Holidays

  1. A Very Sweet Mother’s Day

    May 8, 2013 by The Squishy Monster

    I will eternally be grateful to my mother for her unconditional love and support, not to mention all the lessons she taught me along the way.  I am the woman I am because of her and honestly, I feel like everyday should be mother’s day!  It is from her that I watched and learned how to work hard, persevere, and never give up on what’s important to you.  My mama would work 12-14 hour days while taking care of 2 tots, breast feeding one or the other, and making sure there was a hot dinner on the table every night, never once making us feel neglected or unloved.  She also had the strength to smear on her lipstick and don on her sunday best to sing in the church choir *whew!*  Just thinking about it all makes me dizzy!  Not to mention, mama’s are constantly doing things behind-the-scenes that children are never keen to be it your favorite box of cereal that magically appeared in the pantry, rips and tears that were quietly sewn, or kisses that were gently pressed into the faces of sleeping children.  That’s just what mama’s do.  So whether you’re a mama, have a mama, or know a mama, show them some love!  {and you might be able to start with these incredibly decadent panna cotta} ;)

    Mother’s Day Recipe Panna Cotta

    5.0 from 7 reviews

    Panna Cotta
     
    Author:

    Ingredients
    • 1 c whole milk
    • 4 ts unflavored gelatin
    • 1½ c heavy cream
    • ½ c sugar
    • 2 ts pure vanilla extract
    • ¼ ts fine salt
    • ½ c pureed berries*

    Instructions
    1. Over medium-low heat, stir together your milk and gelatin. You don’t want this to boil.
    2. Stir in everything else until the sugar dissolves.
    3. Remove from the heat and cool for about 10-15 minutes.
    4. Ladle into serving glasses and refrigerate for up to 6 hours.
    5. Garnish with fresh berries (or chocolate curls, candied fruit, etc) and serve cool.

    Notes
    *you could also use the same amount of an infused tea, citrus, coffee, chocolate, etc.

    Last years Mother’s Day treat.

    Happy {early} Mother’s Day!

    Love,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~

    I love you very, very much, Mama Squishy!!!!!

     


  2. March 15, 2013 by The Squishy Monster

    When I think of green, I think of that fun time I had eating green eggs and ham on Dr. Seuss day in grade school, the green movement that’s all the rage, and emeralds.  Green is good (apparently) so I decided that for St. Patrick’s day, I’d start off the weekend right with these Irish creme infused crêpes.  If you can work a blender and have the patience to wait while they chill, there’s absolutely no reason you can’t make these!

    How to Make St. Patrick’s Day Crêpes

    5.0 from 3 reviews

    Crêpes
     
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    Ingredients
    • ½ c water
    • ½ c whole milk
    • 2 tb melted butter
    • ¼ ts fine salt
    • 1 ts vanilla
    • 2 tb Irish creme
    • Green food color
    • 2 eggs
    • 1 c sifted unbleached all purpose flour
    Filling
    • 8 oz softened cream/mascarpone cheese
    • 2 tb softened butter
    • ½-1 c sifted powdered sugar
    • 1 tb Irish creme
    • Optional:
    • Mint extract
    • Chocolate
    • Powdered sugar for dusting

    Instructions
    1. In a blender/food processor (additionally, you can also whisk by hand), tip in your water, milk, butter, salt, and vanilla. Mix.
    2. This second step is optional where you add your Irish creme and green color. Mix.
    3. Lastly, sprinkle in your flour. Mix.
    4. Allow your batter to chill for 35-45 minutes.
    5. In a non stick pan greased with butter, dribble just a bit of your batter to the pan and swirl to spread out evenly into a thin sheet. When it dries and you see bubbles, flip once and cook for another few minutes on the other side.
    6. For the filling, blend everything together.
    7. To assemble, take your cooled crêpe, and spread your filling on on side, fold over, drizzle with chocolate and dust with powdered sugar.

     


  3. March 12, 2013 by The Squishy Monster

    When I was little, Easter would often times find me with chocolate stains on my pastel dress, ribbons untied and loose on my crazy hair, and madly stomping around in pretty pink shoes, scuffed from the sugar high that an Easter basket always induced.  Down on the bottom, underneath the curly grass and plastic egg shells, I’d always discover these chocolate eggs, always patiently awaiting the moment to be greedily snatched and devoured.  Now as a “grown up,” I realize  how futile it would be to expect an Easter basket to recreate memories past so I decided to take matters into my own hands.  So today, I bring to you, Cadbury creme eggs, the homemade version.

    How to Make Cadbury Creme Eggs

    5.0 from 7 reviews

    Cadbury Creme Eggs
     
    Author:

    Ingredients
    • 1 c golden/corn syrup
    • 12 tb room temperature unsalted butter
    • 1 ts fine salt
    • 1 ts vanilla
    • 6 c sifted powdered sugar
    • Yellow food color
    • 24 oz chopped bittersweet chocolate

    Instructions
    1. Cream together your syrup, butter, and salt.
    2. Tip in your vanilla.
    3. Slowly add in a cup of powdered sugar at a time.
    4. In a separate bowl, spoon in about ⅓ of your mixture and tint this to the shade of yellow you need for the “yolk.”
    5. Freeze both bowls for 20 minutes.
    6. Roll out about ½ ts scoops of your yellow mixture and pop back into the freezer while you work with the white mixture.
    7. Take 1 tb scoops of your whites and flatten out into a rough disk. Make an indentation with your thumb and wrap your “yolk” around it. Work in batches and freeze your “eggs” as you go.
    8. While your “eggs” are freezing, temper your chocolate.
    9. In a double boiler, slowly melt your chopped chocolate. Take each “egg” out individually and carefully immerse each one into the pool of chocolate. Tap off any excess and allow to firm up on wax/parchment.

    Love, candy, and Easter bunnies y’all!

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  4. Cookies for my Neighbor

    January 10, 2013 by The Squishy Monster

    Does anyone else miss Mr. Rogers?  He taught me so many valuable lessons as a kid.  None of that high-fructose-dipped, “you feel like you’re on speed when you watch this” crap that’s on now.  (Which by the way, he referred to as a “bombardment” even in the 60′s).  Makes me sad.  What’s gonna be left when and if I’m ready to have children of my own?  I digress.  I used to sprawl out on the floor, half leaning on my brother, sipping my favorite apple juice and listen to Mr. Rogers as he lent you valuable nuggets of wisdom.  Dare I give him credit for laying the foundations  for my Pack Away Hunger project?  This was precisely why Mr. Rogers was so important.  He taught you, whether it be in real life or make-believe, that it was important to treat people well, to be honest, to work hard…

    mr_rogers I’m not ashamed to say that I love Mr. Rogers.

    He’s also inspired me to share cookies.  (Cookies take priority, haha).  Won’t you be my neighbor?

    Cookies for my Neighbor { How to Make Ginger Molasses }

    5.0 from 3 reviews

    Ginger Molasses Cookies
     
    Author:

    Ingredients
    • ¾ c melted butter
    • 1 c sugar
    • 1 room temperature egg
    • ¼ c unsulphured molasses*
    • 2 c unbleached flour
    • 2 ts baking soda
    • ½ ts fine salt
    • 1 ts cinnamon
    • ½ ts cloves
    • ½ ts ginger
    • ½ ts nutmeg
    • 1 turn of black pepper
    • Optional: candied ginger

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, blend together your butter and sugar. Add in your egg and molasses.
    2. In your second bowl, sift together all your dry ingredients.
    3. Begin adding them in separate additions to your first, wet bowl.
    4. Mix until just combined, taking care not to over mix. Fold in candied ginger if you like.
    5. Bake at 375 for 8-9 minutes,

    Notes
    *Please do not use blackstrap

    Love and neighborly Cookie Monsters,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  5. Two Thousand Twelve

    December 30, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    You guys made 2012 amazing, so what’s my new years resolution?  To spend more time with you guys, of course!

    How to Make Drunk Gummy Bears

    5.0 from 8 reviews

    Drunk Gummy Bears
     
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    Ingredients
    • 4 packages of Gummy Bears
    • Approximately 2 c of Liquor (I used Raspberry Vodka)

    Instructions
    1. Sink your bears in the liquor (you want them to be just covered with a bit of room on top).
    2. Cover and refrigerate, stirring every few hours for 1-5 days.
    3. Drain, pat dry, and serve.

    Thanks again for an incredible 2012, I love you all and can’t wait to see everyone in 2013.

    Love always,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  6. December 22, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Surviving the end of the world is delicious!  Even if the world didn’t end, there’s lots of excitement brewing with Christmas, New Years, and even a trip to NYC!  Like a kangaroo, I’ll bring back lots of yummies in my belly with pictures of devoured food stuffs to share.

    Today, I’ll be sharing Gingerbread Cupcakes.

    How to Bake Gingerbread Cupcakes

    5.0 from 7 reviews

    Gingerbread Cupcakes
     
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    Ingredients
    • 1¾ c unbleached flour
    • ½ ts salt
    • ½ ts baking powder
    • ½ ts baking soda
    • 2 ts pumpkin spice*
    • 1 stick soft unsalted butter
    • ⅓ c brown sugar
    • ⅔ c unsulphured molasses
    • 2 room temperature eggs
    • ⅔ c whole buttermilk
    Cream Cheese Frosting
    • 16 oz soft cream cheese
    • 2-3 c *sifted* confectioners sugar (but it’s really up to how sweet you like it)
    • 1 ts pure vanilla
    • ¼ ts fine salt
    • Optional: orange zest
    • candied ginger, chopped

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, sift together all your dry ingredients.
    2. In your second bowl, cream together your butter and sugar.
    3. Slowly drip in your molasses and one egg at a time.
    4. Tip in your buttermilk and make sure your second bowl is well blended together.
    5. In 3 separate additions, mix your dry bowl with your wet bowl. Take care no to over mix.
    6. Scoop into a lined cupcake tin and bake at 350 for 19-22 minutes. Do not over bake.
    7. While your cakes cool, cream together your cream cheese and sugar. Add in your vanilla and salt.

    Notes
    *recipe follows

     DIY Pumpkin Spice

    Love & merry yummies,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  7. December 19, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Maya Angelou says she knows why the caged bird sings.  Does she know why The Squishy Monster stores away food like she’s a bear about to go into hibernation?  If Valentines is a sadomasochistic holiday fabricated by companies to sell more hallmark and heart shaped boxes, then the stretch between Thanksgiving and Christmas must have been the evil mastermind of sugar cane farmers.  I can’t I won’t get into just how much I’ve consumed even up until this point.  Dare I say it’s worse than a fat kid on Halloween?

    *Shrugs* I figure, if you’re going to indulge, it might as well be amongst the sparkling strands of multi-colored lights with the heavy scent of pine and cardamom hanging thick in the air to encourage you onward with this gorge-fest.

    Enjoy, my friends (because apparently, the world is ending in 2 days).

    Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes
     
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    Ingredients
    • 1¾ cups of Flour
    • 1½ ts Baking Powder
    • 1½ ts Baking Soda
    • 1 ts Salt
    • 1 cup of hot Coffee + 2 cups of Sugar + ¾ cups of unsweetened baking Cocoa
    • 1 cup of whole room temperature Buttermilk
    • ½ cup of Canola Oil (or Veggie)
    • 2 ts of good Vanilla
    • 2 Eggs
    Buttercream
    • 2 c soft unsalted Butter
    • 6-8 c *sifted* Powdered Sugar
    • 1 ts pure Vanilla Extract
    • 3-4 ts pure Peppermint Extract
    • ½ ts Fine Salt
    • 2-4 tb Cream
    Optional
    • Crushed Candy Canes

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, sift together your flour, powder, soda, and salt.
    2. In your second bowl, blend together your coffee and sugar.
    3. In your third bowl, whisk together your buttermilk, oil, and vanilla. Drop in one egg at a time.
    4. Combine your second and third bowl.
    5. In three separate additions, sprinkle in your first (dry) bowl into your wet bowl. Do not over mix.
    6. Scoop into cupcake liners and bake at 350 for 17-20 minutes.
    7. Take out of the pan and cool completely.
    8. For the buttercream, blend together your butter and powdered sugar (adding in your sugar a bit at a time). Tip in your extracts. salt, and cream. Cream until well blended and fluffy.
    9. Frost and decorate.

    Love & Candy Canes galore,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  8. December 17, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    For me, every food has a bit of nostalgia tied to it.  Caramel macchiatos instantly take me back to high school when I worked as a barista.  Most Saturday mornings were spent at the crack of dawn, stifling yawns while peddling espressos to the antiquing-mini-van-mom or overachievers (I mean really, who voluntarily gets up at 5 am on a Saturday?)  The lure of fat steaming stacks of pancakes, fuzzy jammies, and cartoons is all too overwhelming for me.

    As long as you get an accurate digital candy thermometer, making your own candy isn’t too terribly difficult, not to mention, you can really control the quality of what goes in.

    How to Make Salted Caramel Candies

    5.0 from 4 reviews

    Salted Caramel Macchiato Candies
     
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    Ingredients
    • 3 c Brown Sugar
    • ½ c Espresso
    • ½ c Golden Syrup
    • 2 c room temperature Heavy Cream
    • 10 tb unsalted melted Butter
    • 1 ts pure Vanilla
    • ¼ ts fine Salt
    • Coarse Salt {for sprinkling}

    Instructions
    1. Spray and line a pan with parchment/wax/silpat.
    2. In a tall, heavy bottomed pot, swirl-don’t stir and dissolve your sugar, espresso, and syrup until bubbly.
    3. Turn off the heat and carefully tip in your butter, cream, and vanilla.
    4. Return your pan to heat and cook your mixture until it reaches 244-248.
    5. Pour into your well greased/lined pan, dust with coarse salt, and allow it to set for a few hours before slicing.

    This will be making another appearance in my holiday gift haul ;)

    Love and early morning jolts,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  9. Goodie Giveaway +

    December 14, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Pops went on an adventure the other day to pick some chesnuts as he’s pretty sweet on my Mama and these are her favorite nuts ;)

    These beautiful, glossy nuts live in these spiky burrs–they look like scary Pokemons, lol.

    Pops did the hard part.  He harvested and roasted these babies for us.

    To prepare, he took a sharp paring knife and scored the underside (flat belly) and roasted them at 400 degrees for 25-30 minutes.

    To create the Chestnut puree, take 2 cups of your roasted Chestnuts, 1/2 c Sugar, 2 c Water and bring it to a boil on low for another 25-30 minutes.  Cool, blend (or blitz in a processor), and strain through a sieve

    5.0 from 3 reviews

    Chestnut Loaf
     
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    Ingredients
    • 4 Room Temperature Eggs
    • 2 c Sugar
    • 1 c Canola/Veggie Oil or Melted Butter
    • 2 c Unbleached Flour
    • 2 ts Baking Soda
    • 1½ tsp Cinnamon
    • ½ tsp Nutmeg
    • 1 tsp Fine Salt
    • 2 c Chestnut Purée
    • 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, blend together your Eggs and Sugar. Slowly pour in your Oil/Butter.
    2. In your second bowl, sift together all of your dry ingredients: Flour, Baking Soda, Spices, and Salt.
    3. In three separate additions, tip your second bowl into your first bowl to combine, taking care not to over mix.
    4. Lastly stir in your purée and splash in your Vanilla.
    5. Bake in a well greased loaf pan at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes.

    Check out my friend, Choc Chip Uru (she’s a teen prodigy!)  It’s where this yummy Chestnut Bread is hanging out.

    I also have a fun giveaway to post…cookies, chocolate, and candy–oh my!  All by the great makers of deliciousness at Newman’s Own Organics.

    Super Dark Chocolate Bar 70% (my fave)

    Rainforest Alliance certified, this bar is smooth and intense and 100% organic.

    273804852316062680_PR0kiAjp_b

    Chocolate Crème Newman-O’s (a billion times better than oreos)

    Double chocolate action with crisp and buttery wafers, sandwiching velvety chocolate crème.

    300 Ginger Hermits

    Christmas in your mouth and even the raisins are organic.  Softly spiced and stuffed with real fruit, these bars are melt in your mouth (great for breakfast or dessert)!

    Hermit-Ginger

    Pomegranate Licorice Twists

    I love the old-timey packaging and love the soft and tender pomegranate kissed twists even more.

    103982-300x187

    I’ll be using a random generator to pick the winner of all these sweet treats, all you have to do is be subscribed to my new youtube channel, like my new facebook page and follow me on twitter.  Don’t forget to leave your email address in the comments below.

    Love and sweet holy moly,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


  10. An Ongoing Love Affair

    December 12, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Red velvet can’t live without cream cheese frosting, so it only seemed natural to put them together in a “til death do you part” kind of way.  No need for Kanye West to rally for a prenup here, it’s a match made in Heaven, if I do say so myself.

    How to Make Red Velvet Cheesecake

    5.0 from 9 reviews

    Red Velvet Cheesecake
     
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    Ingredients
    • 2 blocks (8 oz) soft room temperature Cream Cheese
    • 1 c Sugar
    • 1 ts pure Vanilla
    • ¼ c Sour Cream or Buttermilk
    • 2 room temperature Eggs
    • 2 tb sifted unsweetened Cocoa
    • 1 ts Vinegar
    • 2 tb Red Color
    Crust
    • 1 c crushed Cookies/Crackers
    • 6 tb melted Butter

    Instructions
    1. Make sure your cream cheese is very soft and break it apart with your mixer. Blend together with your sugar and vanilla for about 5 minutes until light and fluffy.
    2. Tip in your cream/milk and slowly crack in one egg at a time. Blend well.
    3. Sift your cocoa and sprinkle it in.
    4. Pour in your vinegar and color. Blend well. Make sure not to over beat to prevent incorporating too much air.
    5. For the crust, press together your crumbs and butter onto the bottom of your spring form pan. Bake at 350 for 6-8 minutes. Cool completely and pour in your filling.
    6. Wrap your pan in foil and place it in a larger dish/pan. Fill with hot water and allow it to reach half way up its side.
    7. Bake your cheesecake at 350 for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes. Allow it to cool for at least a couple hours before setting in the fridge overnight.

    Notes
    This makes one 6″ Cheesecake

    Click here for my Red Velvet Cupcake …{that will also elaborate on natural tints/dyes} or Cheesecake recipes.

    Naughty or nice, this red velvet cheesecake will do ya right!

    Love and early Christmas cheer,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.~


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    Welcome to The Squishy Monster!

    Here, I'll share the stories of my on going love affair with food as well as step-by-step tutorials/cooking videos featuring original recipes. I'm a firm believer that despite our differences, our one commonality as humans? Food.
    I'm 100% Southern & 100% Korean. My name is Angela and my friends call me The Squishy Monster.

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