The Sweet Details: July 2011

Sunday, 31 July 2011

Savory Sunday

Oh yum, my picks this week are great summer time treats!

I noticed there were a lot of zucchini dishes and I was so excited to see that because I'm putting together a post on all the things you can make with zucchini so look forward to that!

Grilled Fish Tacos from Allie's Clean Plate Club

Taco Pizza from Brandy's Baking

Creamy Avocado Dip from Darn Near Domestic

Here's how it will work:

1) Link up to the link below (link as many as you want but try to link something savory if you can)
2) Grab the Savory Sunday button and put it in the post you are sharing
3) Leave a comment after you post
4) I'd love for you to become a follower if you're not but it's not a requirement :)

Saturday, 30 July 2011

Guest Writer: Rhiannon from My Handcrafted Home

Hi sweet details readers! I'm really excited to be posting today! I'm Rhiannon from My Handcrafted Home.

I live in North Yorkshire, England with my husband and two children (aged one and three). Life feels pretty crazy with two children so young and a part time job as an English tutor. I also love working in my church with the amazing teenagers there, where I organise activities and teach Sunday lessons. I keep myself sane by making sure I have time for me, whether that is reading about other people's wonderful creations, date nights with my husband, baking and making things or having girly nights out.

My blog about all my different loves; painting, sewing, gluing, card making, scrapbooking, my family and of course cooking and baking. Although really cooking is more of a need and baking is my indulgence! And my motto is, if a desert is worth the calories then it has to be chocolaty!

Amanda asked me...

What's your favorite recipe?
I would have to say the 'Bruce Bogtrotter' cake (from Roald Dahl's Matilda). I adapted my version from 'Roald Dahl's Revolting Recipes'. It is quick, easy and delicious! It is definitely my go to cake for birthdays and bake sales!

(Cake recipe)

What's your favorite kitchen tool?
This would have to be my George Foreman griller, if I'm running late it's so quick to cook meat, plus it feels really good to see all the fat in the catcher and not on my hips! (especially for bacon sandwiches, no guilt!)

What do you live by in life? (Your motto, a quote, a verse etc.)
Baking wise it would be the one above about a desert needing to have chocolate to be worth the calories. But in general I try to treat people as I would like to be treated (that's why I like to bake for people!).

Now to the good part,

Double Chocolate Cupcakes

You'll need:

1/2 cup butter (room temp)

2 cups flour

1 1/3 cups sugar

2 tsp baking powder

pinch of salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 1/3 cup milk

2 eggs

1/4 cup cocoa powder and 1/4 cup milk mixed together

topping

200g dark chocolate

100ml double cream

sprinkles of choice

1. Cream the butter and then mix with the dry ingredients.

2. Gradually add a cup of the milk and when all that is mixed in mix in the rest of the milk, eggs and cocoa and milk mixture.

This is actually what your cocoa mix should look like!

3. When the mixture is all combined ladle it into cupcake cases.

4. Bake for twenty mins on 180 degrees C in a preheated oven.

5. For the topping melt the chocolate and cream together and leave to cool and thicken for twenty mins (this will also give time for the cupcakes to cool).

6. Frost to your hearts content and add sprinkles.

Just so you know, this will happen if you let your three year old help...

Enjoy at room temp (but store in fridge because of the cream).

Thank you so much for having me! I'd love you to come over and see my blog and say 'hi' sometime.

If you're interested in being a guest writer here's all the details!

Thursday, 28 July 2011

Health Tip Of The Week: Why We Eat the Wrong Foods

There are many causes for unhealthy eating habits. Some are biological and some are psychological. Here are the most common ones:

1. It's a habit to eat bad foods. Some people are raised on regional/ethnic cooking that isn't always healthy.

2. It's convenient to eat bad foods. Can you name any health-food-drive-through chain restaurants in Canada?

3. It's a vicious cycle. People fall into a cycle of eating sugar, and the cycle perpetuates itself. When you eat sugar, you get a sugar rush, but a few hours later your blood sugar level drops and you crave a sweet or starchy pick me-up.

4. Hormones make bad foods look good. The changes in hormone levels during pregnancy, PMS and menopause can cause women to crave sweets and chocolate.

5. It's comforting to eat bad foods. Excessive stress elevates cortisol, which leads to cravings and often what is called 'emotional eating.' When people are stressed, depressed, anxious, or just low in serotonin, norepinephrine or dopamine, they often reach for foods that pump up these feel-good chemicals. Too often, however, these foods are junk foods, processed foods, and foods high in sugar, making them unhealthy choices.

Taken from the book “Eat This And Live” by Dr. Colbert www.drcolbert.com

Tuesday, 26 July 2011

Baking Goal: Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie n' Cream Fudge Brownie Bar

Oh my gosh, can I have this right now?!

Check out the recipe(s) at Kevin & Amanda

Monday, 25 July 2011

Baking My Way: Pillsbury Sunburst Lemon Bar

I really like different lemon treats but for some reason I usually hesitate to make them, and I'm not too sure why. I think it might because I think they are going to be hard, but they're usually not! This one is a great example of that! It's super simple! I flipped through, found it, made sure I had everything and went for it! It turned out great and looks just like in the picture!

I gives these a 3 (1 being "I'll never bake them again" and 5 being "They are now one of my favorites")

(It's always nice when I can find the recipe online and don't have to type it all out!)

Kitchen Tip: Cool these bars completely and let the filling set before attempting to cut them.

Recipe Variation: To simplify the final touch for this rich dessert, sift powdered sugar over the top instead of icing.

Prep Time: 15 minutes (Ready in 2 hours)

Base
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 cup margarine or butter, softened

Filling
4 eggs, slightly beaten
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup lemon juice

Frosting
1 cup powdered sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons lemon juice

1. Heat oven to 350'F In large bowl, combine all base ingredients at low speed until crumbly. Press mixture
evenly in bottom of un-greased 13 x 9-inch pan. Bake at 350'F. for 20 to 30 minutes or until light golden brown.
2. Meanwhile, in large bowl, combine all filling ingredients except lemon juice; blend well. Stir in 1/4 cup lemon juice. Pour mixture over warm base.
3. Bake at 350°F for an additional 25 to 30 minutes or until top is light golden brown. Cool 1 hour or until completely cooled.
4. In small bowl, combine 1 cup powdered sugar and enough lemon juice for desired spreading consistency; blend until smooth. Frost cooled bars. Cut into bars.

Yield: 36 bars

Sunday, 24 July 2011

Savory Sunday

Hi All!
Hope your summer is going great! At the moment I'm put with a few couples at a cabin taking in what should be a wonderful weekend!

I've got to say I'm really enjoying my summer; tanning, gardening and now getting to ride around my scooter (which I am doing A LOT!).

I hope yours is going great as well!

Now to my wonderful picks this week...

Zucchini Chips from Mostly Food & Crafts

Golden Deep Fried Butterfly Prawns from My Personal Food Journal

Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies from Just Winging It

Sweet Asian Spiced Chicken from Like Mother, Like Daughter

Grilled Alvarado BLT Salad (Vegetarian) from Veggie Conversion 365

Lamb & Chickpeas Chilli from Bright Side Of The Road

Here's how it will work:

Saturday, 23 July 2011

Guest Writer: Amanda from Kuzak's Closet

My name is Amanda Kuzak, I am a professional organizer from the San Francisco Bay Area. I have owned my own business since 2004 and I love how rewarding it is to help my clients live more organized and efficiently. In my free time I like to relax by whipping up tasty treats and home cooked meals in my kitchen, walk my dog Harper, hike in the California hills, and watch tacky realty television like the Real Housewives of New Jersey.

After much encouragement from my husband Chris I began blogging in late 2009. It has become a wonderful creative outlet for me and an educational tool for my friends and clients. I write about organization, recipes, fashion, and much much more. You can find my blog here.

My favorite recipe is Barefoot Contessa's Baked Sopressata.

My favorite kitchen tool is my kitchen shears, I use them for everything!

My motto is "Simple, uncluttered, organized."

Decked Out Angel Food Cake

Ingredients

1 Angel Food Cake Mix prepared according to directions (or feel free to skip this step and buy a store bought one!)

1 Large Container of thawed Cool Whip

2 pints of Fresh Berries of your choice

Directions

Once your cake is done and cooled. Cut the cake in half horizontally with a serrated knife. Scoop the bottom layer out slightly saving the scooped cake to be later mixed with your cool whip and berry mixture.

Mix half of your thawed Cool Whip with some freshly cut up berries and scooped out cake. I used strawberries but this cake would be excellent with raspberries, blueberries, blackberries or all!

Finish by re-applying your top half of the Angel Food Cake. Frost with remainder of Cool Whip and top with berries.

Serve with a drizzle of chocolate if desired. Enjoy!

If you're interest in doing a guest post here's all the info! I'd love to have you post!!

Thursday, 21 July 2011

Health Tip Of The Week: How To Cure Dry Skin

Do you know that there are some harmful ingredients that can irritate and cause allergic reactions and actually make your dry skin worse? The fact is there are dangerous toxins amongst many makeup and skincare solutions.

For example there are parabens used that can prolong the shelf-life of a product. But unfortunately, paraben is a major cause of cancer in later years of your life.

There are many other bad ingredients in most skin care (just try and read the labels and see how many of them aren’t chemicals!) but instead of listing them all here are some options:

I would strongly recommend you opt only for natural ingredients such as those that come from plant roots, herbs, flowers, trees or seeds in them.

Some examples of the best pure, botanical oils include almond, camphor, lime, avocado, olive and juniper oil. Research has shown that these powerful plants extracts can help to make your skin become smoother, younger and fresh looking.

Some sites with good options:

www.burtsbees.ca

http://ca.loccitane.com

www.bio-oil.com

Tips: If you want wanting to up the moisture in your skin but putting on lotions isn’t enough try taking a bath but put a bite of olive oil or almond oil in the water with you!

Tuesday, 19 July 2011

Baking Goal: Pink Lemonade Cheesecake

Oh my gosh! Wow! I love pink and I love desserts! So, this is the best of two things I love!

Check out the recipe at Dee Dee's Delights! I wish I could be eating this right now!

Monday, 18 July 2011

Baking My Way: Pillsbury Brown Sugar Shortbread Puffs

This recipe is super easy but can't say that I love the cookies. They're a nice change from the white sugar shortbread but I don't love them. I'm trying all the recipes in the book; that is the point after all, so I was sure I would come to something at some point in baking my way through this book that I didn't love and I guess this is one of those times.

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 1/4 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg yolk
2 1/4 cups flour

Heat oven to 350.

In a large bowl combine sugar and butter; beat until light and fluffy.

Add vanilla and egg yolk; blend well.

Add flour; stir until mixture forms a smooth dough.

Drop dough in round teaspoonfuls 2inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until light golden brown and set.

Sunday, 17 July 2011

Savory Sunday

Wow, yum! You all are coming up with some seriously good recipes! And it's all about summer, I can tell by what you've been making!

Here are my picks for this week!