Recipe: A Light, Rustic Treat: Whole-Wheat Apple Tea Cake

When I wake up in the morning, I usually find myself already sorting through the options of what to eat. Because breakfast is usually my favorite meal of the day, I take care to consider my options.

Oatmeal, pancakes, smoothies, fruit + yogurt bowls, cereal, an omelet, a bagel?

Truly, the possibilities are endless. 

But to make such a weighty decision as what one is to have for breakfast (serious first world problems here…), brain power is needed.

Uh, that’s the problematic part—brain power…in the morning.

Brain power? Well, that requires food. Fast.

Sometimes, I’ll just munch on a piece of fruit or some cereal, while I plan. And then other times, I’ll mosey over to the cake server that sits in our kitchen and peer inside, as if it’s a crystal ball. A magical crystal ball that tells me what scrumptious delight I’ll be consuming in the next 3.67531 seconds.

3.67531 seconds later, I find myself happily eating a piece of homemade cookie or muffin, or in this case….a square of rustic apple tea cake.

Let’s just call it a breakfast appetizer. Can we swing that?

I’ll take that as a yes.

Whole-Grain Apple Tea Cake

Naturally sweet from the apples and apple sauce, this cake is perfect for an afternoon snack or light breakfast with a cup of tea. My family enjoyed it, but I also forewarned everyone that it was more of snack cake than a sinful dessert. If you would prefer such a dessert, I would recommend a frosting, icing, or perhaps even a scoop of ice cream. As for me, I’ll stick with the breakfast appetizer.

Adapted from "The Realistic Nutritionist"

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup white whole wheat flour (or more oat flour)
• 1/2 cup oat flour (or more whole wheat flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp allspice
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 medium apples, finely diced (I left the peel on)
• 1 egg (a flax egg would probably work as well)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 tbsp chopped pecans (or other nuts)
• 1/4 cup organic applesauce
• Cooking spray

Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and grease a 8-inch baking pan.

2) Whisk flours, baking soda, spices and salt with a whisk in a small mixing bowl.

3) In a separate bowl, mix brown sugar, apples, chopped nuts, egg and applesauce. Slowly add in dry mixture, mixing gently just until well-combined. Mixture will be thick.

4) Pour batter in greased pan, and bake for 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean.

Recipe: Here Comes The (Bagel) Sun

Dear real breakfast food,

I missed you too.

Where I live, there is a bagel shop like no other. For years, people told me that I could find better bagels in somewhere like New York or Philly or Jersey or Washington D.C.. But after trying bagels from all over the county, I can say with confidence that these bagels are the BEST. Of course, I’ll never pass over a good bagel, but I think it’s safe to say that I’ll never find a bagel better than that of “I Love Bagels.” (Yes, that’s the name of the shop.)

The shop opens at the crack of dawn every morning and serves everything from standards like plain bagels and bagel sandwiches to gourmet flavors like spinach-parmesan (the one pictured), french toast, and even pumpkin during the fall months.

Most people tend to order one or two bagels with cream cheese or a bagel sandwich, but my family has always opted to get a “Bakers’ Dozen”—13 bagels in a big, crinkly white bag. Perfect for satisfying your fickle bagel consumers like me who want a bite of every flavor. Perfect for freezing for weekday breakfasts. Perfect for making your own gourmet bagel creation.

Kinda like this one. Here comes the sun doo doo doo doo…and I say, it’s alright!

Simply Perfect Egg & Cheese Bagel Sandwich

I feel almost silly calling this a “recipe,” but I’m typing it out just incase some people have never ventured into the world of sandwichin’ glory. Dress this up with fancy cheese, mushrooms/onions, or perhaps even bacon if that’s your style. Or just eat a simple sunny morning meal, and call it a day. Either way, you’ll be in heaven.

You’re gonna need:

1 bagel (if you’re in Southern California, only I Love Bagels will do), sliced in half

1 egg

1 thin slice cheese (or ~2 tbsp shredded cheese or cheese spread)

butter/margarine (optional)

salt & pepper

Directions:

1) Cut bagel in half through the middle to create two circular halves.

2) (Very) Lightly spread halves with butter/margarine, and lay cheese slices/shreds on top. Place in toaster over for about 2 minutes.

3) Meanwhile, heat a small frying pan, and cook egg (I did mine over-easy). Remove bagel from oven and egg from pan. Place egg on top of bagel + melted cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Enjoy!

Tip: After going to the bagel shop, we freeze all the leftovers instead of leaving them out on the counter or in the fridge. This keeps them fresh longer. When you want the bagel, defrost in the microwave for about 1 minute and 30 seconds. Presto! Good as new

Post-toaster oven:

Just a lil ooey gooey melted cheddar to start the day. Nothing fancy here folks.

Golden deliciousness with a cuppa Santa-adorned coffee.

A perfect lazy morning.

Have a wonderful day

Recipe: Mediterranean Dreamin’ Pizza

I love pizza. Like really, really love it. Because I tend to prefer crazy, out-there, and somewhat exotic foods to mainstream foods(burgers, chicken fingers, grilled cheese), that might surprise you. But the thing is, I don’t just like any pizza.

Dominoes? Meh, the cardboard box probably tastes better.

Georgetown Dining Hall (a.k.a. Leo’s)? Burnt crust.

Tuscany’s in DC? Whatevs.

Pizza Paradiso (in DC)? Too pricey for what you get.

But homemade pizza is different. It’s customizably delicious, and I’ve taken to craving it whenever I’m away from home. As a family, we’ve made everything from Pear & Gorgonzola, Thai Peanut Chicken, and BBQ Chicken varieties a la California Pizza Kitchen. But prior to this Mediterranean pizza, we mainly stuck to copycats. Then, this pizza came along. It was a game-changer.

It doesn’t sound all that exotic, but something about the combination of flavors—olives, artichokes, cherry tomatoes, and fresh pesto—takes things to a whole ‘nother level.

Like other homemade pizzas, there is some prep time involved, but don’t be daunted—the end result is worth it.

We use Trader Joe’s Herbed Pizza Dough because a) it saves time and b) it’s simply superb/better than any other dough, homemade or otherwise, that we’ve tried. If you don’t have a TJ’s near you, you could try Whole Foods or your regular grocer. Just don’t skip any of the components, including making the homemade pesto. It’s a little time consuming, but oh-so-AMAZINGLY-delicious.

Mediterranean Dreamin’ Pizza

Adapted from the LA Times’ Culinary SOS on Café del Ray

I’ve tried my fair share of pizza—both in restaurants, from take out places, and at home—but this one takes the cake. The mixture of the garlicky pesto, melty cheese, salty olives, and sweet tomatoes makes this pizza simply amazing. While it takes a little bit of time to prepare (like most other homemade pizzas), it has quickly become my favorite!

Ingredients:

1 Trader Joes’s pizza dough (or homemade/storebought if you can’t find this)
2 cups spaghetti or pizza sauce, reduced***

Basil Pesto:
2 garlic cloves
2 tsp pine nuts (toasted)
pinch red chile flakes
2 tbsp parmesan, grated
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups packed basil leaves

1 cup shredded mozzarella
¼ cup crumbled feta
2/3 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
¾ cup olives
1 small jar artichoke hearts, sliced in half

***For the sauce, we use Prego Heart Smart. Because spaghetti sauce is more watery than pizza sauce, we put it in a strainer lined with a coffee filter for at least 1 hour (or as long as overnight). This drains some of the water from the sauce, resulting in a thicker consistency that will ensure that your pizza doesn’t come out soggy.

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Follow instructions for prepping pizza dough. (For the TJ’s one, we take the dough out of the fridge and let it rest on the counter for 15 minutes before stretching it out onto a circular pan.

2) To make the pesto, place the garlic cloves, pine nuts, chili flakes, parmesan, olive oil, and basil leaves in a food processor. Blend until a smooth paste is formed.

3) On your prepared pizza dough, spread the sauce evenly, being careful to not put too much in the middle. Then, layer pizza ingredients in this order: mozzarella, feta, tomatoes, olives, and artichokes.

4) Bake for 10-15 minutes. Drizzle pesto over pizza before serving.

Welcome to Georgetown

I've been at Georgetown for 2 weeks (!!) and in school for one of those two.

"Free time"--in the sense of doing nothing for the sake of doing nothing--is nonexistent. I'm always hanging with friends, doing homework, leafing through applications, eating at Leo's Dining Hall, heading to campus events, or doing...other things ;)

Mondays can be wordless, right?

Good, I thought so too.

Seeing as I have multiple essays to write, Hobbe's Leviathan to read, and plenty of calculus problems to procrastinate on to conquer like a champ, I think it's better that we make it Monday Fun-day and stare at lots of (un)pretty pictures.

Excellent plan.

Velvety Deliciousness

That color is unmistakable. There's cherry red, brick red, fire engine red..and then there's this.

Red as in...

Red.

Velvet.

Cupcakes.

Trendy? You betcha.

Delectable? Sometimes.

Healthy? Usually, no. Today, yes.

I wish I could give you the recipe tonight, but I'm not satisfied.

Well, my eyes are satisfied, but my tastebuds are not. These are good, but they could be better.

And we like "better," right? Right.

Sorry to be a tease, but if perfected, these could very possibly complete your life. But until then, I'm afraid they'd leave you feeling like destiny has yet to be truly fulfilled.

Whoa nelly, this is getting to be deep stuff.

Let's stick to food, if that's okay with you.

For now, go make these wonderful cookies of uber amazingness.

They will make your life complete.

And once you've finished making those and telling me how great life has become because of a cookie, we'll talk red velvet.

We  will talk. Don't worry--I won't forget.

There's a reason I can't walk straight or whizz through Calculus. That part of my brain is devoted to cupcakes. No multitasking. Just cupcakes. I like to call it "selective brain function."

Aight, all this science stuff is getting too fancy for me. Pinky promise you'll come back to talk red velvet with me?

Okay, good. Sounds like a plan, Stan.

A Lucky Summer

Never mind the fact that my iPhone was murderously waterlogged by the ocean during our bonfire. Never mind the fact that I will be living in what is rumored to be the bottom-of-the-totem-pole freshman dorm.

And never mind the fact that the laptop I bought a few weeks ago just went on sale.

I'm feelin' lucky.

And that's all thanks to the food blogosphere!!

This is me.

Being a dork.

Because I FINALLY won my first blog giveaway. Actually, I take that back. I won a giveaway for a free (!!!) Magic Bullet when I first started reading food blogs. But sadly, I was on vacation when said blogger emailed me. Too much time had passed by the time I got home and saw the email, so I was unable to claim my prize. Fail.

But never mind that too.

Because I won not one, but two giveaways this past month! :D

The first package came from the lovely Laura at Sprint 2 the Table--it was the NuNaturals giveaway! The set contained 50 stevia packets, a tub of the company's new "MoreFiber" baking blend, a few bottles of stevia drops (cocoa and vanilla flavor...SO EXCITED!!), and some pure stevia powder.

NuNaturals has been my favorite brand of stevia for awhile. I use their packets all the time in oatmeal, coffee, tea, etc. I can't wait to try their baking blend though, as the packets don't work too well in mass quantities for baked goods.

Those cocoa bean drops might just sneak into my afternoon iced coffee ;)

The second package came from Reeni at Cinnamon, Spice, and Everything Nice Reeni kindly sent me Stonyfield's "Summer in a Box," which came with everything from some lovely (and natural!) products (deodorant, toothpaste, facial moisturizer, soap, lip balm) to free food coupies. Wait--hang on. Free food?! Stop. Stop the presses!

Did I just spot a few coupons for free chocolate-dipped frozen yogurt bars?! YUM, I think yes. They already have my heart.

Uh huh. I dream in terms of frozen yogurt. Especially when dark chocolate dipping is involved. No shame, ya'll.

Thanks again for the giveaway ladies! It makes the loss of a cell phone to that hugh jass rogue wave just a little bit better :)

Back soon with a cookbook challenge recap!