Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie Cups

I've been really into bite-size desserts lately (the mini devil's food cupcakes with coconut cream frosting; the little sugar cookie fruit tarts). I think people are more likely to eat (and enjoy!) desserts when they're not super large and guilt-inducing. This recipe is quick-and-easy (it would even be great for kids to make!), and it's one I come back to again and again!  
Recipe adapted from an old Pillsbury recipe pamphlet.
Ingredients: 1 16oz tube of refrigerated peanut butter cookie dough 36 mini Snickers bars, unwrapped 36 mini cupcake papers  3/4 cup fudge frosting
Directions: 1. Cover each mini Snickers with a heaping tablespoon of cookie dough, rolling between your hands so the Snickers bar is completely surrounded by dough. Place dough-covered Snickers bars into mini cupcake papers in mini muffin tins. 2. Bake at 375 for 9-14 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool completely. 3. Pipe fudge frosting onto each cookie cup, and serve! 
Mini Snickers!
Wrapping Snickers with dough...
All covered with dough...
Ready for the oven!
Ta-da! Perfect for tailgating! :) 
Enjoy!

Breaded Pork Tenderloin with Dijon Marsala Sauce

Okay guys. This is the best recipe I've found in a long time. I'm serious. It's fancy enough for special occasions or for having company over (looks so elegant on a platter!), but you can do a lot of it ahead of time, and it's not super-hard, and it tastes so good! Don't leave out the sauce either; that's delicious too! 

Recipe loosely adapted from here (pork) and here (sauce), and the comments on both.
Ingredients: 3 lbs pork tenderloin (two 1.5 lb halves) garlic powder oregano  salt & pepper 1/2 cup olive oil 2 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs
For the sauce: 3 tbsp butter 3 shallots, minced 3 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped 2 tbsp flour 1 1/2 cups Marsala wine 1 1/2 tbsp Dijon mustard 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Directions: 1. Trim fat from the tenderloins. Rub both tenderloins all over with garlic powder, salt, pepper, and oregano. (Do this to your own tastes. I like to use a LOT of oregano and pepper, slightly less garlic powder, and just a little salt - we try to keep a low sodium diet).  2. Put the seasoned tenderloins in a large Ziploc and allow to marinate in the fridge for at least 2 hours (I just make mine the day before and let them sit in there overnight).  3. In a small bowl, mix the olive oil and bread crumbs. Use more or less oil to reach a consistency that is moist enough to stick the the pork when pressed. 4. Press the crumb mixture onto all sides of both tenderloins until there is no pink showing. Use all of the crumb mixture, even if it seems thick.  5. Put the breaded tenderloins in a shallow baking dish lined with a LARGE piece of foil. Lightly spray the top of the tenderloins with olive oil spray (or cooking spray). Tent the foil on top (this will prevent the breading from burning).  6. Bake at 425 until a meat thermometer reads 150 (about 30-40 minutes for 3 lbs of pork tenderloin). Undo the foil tent to uncover the pork for the last 10ish minutes. (Measure the cooking time with the thermometer rather than the clock; it's really easy to let it go too long and end up with dry pork). 7. While pork is cooking, make the sauce. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook shallots, garlic, and onion in butter until soft. Add in the flour and whisk until combined. Stir in Marsala, mustard, and heavy cream. Continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the volume of the liquid has reduced by 1/2 (this takes about 20-30 minutes). 8. Let the tenderloins rest for 10-15 minutes before cutting into slices. (This is important - it gives the juices time to redistribute).
(tenderloin rubbed with spices)
(pressed with olive oil crumb mixture and ready for the oven)
(tented foil)
(shallots, garlic, and onion cooking)
(sauce reducing)
(pork is done!)

Ta-da!
Enjoy!

Rosemary Parmesan Bread

This is really just a variation of the no-knead homemade crusty bread recipe (which you must try if you haven't, by the way!), but people are always asking me for the recipe, and it's so easy (provided you plan ahead so it can have time to rise), so I figured I'd post it on its own! 

Recipe adapted from No-Knead Homemade Crusty Bread.
Ingredients: 3 cups all purpose flour 1 1/2 tsp salt 1/2 tsp instant yeast 1 1/2 cups water (lukewarm) 5 tsp rosemary 1/4 cup  grated Parmesan cheese Parchment Paper
Directions: 1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and yeast (no need to "proof" the yeast first).  2. Add in water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms. Mix in rosemary and cheese. 3. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12-18 hours. 4. Pour dough out of the bowl onto a floured piece of parchment paper, and shape into a ball. Cover the ball with plastic wrap, and sit it on the parchment paper. 5. Place some sort of oven-safe dish with a lid into the oven. This could be a Dutch oven, or a cast iron pot with a lid, stainless steel pot with lid, Pyrex dish with lid, Corningware with lid, etc. I use a 2.5 quart round Corningware dish with a glass lid. It just needs to be somewhere between 2.5 and 7ish quarts. No need to grease or flour the dish at all. 6. Preheat the oven to 450 (letting the empty dish heat up in the oven). While the oven preheats, let the dough just sit on the parchment paper under the plastic wrap. 7. When the oven is preheated, remove the the plastic wrap from the dough. Take the dish out of the oven (be careful and use oven mitts: it will be very, very hot!), and remove the lid. Pick up the parchment paper and drop the dough + parchment paper straight into the dish. Put the lid back on and put it back in the oven. 8. Bake for 30 minutes. 9. Remove the lid and bake for another 15 minutes. 10. Remove bread from the dish (again, it'll be very hot, so be careful!) and cool on a wire rack before slicing.
(mixing the ingredients)
(shaggy dough, pre-rise)
(covered and set aside to rise)

(it should look something like this after rising)

(risen dough in a ball on parchment paper)

(into the hot dish in the oven - this photo is the non-rosemary version, but you get the idea)

(all done! Again, this photo is the non-rosemary kind, but same deal!)

Ta-da!
Enjoy!

Cheesy Italian Biscuits

Soooo y'all are going to love-slash-hate me for posting this recipe. It's full of carby, cheesy deliciousness, and I don't think it's in any way good for you (except the "I just ate a delicious piece of carby cheese goodness and it tasted so good" way). But sometimes you have to toss aside the healthy eating goals and just splurge. And when that time comes, you better make these. Because they are good.

Recipe adapted from here.
Ingredients: 1 contained Pillsbury Grands Flaky Layers biscuits 3/4 pound mozzarella 1/4 cup olive oil 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese Italian seasoning
Directions: 1. Open the biscuits and slightly flatten each one into a disc. Cut mozzarella into chunks (about 2 inches wide), and place a couple cheese chunks on each biscuit disc. Wrap the biscuit dough around the cheese and seal well.  2. Place the cheese-filled biscuit dough balls seam-side-down in a baking dish (it's a good idea to line your baking dish with foil to make for easier clean up in the case of cheese explosions!). 3. Brush the biscuits with some olive oil. Sprinkle grated parmesan and Italian seasoning on the biscuits. 4. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until they're golden and firm. 
(biscuit dough)
(pressed into a disc)
(cheese chunks)
(all sealed up and in the pan)
(brushed with olive oil)
(sprinkled with grated parmesan...)
(ready for the oven!)
(ahhhh! I want to eat them!!)
Ta-da!
Enjoy!

Roasted Broccoli with Manchego

Have I mentioned how much I love roasted veggies? I know I've posted like a gazillion roasted vegetable recipes, but I found another good one and I just have to share! Do y'all love roasted veggies as much as me? I could eat roasted curried cauliflower by the handful, like it's chips or pretzels or something. And this broccoli? It's tied for the prize of "BEST BROCCOLI EVER" with the parmesan roasted broccoli recipe. Manchego is one of my favoritest cheeses ever, so I knew this was gonna be good before I even tried it!
Recipe adapted from here. Ingredients: 1 large head broccoli (about 1 pound) 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 tbsp olive oil 1/8 to 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (depending on how hot you like it!) salt 1/2 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice 1/4 cup grated Manchego cheese Directions: 1. Cut broccoli into florets and discard stalks. In a large bowl, combine broccoli florets, garlic, olive oil, and red pepper flakes. Mix well. 2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Spread broccoli mixture onto the baking sheet.  3. Roast at 450 for 20-25 minutes (or until broccoli is tender and beginning to brown), tossing halfway through. 4. Sprinkle broccoli with lemon juice and toss to coat. Serve topped with grated Manchego. I forgot to take a photo until I had already scooped most of the broccoli off the baking sheet, but this is what it looks like after being roasted... Ta-da! Enjoy!

Zucchini Brownies

In honor of Bar exam week (three days of exams starting tomorrow!), I'm sharing a delicious recipe that I never would have found if not for law school. That's right, this one comes from one of my law school friends, Leah, who runs a food blog called Food for the Fresh! This recipe magically uses all sorts of healthy stuff and still comes out tasting like a delicious fat-and-carbs-filled dessert. Whole wheat flour, applesauce instead of oil, two cups of zucchini in an 8x8 pan... Magic! 


Recipe adapted from here.
Ingredients: 2 eggs, beaten 1/2 cup applesauce 1 tbsp vanilla 1 cup sugar 1 cup whole wheat flour 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1 tsp cinnamon 1 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/8 tsp salt 2 cups grated zucchini (2-3 medium zucchinis) 12oz semisweet chocolate chips 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Directions: 1. Combine the eggs, applesauce, and vanilla in a large bowl.  2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredient mixture into the wet mixture, mixing until just combined. 3. Fold in the zucchini and chocolate chips. 4. Pour the batter into a lightly-greased 8x8 pan. Top with walnuts (optional).  5. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted (not through a chocolate chip) comes out clean! Cool on a wire rack. 
(eggs + applesauce + vanilla)
(dry ingredients)
(grated zucchini)
(batter!)
(ready for the oven)
Ta-da!
Enjoy!

Roasted Carrots with Olive Oil and Parsley

We've been doing so well with eating lots of veggies lately, and it's all because of how easy and delicious roasted vegetables are! I don't even like raw carrots at all, but I LOVE these roasted ones! I made them once while my brother-in-law was over, and he thought they were sweet potato fries! That's how delicious they are!

Recipe adapted from here.
Ingredients: 12 carrots, peeled 3 tbsp olive oil pepper, to taste dried parsley, to taste (don't be shy, I put a LOT of parsley in mine!)
Directions: 1. Cut carrots into long slices and place them in a large Ziploc bag. 2. Add olive oil, pepper, and parsley to the bag and give it a good shake until all the carrots are coated. 3. Cover a rimmed baking sheet with foil. Spread the carrots in a single layer on the baking sheet. 4. Roast at 425 degrees for 20-24 minutes.
(carrot slices)
(adding oil and seasonings)
(ready for the oven!)
Ta-da!
Enjoy!