Author: ajeanneinthekitchen

You all know how much fun I have recreating from my leftovers. I got yet another chance to play with my food yet again too. When I made my chocolate orange cake Chocolate Orange Cake I had a lot of frosting left over. Well, I didn’t want to make another cake, so what could I do with the frosting? I made cookies. Cookies are always my favorite dessert anyway, so what better way to use up some of chocolate orange frosting, right?! 🙂

Shortbread cookies originated in Scotland around the 12th century, and were popular with Mary, Queen of Scots, during the 16th century. Mary Queen of Scots’ cravings for shortbread skyrocketed it to fame. She asked private chefs to create ‘petticoat shortbread’ shapes based on the petticoats she wore during the 16th century. And thanks to her, this shape remains a big favorite now. During her reign (1542 – 1567), a bite was reserved only for the elite. As shortbread was made with butter, sugar and flour, it would be both expensive and difficult to get hold of the ingredients, and so it became synonymous with wealth, luxury and celebrations. It was munched on by nobles and royals, and saved for special occasions like weddings, Christmas and New Year for the less rich. It was often made for weddings, showing off that the happy couple could afford to serve guests such a rare treat. Today, shortbread reigns supreme in Scotland and is affordable for all. So as you can see, these popular cookies have been around for a very long time. They are still a favorite all over the world today too, although today, there are many more varieties.

The story of shortbread begins with the medieval “biscuit bread”. Any leftover dough from bread making was dried out in a low oven until it hardened into a type of rusk: the word “biscuit” means “twice cooked”. Gradually the yeast in the bread was replaced by butter, and biscuit bread developed into shortbread. The name “shortbread” comes from the use of butter, which gives the cookies, or biscuits as they are called in the UK, their buttery taste and crumbly, soft to the bite texture. The name of shortbread cookies comes from the old meaning of the world “short”, which reflects the crumbliness of the dough and the name ‘shortbread’ stuck. That firm to the bite feel with a crumbly texture is the source of your shortbread addiction. Butter, and especially high quality butter, gives the dough its crumbly feel.

Are shortbreads a cookies, a biscuit or bread? This was a serious question to the British government, especially when it came to taxing these delicious treats. In the 1980’s, the Scottish Association of Master Bakers Scottish fought hard to fight off the European Union who wanted to classify shortbread a ‘common biscuit’ in order to charge the higher biscuit tax imposed by the government. Today, many consider it a ‘biscuit’, but the ‘shortbread’ name stays thanks to their perseverance.

Chocolate Orange Shortbread Cookies

The key to good shortbread cookies is to NOT overwork the dough. Mix it just until it starts to come together, then dump it onto a lightly floured surface until you have a smooth dough. The less you work the dough, the more crumbly and melt-in-your-mouth your shortbread cookies will be. You also want to make sure the butter to flour ratio is in correct proportion. If one of them is off, the dough will not have the desired soft and crumbly texture or rich, buttery taste.

12 TBSP or 1 1/2 sticks softened butter

2/3 cup dark brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp orange extract

2 cups + 2 TBSP flour

1/4 tsp salt

1 TBSP orange zest

2 TBSP orange juice or orange balsamic vinegar

Combine all the dry ingredients together and mix well.

Mix the butter and sugar together until creamy, then add the egg, orange juice or orange vinegar and the extracts and mix together again. I did not have orange juice, so I added the orange vinegar instead. It worked just fine.

Add 1/2 the flour and mix in, then add the rest of the flour and mix just until everything is combined. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and work it with your hands until the dough forms.

Shape the dough into a log and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours before baking.

When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350* F or 180*C. Then slice the dough into pieces about 1/4″ thick and place on a non-greased cookie sheet, about 2 inches apart.

Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the edges start to lightly brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly on the pan, then move them to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely before dipping them in the frosting.

For my frosting, I used some of my leftover chocolate orange frosting and added a little heavy whipping cream to make it more like a ganache, then heated it all together on the stove for about 5-7 minutes, stirring constantly.

I dipped half of the cookie into the chocolate mixture and lightly sprinkled some orange zest on the chocolate portions.

When the cookies are all topped, place the tray into fridge to set for at least about 30 minutes or so before enjoying, and enjoy you will too.

These cookies are definitely addicting. I bet you can’t stop at just one. But go ahead. I dare you. 🙂

And believe it or not, I still have quite a bit of my chocolate orange frosting left. So, don;t be too ssurprised when you see yet another chocolate orange com

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

My squirrels are playful all year long, but they tend to get especially playful during spring. HMMMM. I wonder why????? 🙂 🙂 🙂 Here are some more fun pictures of my playful squirrels.

It’s OK to get squirrely every now and then. 🙂 Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

You all know how much fun I have recreating from my leftovers. It’s become a fun game for me. What can do with this? When I made my bourekas Mediterranean Pork and Eggplant Bourekas I only used about half of my filling. I was planning on making another batch of bourekas, but decided on turning it into pasta instead. So this

was born from this. Hard to imagine right?!

Not really when you think about it. I used only the filling for the pasta by adding about 3/4 cup of dry white wine, a little tomato paste and adjusted the seasonings a bit. Then I served it all over angel hair pasta. It was a quick, easy-peasy idea, which is what I needed since I had a busy day and got home a little later than expected and still needed to make dinner.

We also christened our deck for the season as well. We enjoyed our first of many evening dinners yet to come for the season out on our beloved deck, overlooking our lakes/ponds.

Life is good. We do our best to enjoy every minute of it too. The little things are the perfect things. Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

In case you hadn’t noticed, I love writing my blog. I love it for many reasons, but one reason is that I learn so much about so many things I never knew of before. For instance, today, April 4th, is National Carrot Day. Who knew? I had never heard of that before, but yes, it really is a thing. It was established in 2003, with many countries around the world observing this fun and healthy day.

The purpose of National Carrot Day is to make people aware of how important it is to include carrots into your diet. Carrots are high in fiber, so they help regulate bowel movements and prevent constipation. They also help keep weight in check since they are low-calorie food loaded with fiber. Carrots are an excellent source of vitamin A, which is essential for eye health and good vision. Eating carrots in moderation is good for you.

Carrots come in many different colors, but in the United States, the orange carrot is the most popular color and variety. I just had carrots last night that I added to a spring vegetable medley, and I used orange, purple and white carrots in the mix.

Carrot (Daucus carota) is native from Europe and west and central Asia and was probably domesticated in Afghanistan. Cultivated carrots were introduced in the MA and in Europe around the eighth century CE.

Carrots are very healthy for both humans and animals alike. I know I feed carrots to “the kids” all the time and they love them. When I cook their food, they almost always get carrots added to the mix.

Carrots have long been used as a reward for animal trainers too, especially horse, donkey and mule trainers. A carrot was a reward for them if they performed well in training or action. They like them so carrots were given as treats and as an incentive to continue.

Carrots can be eaten either raw or cooked. Both are healthy options, for both us and our animal friends. However, cooked carrots, at least for humans, are slightly healthier because cooking carrots allows beta carotene, an antioxidant compound that gets converted to vitamin A in the intestine, to absorb more easily in the body. And lucky for us, carrots are very versatile and can be cooked and prepared in many different, delicious ways.

Carrots are the foundation of so many meals, from rich and savory stews to sweet cakes and candies. They can serve as almost any part of a meal as well, including a sweet candied carrot or as the color to a tray of richly roasted vegetables.

International Carrot Day celebrates this root in all its uses, forms and flavors! And if you want to learn more about carrots, there is even a website with a virtual carrot museum to help you out. The World Carrot Museum is a website about the collection, preservation, interpretation and exhibition of objects relating to the carrot. It is a virtual museum which has no brick and mortar existence. The website is maintained by John Stolarczyk of Skipton, England, and is run as a not-for-profit organization. You can find it at http://www.world carrot musuem.com

Learning all about carrots is just one of the many fun and interesting things we can learn about through blogging. Who knew about all of this? I know I didn’t, but we do now. 🙂 We are never too old to learn new things. In fact, learning new things helps keep us young and vibrant. Learning is living. So learn something new everyday. You just might surprise yourself. 🙂 Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well, especially if you eat your carrots. ‘Til next time.

It’s Heron season again, and they are beginning to show up around the lakes once more. Slowly, one at a time, but they are beginning to come back none-the-less. I was so excited to see this handsome big guy. He completely caught me by surprise, but what a pleasant surprise it was too. He just made my day.

At first, I spotted him in the reeds.

Then he flew off thinking he would lose me. Wrong! He allowed me to follow him from lake to lake to lake and I was able to get some more good shots of him again, before he completely flew the coop. I did get some good action shots of him too.

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

I know you are all probably asking “What is a boureka”. I didn’t know either until I made them. They are delicious pockets in puff pastry that are deep fried to perfection. Bourekas, are handheld pockets made of crisp pastry dough filled with a variety of savory ingredients and are the snack food of choice for many Israelis.

They are like Jewish empanadas and can be filled with anything you like. I filled mine with pork, so mine were not Jewish, but then neither am I. 🙂

Traditional bourekas were originally created by Turkish Jews. The Sephardi Jews who were expelled from Spain who sought refuge in the Ottoman Empire. The Sephardic Jews created a new dish which adapted börek to their kosher dietary laws, and combined it with their traditional empanadas to create bourekas. Bourekas are said to have originated in Turkey with the immigration of Sephardic Jews from Spain in the late 1400s (via Taste of Jew). It’s believed that the term is a combination of the Spanish word ’empanada’ and the Turkish word ‘borek’ meaning hand-held pie.

Pork and Eggplant Bourekas

The recipe I was inspired by called for chorizo, but I was looking for a fun, creative way to re-use my smoked pork, so that is what I added to mine instead. I also added a little brisket because I didn’t think I had enough pork for my filling. Silly me! What was I thinking? And of course I added a few other personal tweaks to make it my own dish as well. What else would you expect form me? 🙂

1 lb either cooked pork, cubed or cooked beef, cubed, or a combination thereof

1/2 eggplant, cubed

1/2 onion, diced

1 1/2 TBSP garlic

2 tomatoes, diced

salt & pepper to taste

1 TBSP orange zest

1/3 cup fresh cilantro and/or parsley, chopped

1 package puff pastry sheets, fully thawed according to package directions

olive oil and/or orange olive olive for cooking

season seeds

canola or avocado oil for frying

Cube all the cooked meat and set aside. If you are using chorizo, make sure it is thoroughly cooked.

Dice the tomatoes and set aside.

Dice the eggplant and onions.

Get a large pan very hot and add the oil(s). I liked the addition of a little orange olive oil as well. It made it very flavorful. Add the eggplant and salt & pepper first and cook for about 2-3 minutes, stirring often. Then add the onions and garlic and continue to cook until the onions are translucent and soft.

When the eggplant and onion mixture is cooked, add the meat and mix together well. Cook for an additional 3 minutes or so.

Add the tomatoes, orange zest and cilantro and cook just long enough to heat everything up. Adjust the seasonings as needed. Drain off the excess oil and liquid.

Cut the puff pastry into squares that are about 5 inches in size. Add about 2 TBSP of filling to 1/2 the squares, leaving a little space around the edges free. Add another square on top and firmly press together. Crimp with the edge of a fork. Moisten you finger tip with a little water and seal the edges.

I let mine set for about 30 or so minutes at room temperature to proof a bit before frying them. Then get your oil to about 350*F or 180*C. You want an oil like either avocado or canola oil, that has a higher smoke point and won’t burn. Place the bourekas in the fry basket without crowding them. You might have to do them in batches. Place them in the hot oil and let them cook for about 2-3 minutes per side, or until golden brown and the dough is completely cooked.

As soon as the bourekas come out of the hot oil, sprinkle a few toasted sesame seeds on top, and enjoy. These are best eaten immediately, while they are still hot. As with any dish that has been around for such a long time, there are endless possibilities for fillings. Make them with whatever you have on hand and with whatever you like. However you decide to make them, I promise you are going to like them a lot. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

Chickadees are pretty little birds. I see them quite often, but they are so fast and quick, that is often very difficult for me to get good shots of them. Usually they fly off before I can even get my camera focused. This time though, I was lucky. There was one little guy who was posing for the camera. This is almost unheard of, at least for me. Of course, I was going to take as many pictures of him as I could, while he was there posing for me.

We have two kinds of Chickadees here in our area, the Black-Capped, which is the one I saw yesterday, and the Mountain Chickadee.

It was my lucky day in a couple of ways. First, I had a window of sunshine that allowed me to go walk-about before the rain and hail came down. And second, I was lucky enough to be able to get some good, clear shots of my little Chickadee. I’ll take both opportunities and think of them as gifts from above. Thank you, thank you. 🙂

I had made another batch of ceviche to take with us to Mike and Lauren’s for Easter dinner, but …. That didn’t happen. I forgot it in the fridge. We didn’t miss it though, since we had plenty of food without it. 🙂

This time I made a crab (really it was krab) and shrimp ceviche. It was just as tasty as my last batch of ceviche, Shrimp Ceviche and just as cool and refreshing too. There are so many different options and varieties of ceviche. Use your imagination and let it run wild. 🙂

Crab and Shrimp Ceviche

You can use either the real crab or the artificial krab for this cool and refreshing dish. I had the artificial krab so I used that this time. Krab is still fish, it is just not crab. It is usually made with pollock or another white fish. You can find it in most stores. It is a delicious, and much cheaper alternative to real crab. Don’t get me wrong, I love real crab too, but I usually only buy it for special occasions.

1/2 lb crab meat or krab meat, cut into small pieces

1/2 lb shrimp, peeled and deveined, cut into small pieces

1/2 cucumber, diced fine

1/4 red onion, diced fine

1/4-1/3 cup pickled red onions, optional

1-2 jalapenos, diced fine

1/3 cup fresh cilantro, chopped fine

salt & pepper to taste

3/4 cup lime juice

I had some pickled red onion Pickled Onions that I threw into the mix as well. It really brought the ceviche to life and added some extra pizzazz.

Combine everything together and mix well. Let it all “cook” together in the refrigerator for at least 1-2 hours before serving.

Top with some thinly sliced cucumber slices and a sprig or two of fresh cilantro to make it pop before serving. !Desfruitas! Enjoy!

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.

All of my spring birds are beginning to come back out to play. I have heard them a lot more than I’ve seen them for the most part, but they are beginning to come out now. Today, I was lucky enough to see a very handsome Rosy Capped Finch posing in the tree. I even caught him singing.

I am so glad my birds are coming back out to play. I love my birds. 🙂

I actually did NOT host Easter this year. Instead, we went to Mike and Lauren’s for our Easter celebration. However, just because I did not host does not mean I did not cook. Lauren asked me to bring some asparagus and mashed potatoes, which of course, I did. But I also made a chocolate orange cake for dessert. I was inspired by another recipe I saw for something else, but thought that an orange and chocolate combination would be just perfect for Easter.

My frosting did not come out exactly as I was hoping, but it still tasted good and was enjoyed by all, and that’s really all that matters. Once again, that’s what happens when I follow directions. I am much better doing my own thing, at least in the kitchen, than following directions (though there are a lot of things I don’t follow the directions for outside of the kitchen too). 🙂

Chocolate Orange Cake

Preheat the oven to 350* F or 180* C.

Spray two 8 1/2 inch cake pans with cooking spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper.

1 3/4 cup flour

1 3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup cocoa powder – I used my black onyx cocoa powder

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1/2 cup oil – I did 1/2 canola oil and 1/2 blood orange oil

2 eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 tsp orange extract

1 tsp orange zest

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup hot water

Combine all the dry ingredients together and mix well. I have different kinds of cocoa powder and use them for different recipes. Since I like the combination of dark chocolate and orange, I used my black onyx cocoa powder. If you do not have this, no worries. Any kind of cocoa powder will be just fine.

Mix the sugar, oil(s), orange extract, orange juice and eggs together until smooth and creamy. I had some blood orange oil that I mixed with the canola oil to really give an good orange flavor. Don’t sweat it if you don’t have orange oil though. I am very lucky, and we have a specialty oil shop close by, but I realize these specialty oils can be challenging to find. Canola oil is just fine on its own.

Add 1/2 the flour mixture and 1/2 the buttermilk, mix and repeat until it is all mixed in together. This is supposed to be a very liquidy mix. The more liquidy the mix, the moister the cake will be.

Once the batter is done, pour equal amounts of the batter into the prepared cake pans and evenly distribute. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Allow the cake to cool completely, then place in the refrigerator for at least a couple of hours to set before icing it .

The Frosting

1 1/2 cups or 3 sticks softened butter

1 cup cocoa powder

5-5 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup orange juice

1 tsp orange extract

Mix everything together well until smooth and creamy. Then add a thick layer in between the cakes, and frost the whole cake and decorate.

I added orange slices all around the top for decoration. Chill until ready to serve. Then slice and enjoy with family and/or friends. If you like chocolate and you like oranges, you are going to love this cake, even if the frosting doesn’t quite come out like you were hoping for. 🙂

We all have little hick-ups in life, but my philosophy is you can either have sour lemons or you can make lemonade. Personally, I like lemonade, so I don’t let these little hick-ups bother me too much. I just move on. My mentor, the one and only Ms. Julia Child, said “never apologize in the kitchen”. So, I don’t, and neither should you. 🙂

Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.