Posts Tagged ‘Homemade’

  1. Butter, Baby

    July 27, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Butter is my baby.  It lends itself so well to so many things.  So giving, so considerate, so kind…so yummy!  Now, if only I could meet a man like this! ;)

    Butter makes everything better, no?  I’ve been known to hoard several boxes of butter “just because.”  Who knows when the mood will strike and I’ll want to reach for a couple sticks to transform into buttercream or pastry?

    I’m not ashamed to admit that this is precisely what happened to me last night after Mr. Insomnia abducted me from any restful sleep.  2 am found me in the kitchen, dusted with flour, greedily clutching sticks of butter, cubing into tiny pieces (to allow to rapidly come to room temperature), with an abundance of free flowing chocolate and cranberry bits to make these:

    These are just these minus the chocolate chips, plus 1 c each of dried cranberries and white chocolate chips (I love it with apricots too)!

    Technically, these were dessert following dinner, despite the fact that dinner was several hours before, lol.

    On board with the butter theme, these are the most delicious imported French Butter Croissants.  More butter was used for the roux in the Béchamel sauce.  Whole wheat pasta + turkey bacon + caramelized onions and garlic + spinach.

    So, what’s my favorite butter?

    I can almost always find coupons for this so that’s a plus.  Its gotta be unsalted, sweet cream butter and it’s l0vely for both baking and smearing on toast with jam.  Yum!

    For my folks that don’t/can’t consume butter, this is a great alternative that I highly recommend if for example, you’re hankering for some homemade cookies:

    Trader Joe’s also has a more affordable option for Coconut Oil.  “Good fat” that’s neutral in flavor so you can utilize it for baking all sorts of yummies or, even stir fries.

    Baking things better with butter,

    Love,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.^

     

    Categories: Life | 20 Comments

  2. Fluffy Flipped Flap Jacks

    July 14, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Look Ma!  I learned all about alliteration! ;)

    I’m kidding, but what I’m not kidding about is this week.  Anxiety and depression is something that I struggle with everyday but it’s been bearing its weight on me pretty heavily this week.  It’s been a mad and tumultuous week and something that I’m glad is over–ish, and glad that I experienced it to bring me to where I am now…reveling in a rare moment of clarity where I can truly enjoy simple pleasures such as swimming in a lazy cup of tea with a thick stack of warm pancakes before me, mesmerizing me with its thick glossy coat of golden maple syrup.  (It has to be the real stuff)!  Sure, the carbs don’t hurt but it’s how ever so soft and fluffy pancakes can be with its irresistible crispy edges that, when paired with Saturday morning cartoons, makes everything seem alright.  It’s like the food version of a big fluffy robe and soft cozy slippers.

    So c’mon, sink in and get lost with me (at least for a little while).

    Fluffy Buttermilk Pancakes

    Buttermilk Pancakes
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:

    Ingredients
    • 1 c unbleached Flour
    • 3 tb Brown Sugar
    • 1½ ts Baking Powder
    • ¼ ts Baking Soda
    • ¼ ts fine Salt
    • ¼ ts Cinnamon
    • ⅛ ts freshly ground Nutmeg
    • 1 room temperature Egg
    • 1 c room temperature whole Buttermilk
    • 1 ts pure Vanilla Extract
    • Butter

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, gather all of your dry ingredients and sift them in. This includes your Flour, Brown Sugar, Baking Powder Baking Soda, Salt, Cinnamon and Nutmeg.
    2. In your second bowl, whisk together your Egg, Buttermilk, and Vanilla until nice and frothy (approximately 3 minutes).
    3. Slowly drizzle your second bowl into your first bowl and mix just to combine (don’t over mix, lumps are fine).
    4. In a hot skillet, melt a tablespoon or so of Butter and ladle in your batter. *Only flip once and don’t press down.*

    Notes
    Optional: ½-1 c Chocolate Chips, Blueberries, etc. It helps if you fold them in by hand at the last moment and coat them in a tablespoon or so of Flour first so they don’t sink as much

     

    Categories: Breakfast Breakfast Comfort Foods Comfort Foods Sweets Sweets Videos | 35 Comments

  3. 4th of July Layer Cake

    June 28, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    My baby brother did his entire dorm room in patriotic Red, White and Blues.  We all celebrated with an American feast when Mom and Dad got their citizenship.  We’re a family that’s proud to be American.  Though, the bittersweet irony of this post in relation to my last post can be pointed out.  :(

    Le sigh, I digress.

    In the South, we take our BBQ pretty seriously so while everyone else focuses on the coming carnivorous feast (sorry veggies), I’m always the designated dessert-bringer.  I’ve always thought that sugar cookies encrusted with hardened “frosting,” embedded with miscellaneous shards of pointy triangles that were once part of a star were blasé, so I took to bringing cakes to celebrate.  Confession #765, I’ve never had a birthday cake, but in my mind, cake = celebration.

    Now, of course you can enlist the help of fondant to create a neater presentation but golly do I hate fondant (oh, was I not suppose to admit that)?  Admittedly, it looks great but I’m more interested in how something tastes.  A good friend of mine who now lives  upstate works in a bakery and churns out fondant cakes regularly for clients weddings, showers, etc but for her own wedding, she scrapped the play-doh and slathered her tiers in good, old fashioned buttercream.  If ya’ll completely disagree, just let me know and I will consider doing a fondant tutorial.

    For the past 3 years, I’ve done a variation of this cake whether it be in cake or cupcake form so if you’re not looking to wait around for its assembly, be my guest to take the individualized portion route instead.

    Red White & Blue Cake

     

    To watch the assembly of a different kind of cake:

    Fresh Strawberry Layer Cake

     

    Red White & Blue Cake
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:

    Ingredients
    For the Cake:
    • 2 sticks + 2 tb soft, unsalted Butter
    • 2 c Sugar
    • 2 ts pure Vanilla Extract
    • 9 room temperature Egg Whites
    • 3 c unbleached Flour
    • 4½ ts Baking Powder
    • 1½ ts Salt
    • 1½ c room temperature whole Milk
    For the Buttercream:
    • 4 sticks soft, unsalted Butter
    • 6-8 c sifted Powdered Sugar*
    • 2 ts pure Vanilla Extract
    • 1/s ts fine Salt
    • 2-4 tb Cream

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, cream together your butter and sugar. You want to cream for at least 5 minutes and reach a pale, fluffy blonde color.
    2. Tip in your vanilla and slowly stream in your eggs.
    3. In your second bowl, sift in all of your dry ingredients. Slowly add this to your first, “wet” bowl.
    4. Alternate with milk but begin and end with your dry bowl.
    5. In a third bowl, break up your butter with your mixer and slowly add in your sugar (1/2 c-1 c at a time). Add in your vanilla and salt and cream as needed.

    Notes
    *6-8 c depending on how sweet you like your Buttercream (pay attention to consistency as well). Remember to measure it out after you sift it, not before.

    Now for those of you that are concerned about food colors, here are a few alternatives to consider:

    Natural Food Dyes: the only downside to these are that I found them to be a bit pricy and I went through mine in a couple months.

    Homemade colors can be extracted from natural sources.  The only cons for me: sometimes, it takes more to attain a brighter depth of color but this can possibly be taken care of with produce that is naturally richer in pigment and “stain” effortlessly (like beets) and sometimes this can impact the consistency of my batter/frostings not to mention, I always get paranoid about the taste bleeding in.  This can sometimes be combated by utilizing a juicer to expel it’s liquid instead of blitzing them in a processor.

    Red/Pink Options: Currants/Cranberries, Pomegranates, Cherries, Raspberries, Beets, Hibiscus Flowers/Tea, Red Wine

    Blue/Purple: Blueberries, Blackberries, Acai, Grape Juice

    Green: Kale, Spinach

    Orange/Yellow: Carrots, Turmeric Powder, Saffron

    There are other options, but these are just what I’ve experimented with before.  Additionally, crumbled, freeze dried fruits are nice to work with but again, can be expensive.

    I realize that it’s a bit early to be thinking about the 4th of July but what am I if not a bit of an overzealous Squishy Monster? ;)

    Love Always,

    Your Squishy Monster

    Categories: Cakes/Cupcakes Cakes/Cupcakes Holidays Holidays Sweets Sweets Videos | 38 Comments

  4. Clouds & Cotton Candy

    June 23, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    Clouds & Cotton Candy.  That’s the texture I’m talkin’ about.  If the coagulation of the egg whites doesn’t scare you off, you not only win the bravery badge, you win the yummy one as well.  Everyone seems to get so freaked out about whipping up egg whites and I tend to think that it whittles down to just being a bit apprehensive about doing something you’ve never done before, that’s all.  I’m here to tell you that you can do it and also provide you with a few basic guidelines to help you along the way.

    When Whipping Egg Whites:

    • Separating the white from the yolk is easier when the eggs are cold.  However, room temperature whites whip up better.
    • Keep in mind that even a speck of yolk/fat ruins the whole she-bang.  Make sure you swipe everything down to make double-sure.  It’s a good (but not absolutely necessary) practice to reserve a separate spatula for meringues.  If you flub up, don’t despair!  Try using a bit of shell to catch the yolk that strayed as it’s coated with a protein keratin that attracts the protein in the yolks.
    • Stainless steel or copper are the only ways to go.  Proper chefs only use copper as it’s said to be the best when dealing with whipping.
    • Cream of Tartar might be your best friend here.  It will help maintain those hard earned peaks and stabilize everything.  (Just don’t use it or any other acid when utilizing a copper bowl).  Not to mention, the stuff lasts forever and is great for a variety of cleaning uses.
    • A whisk works best.  Start from low and work your way up.
    • Never over beat (you just want to achieve the appropriate peaks your recipe calls for) otherwise,  the entire bowl will destabilize.
    • Use right away.

     

    Fluffy White Cupcakes w Chocolate Buttercream

     

    5.0 from 1 reviews

    White Cupcakes & Chocolate Buttercream
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:
    Recipe type: Cupcakes

    Ingredients
    For the Cake:
    • 1½ c Cake Flour
    • 2 ts Baking Powder
    • ¼ ts fine Salt
    • 2 Egg Whites + ⅛ ts Cream of Tartar + Pinch of Salt
    • ¾ c Sugar
    • 6 tb Butter
    • ½ c room temperature Milk
    • 2 ts Vanilla or a scraped Vanilla Bean
    For the Chocolate Buttercream:
    • 1 st soft, unsalted Butter
    • 1½ c Powdered Sugar
    • ¼ c Unsweetened Cocoa
    • 2 ts Vanilla
    • Pinch of Salt
    • 1-2 tb Cream or Milk

    Instructions
    1. Assemble your dry ingredients and sift together.
    2. In a separate bowl, begin whisking your whites. When they get frothy, sprinkle in your Cream of Tartar and Salt. You want to achieve stiff peaks.
    3. In your third bowl, beat your Sugar and Butter together (for at least 5 minutes).
    4. Tip in your Vanilla.
    5. Begin to slowly add your dry ingredients in separate additions.
    6. Alternate with your milk but you want to start and end with your flour mixture.
    7. Don’t over beat or over fill and bake at 350. Mine took 17 minutes but everyone’s oven is different. *Don’t overbake.* You want the centers to spring back when you press your fingers lightly on top and they will have a slight, not loose jiggle.
    8. *For the Buttercream* sift together your powdered sugar, cocoa, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together your butter and vanilla and slowly add in you first, dry bowl to your butter bowl. Take a look at the consistency, if necessary, add in a bit of cream of milk at the end.

    Life may not always be cotton candy or butterflies, but this part of it can be ;)

    Have a blessed weekend!

    Love,

    Your Squishy Monster

     

    Categories: Cakes/Cupcakes Cakes/Cupcakes Chocolate Chocolate Sweets Sweets Videos | 32 Comments

  5. A Perfect Example of Love

    May 10, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    As Mother’s Day fast approaches, so many memories that me and Mama made flash through my head like an automatic Rolodex.  I am so incredibly lucky to have her in my life.  She is my perfect example of Love.

    19 years old and so much swag ;)

    Me at 26: Mom, I’m becoming more and more like you everyday (and I don’t mind it).

    I hope that everyone has a fabulous Mother’s Day (and Happy Mother’s Day to all the Mama’s)!

    I leave you with a taste of our Tradition:

    Almond Tea Cakes
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:

    Ingredients
    Dry:
    • 2½ c Flour
    • 1½ ts Baking Powder
    • 1 ts Salt
    Wet:
    • 1 stick soft, unsalted Butter
    • 1½ c white granulated Sugar
    • ½ c Brown Sugar
    • ¼ c Almond Paste (canned/store bought or homemade)
    • 2 room temperature Eggs
    • 2 tb Almond Extract
    • 12 oz room temperature full fat Ricotta
    • Powdered Sugar for Dusting
    • Flaked Almonds for Garnish
    Almond Paste
    • 1 c blanched Almonds (skinned)
    • 1 c powdered Sugar
    • 1 Egg White
    • ⅛ ts fine Salt

    Instructions
    1. Cream together your Butter, Sugars, and Paste.
    2. Blend in one Egg at a time.
    3. Tip in your Extract.
    4. Spoon in your Ricotta. Blend.
    5. In three additions, incorporate your dry bowl with your wet bowl. Don’t over mix.
    6. Scoop out miniature balls of dough and press flaked Almonds on top.
    7. Bake at 350 for 7-11 minutes (again, these are for mini scoops).
    8. Cool completely and dust with powdered Sugar.
    Alternately, for a Glaze:
    1. Whisk together powdered Sugar + Almond Extract (tip in just a couple drops in at a time) for a thick “glaze/icing” consistency. A little Extract goes a long way.
    Almond Paste:
    1. Utilize your processor and blitz your Almonds until they’re powdered. Add in your powdered Sugar, Egg White and Salt. Keep in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a month.

    Reminiscent of Mommy and Me Tea Parties, Happy (early) Mother’s Day y’all!

    XOXO

    Your Blessed Squishy Monster

    Categories: Cakes/Cupcakes Cakes/Cupcakes Cookies Cookies Holidays Holidays Sweets Sweets | 10 Comments

  6. The Cookie Monster…

    February 25, 2012 by The Squishy Monster

    (otherwise known as my Dad) essentially gave way to: The Squishy Monster.

    I swear, if he could’ve figured out a way to survive solely on a diet based on Dr. Pepper, Fig Newtons, and Oreos, it would’ve been done!  He’s the worst when it comes to Junk Food.  “Hey, at least he’s getting some Figgy goodness with the Newtons” is what I tell myself but we all know—we ALL know!

    It kinda drives me crazy but a loooong time ago, I stopped trying to lecture Dad on all the reasons why he shouldn’t be crushing an entire bag of Cookies and washing it all down with Pop on the daily.

    The compromise that bloomed from many unsuccessful attempts at trying to get Dad to stop was this (and to preface, it was this or nothing, lol) I decided to bake him his favorites in a sad but (still very earnest attempt) at trying to reach a middle ground that he wouldn’t be vehemently against.  Now, these by no means are diet Cookies bc Dad just wouldn’t have it any other way.  They say that Marie Antoinette either said or didn’t say “let them eat cake!”  Well I’m here to tell you that The Mac Daddio of all Cookie Monsters wants EVERYONE to eat COOKIES!!!  He’d throw everyone a Cookie Party everyday if he could, and I mean that in a very serious way, lol.

    How to Make Homemade Oreos with The Squishy Monster!

    Oreos (Homemade)
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:

    Ingredients
    For the Cookies:
    • 1¼ c Flour (unbleached, unbromated)
    • ½ c unsweetened, Dark and Natural Cocoa
    • 1 ts Baking Soda
    • ¼ ts Baking Powder
    • ¼ ts fine Salt
    • 1 c Sugar
    • 10 tb unsalted Butter (softened, room temp)
    • 1 Egg (room temp)
    • Easy, Breezy Glaze/Creme/Icing
    • Powdered Sugar
    • Vanilla Extract (How much will depend on you–play around with it. Just don’t let it get “liquidy.”
    • 375 for 7-8 min.

    Instructions
    Cookies
    1. Cream the butter or margarine and brown sugar together until fluffy. Add the egg and beat for an additional minute.
    2. In a small bowl, pre-sift the dry ingredients (except for powdered sugar).
    3. Add dry ingredients to the mixing bowl a little at a time and mix until color and texture is consistent.
    4. Scoop or roll into ~1″ balls and place ~1″ apart on a baking sheet. Make sure the the baking sheet is greased, or you can use parchment or a [sil-pat|http://silpat.com].
    5. Wet your hands and use the palm or heel of your hand to flatten the dough balls
    6. Bake at 375° for 7-8 minutes
    Frosting
    1. In another bowl, combine powered sugar and small amounts of vanilla extract until you get the consistency you desire.
    Assembly
    1. Simply make little sandwiches and enjoy.

    Notes
    Typically, my general rule of thumb for Cookies is to always under bake rather than over bake but to mimic that familiar Oreo Cookie texture, I’m ok with these being a bit more on the crispier side. Just keep in mind that even if they’re loose at first, they will harden a bit as they cool. A cooling Cookie Rack is a great investment as they’re inexpensive and elevate your Cookies and stops them from continuing to “cook”. Pre sifting is an important step to not skimp out on–especially with recipes that call for the addition of Cocoa…dark little Cocoa nuggets will give you away in the final product. Ensure proper Creaming when meshing the Butter & Sugar together…”they” say 3-5 minutes…again I ask, “who are they.” I personally stop when it’s increased in volume a bit, it’s a more of a homogenized mixture and feels like fluffy, gritty Cream, and the overall color is a pale yellowish/cream/ivory. Additionally, you should begin with Butter that is softened but definitely not a droopy mess. I know when mine is ready when I press my thumb and it leaves an indentation but the whole thing doesn’t flop over and creates a greasy mess. Don’t forget to press the baby dough rounds with damp (not dripping wet) hands otherwise, you’ll have a puffy cookie that looks more like a Cakester than an Oreo =D

     

    Love & Cookies,

    Your Squishy Monster ^.^

    Categories: Chocolate Chocolate Cookies Cookies Sweets Sweets Videos | No Comments

  7. Oh Pumpkin, How I LOVE thee!

    November 12, 2011 by The Squishy Monster

    Confession #671: Last year, I rounded up all my neighbors and friends unused Pumpkins after the Holidays and Roasted, Froze, and ate them all year round.

    Now, a Hubbard Squash is definitely more palatable and it is a definite must to wash and take care to prevent consuming rotten Pumpkins, but I was one of those odd children that, after seeing the Holidays roll over, was extremely saddened by the sight of all the discarded things-be it Christmas Trees or Pumpkins.  This stuck with me as an adult and I always strive to #1). reduce waste #2). utilize most, if not all things possible.  Needless to say, repurposing in my house hold is a common practice.

    Unfortunately, I had no such luck this year and found myself in the baking aisle and came out breathless with a few too many cans of pureed pumpkin.  Excitement and over enthusiasm for the opportunity to take advantage of the Season to make Pumpkin everything got the best of me.  I now have 12 cans of Pumpkin sitting in my pantry.  ((don’t judge me)) =D

    My favorite time of the year has been christened thus far with: Pumpkin Milkshakes, Pumpkin Scones, Pumpkin Whoopie Pies, Pumpkin Cream Cheese Frosting, Pumpkin Loaves, and what I will be sharing today: Pumpkin Spice Syrup & and Iced Pumpkin Spice Latte –enjoy!

    Homemade Pumpkin Spice Syrup and Iced Latte

    Pumpkin Spice Latte
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:

    Ingredients
    • 1 cup Water
    • 1 cup Vanilla Sugar
    • 2-3 sticks of Cinnamon
    • ½ ts of ground cloves
    • ½ ts of ground ginger (or if you’re feeling adventurous, fresh ginger)
    • ¼ ts of freshly grated Nutmeg
    • 3 tb of Pumpkin
    • 2 shots of Espresso
    • 8 oz Milk

    Instructions
    1. Dissolve your Sugar into your Water.
    2. Tumble in all your Spices + Pumpkin.
    3. Bring to a bubble.
    4. Turn off the heat and allow everything to mingle for at least 15 minutes.
    5. Strain your liquid through a fine mesh sieve and discard the pulp + Cinnamon Sticks.
    6. Pour in ¼ c Syrup into a glass.
    7. Pull your shots of Espresso and add it to the glass.
    8. For a hot Latte, pour your foamed Milk over until you’ve reached the top and dollop on a bit of Foam.
    9. For a cold Latte, pop in some ice and pour over your cold Milk.

     

    Categories: Breakfast Breakfast Drinks Drinks Holidays Holidays Sweets Sweets Videos | No Comments

  8. Ooey Gooey

    November 11, 2011 by The Squishy Monster

    Don’t tell anyone, but as often (and as much) as I bake, a good, soft, gooey, melty, warm Chocolate Chip Cookie still gets me weak in the knees.  It doesn’t even have to be one of those gourmet-big honkin-$6/ea things either.  If you can bake em, I will come.  A good cookie, is a good cookie.

    Soft & Gooey Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Chocolate Chip Cookies
     
    Save Print

    Prep time

    Cook time

    Total time

     

    Author:

    Ingredients
    • 3½ cups of Flour
    • 1 ts Baking Powder + 1 ts Baking Soda + 1 ts Salt
    • 1 cup of Butter
    • 2 cups of Brown Sugar
    • 4 tb of regular White Sugar
    • 2 Eggs
    • 4 ts good Vanilla
    • 12 oz bag of Chocolate Chips

    Instructions
    1. In your first bowl, sift together your Flour, Powder, Soda, and Salt.
    2. In your second bowl, cream together your soft Butter and Sugars.
    3. Still staying with your second bowl, crack in your Eggs, one at a time. Beat between additions.
    4. Tip in your Vanilla.
    5. Slowly (in thirds), add in your first bowl to your second bowl.
    6. Blend until just combined.
    7. Fold in your Chips by hand.
    8. Scoop out with an Ice Cream Scoop 2″ apart and bake at 350 for about 12-15 minutes.

    Notes
    Please, please, please allow your Butter to soften organically. Beautifully smooshy (yes, that’s a technical term) Butter is a thing of beauty and will make your Cookies oh so tender. Also, unless you’re a “crunchy-cookie” person, under baking > over baking If you’ve got a cooling cookie rack, it prevents your Cookie from continuing to “cook” on its hot sheet.

    Confession #523: (Sometimes, when I’m feeling extra naughty, I get Chocolate Chunks and throw in a bag 1/2.  Shhhh.  Don’t tell anyone)!

    Categories: Chocolate Chocolate Cookies Cookies Sweets Sweets Videos | No Comments

  • 1

    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.

  • Recent Posts

  • Support "Pack Away Hunger"

    		•