Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Brownies

These are divine.  The original recipe is posted on the Food Buzz.  I made a few changes.

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Brownies

Servings: about 20 bite-size brownies

Ingredients

For the brownies:

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)

1 and 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips

2 eggs

3/4 cup light brown sugar

1 teaspoon instant coffee crystals

2 tablespoons water

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

For the filling:

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 package (8 ounces) softened cream cheese

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/3 cup seedless red raspberry jam (I just used the homemade seeded version)

Ganache:
(the original recipe called for a glaze, but I couldn't get it to work so I substituted the ganache)

4 oz good quality semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup heavy whipping cream.

1/8 tsp instant coffee crystals

Instructions

For the brownies:

1.  Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.

2.  In a heavy saucepan, melt the butter and chocolate chips over low heat until melted, cool slightly.

3.  In a large bowl, beat the eggs and the brown sugar until well-mixed.

4.  Dissolve the coffee crystals in the water, add to the egg mixture with the melted chocolate and mix ingredients well.

5. Combine the baking powder and flour in a small bowl; stir into chocolate mixture.

6.  Spread mixture into a greased 9-inch square baking pan.

7.  Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, cool completely. (I stuck them in the freezer)

For the filling:

1.  Melt the chocolate chips and let cool slightly.

2.  In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese until fluffy; add the powdered sugar and raspberry jam-mix well.

3.  Stir in the melted chocolate until combined.

4.  Spread the filling evenly over the cooled brownies.

I forgot to add the melted chocolate, so my filling was pink in color. I think adding the chocolate would just make the brownies richer and frankly, they were quite rich in my case. I also stuck the brownies in the freezer to help the filling set before adding the ganache.   

Ganache:

1. Heat the cream in a pan until simmering. Pour over chocolate chips in a bowl. Let sit 5 minutes, then stir until completely combined, add coffee crystals. Let the frosting sit 15 minutes before frosting the cupcakes.

The famous apple pie

I bake a lot of pies. This is my personal favorite. I entered it in the Cache County Fair, where it only managed to win a red ribbon. My mom theorizes that it is due to a lack of sophisticated palates on the judges part. This pie is unique and absolutely delicious. McKay is truly a pie connoisseur and he rates this at the top of the list.

*I posted my pie crust recipe previously*

¾ cup sugar

2 tbsp flour

1/ 8 tsp salt

1 cup sour cream

½ tsp vanilla extract

1 egg

2 cups diced apples (I use 6 large granny smith or 8 small)

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup flour

1 tsp cinnamon

¼ cup chilled butter, diced

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, stir together ¾ cup sugar, 2 tbsp flour and salt. Mix in the sour cream, egg and vanilla until smooth. Add apples (peel and sliced) and stir to coat. Place in pie shell.
3. Bake 15 minutes in preheated oven, then reduce heat to 250 degrees and continue baking for 30 minutes more.
4. To prepare topping stir 1/3 cup flour, 1/3 cup sugar, and cinnamon. Cut in the butter until the mixture resembles fine crumbs.
5. Cover the top of the pie with the crumb topping, and continue to bake for 15 minutes, or until topping in lightly browned and apples are tender. Allow the pie to cool, then refrigerate until chilled before serving.

Delectable Brownies

*This is a great and easy brownie recipe. They lasted about 20 minutes when I made them today.

1 cup butter, melted

3 cups white sugar

1 tbsp vanilla

4 eggs

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp salt

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Combined melted butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl. Beat in eggs one at at time.

2. Sift together flour, cocoa powder and salt. Gradually stir flour mixture into wet ingredients until blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

3. Bake in a 9x13 pan at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes.

Fry Bread

Navajo tacos are a tasty treat. Once you've tried this fry bread you will never go back to scones made from Rhode's rolls.

2 cups flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 cup milk, heated

Oil for frying (should be about 1 1/2 - 2 inches deep in the pan)

Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in milk and mix until the dough comes together. Add more flour if necessary to be able to handle dough. Knead dough on floured surface until smooth (at least 5 minutes). Let dough rest for 5 minutes. Then break off pieces of dough and shape into round discs. *Make the middle thin or even leave a small hole. Oil should be around 365 degrees (use a thermometer of take a wooden spoon and place handle in oil, if bubble comes up around spoon oil is ready). Fry away.

Grilled Pork Tenderloin with Chimichurri

This was posted on The Food Buzz and earlier seen on Tyler's Ultimate.  Apparently, Chimichurri is Argentine, and I might say, quite delicious.  The original recipe calls for cooking an entire pork loin on the grill, but since we were using the George Foreman, I decided to cut mine prior to cooking.  Also, I topped mine with the Chimichurri rather than serving it on the side.  So delicious. 

Since this meal is South American in origin, I would suggest serving it with corn tortillas, beans, and fresh fruit.  (Consequently, I served cucumbers, steamed broccoli, and rice.  Not a good pairing and way too much green).

Chimichurri
3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
2 jalapenos, seeded and minced
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1/2 cup finely chopped fresh oregano leaves

Juice from 2 limes

3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon whole black peppercorn

 

Tenderloin

1 pork tenderloin, trimmed of excess fat, patted dry

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to season
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Lime juice, for drizzling
Italian parsley, chopped for garnish

Directions:

Combine garlic, jalapeno, vinegar, parsley, oregano, and lime juice in a blender. Add olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Blend well and set aside at room temperature to allow the flavors to marry.

Reserve half of the chimichurri to serve and marinate the pork with the rest.

Put the pork and marinade in a sealable plastic bag and set aside in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Don’t over-marinate.

Preheat an outdoor charcoal grill or oven broiler to high. Remove the pork from the marinade, wiping off any excess. Season both sides with a generous amount of salt and pepper.

Drizzle with olive oil and place on the grill. Grill the pork on the hottest part of the barbecue for 5 to 6 minutes per side, until well charred. Allow the tenderloin to rest for about 5 minutes prior to slicing.

Spoon some chimichurri over the meat, drizzle with lime juice, garnish with parsley, and serve with the remaining sauce.

Thai-Style Chicken Salad

(Yes, this is my veryown picture, although the store was out of bean sprouts.)

It's just too darn hot to turn on the oven, especially in my non-airconditioned home.  Thus I am getting creative with my cooking-- veering away from the five things I usually cook.  This recipe is from Great Food Fast (Martha Stewart Living) and I found it to be very refreshing.  Patrick wasn't too fond of the mint, which he found overpowering, but the marinade/dressing is delicious.

1/2 c. fresh lime juice (fresh orange juice would also be delicious, but obviously, omit the sugar)
2 T. soy sauce
2 T. sugar
6 T. veg. oil (I used olive)
1/4-1/2 t. red pepper flakes
2 boneless rib-eye steakes (8 oz. and 1/4 inch thick)
3-4 medium carrots (I used 1)
1 med. head romaine lettuce, cut
1 c. fresh bean sprouts. 
1/2 c. mint leaves (parsley would also be good)
1/2 c. salted peanuts, chopped

Make marinade in a medum bowl, wisk together lime juice, soy sauce, sugar, red pepper flakes, and oil.  Season steakes generously with salt and pepper and place in baking dish (or plastic ziploc bag-- they work wonderfully for marinating). Pour 1/2 of marinade over steaks and reserve the rest to use as a dressing.  Let them marinate for 30 min.

In a large skillet, cook the steaks and medium high heat, turning every 2-3 min (I let the marinade start to caramelize and oh my, so delicious).  Steaks will be medium rare.  Transfer to aluminum foil and let sit for 5-10 min before cutting into strips.   Cut carrots into long ribbons using a vegetable peeler.  (The recipe suggests tossing all ingredients in a big bowl, but I made each salad individually.  My brother David claims that when the dressing is pre-tossed into the salad it "takes away his freedom to choose".)