Counting Down the Days

As we get closer and closer to the end of my residency and the end of our time in Oregon, I'm getting more and more excited about coming home to Wisconsin.

Of course, I'll miss some things in Oregon - and there's so much I feel like we need to do and see before we make the trek back (that's a blog post all it's own). What I'm most excited about right now is Sasquatch! Tim and I decided it was worth the big bucks and will be spending the 4 days of Memorial Day weekend in George, Washington at the Gorge Amphitheater listening to some amazing music and camping. That's right - we're buying a tent and a sleeping bag for me and everything! Real honest to goodness camping. I can't wait for it to get here!

In the meantime I'm hoping we can take some day trips or weekend trips to the coast, etc before we hit the trail back to the Midwest.

Any suggestions for what should be on the Oregon/Pacific Northwest Bucket List?

Greatest Mom

My Mom is the best. She sent me flowers today - for no reason other than to let me know she was thinking of me. It's little things like that that brighten the day. Thanks Mom!

Shepherd's Pie

On St. Patrick's Day Tim and I found an Irish pub near our apartment to have a few beers and enjoy an Irish themed meal. After waiting roughly 30 minutes for a table we had prime seats to watch March Madness begin to unfold. We got some good beer and a shot of Jameson for good measure. The only problem: they were out of their "cottage pie" which is a their variation on a shepherd's pie. I was disappointed to say the least and had to settle for fish and chips (definitely not irish, although I read somewhere recently that shepherd's pie is actually an english dish, but that's not the point of this post).


I was still disappointed on Friday and Saturday so I decided to try my hand at making it myself. We had all the necessary items (veggies, meat, potatoes). After a quick google search I settled on Rachel Ray's 30 minute version because I was hungry. My only changes to her recipe would be to make sure you've got plenty of the gravy because it is delicious. If I ever made this dish again I would probably double the gravy for good measure. That, and corn is a good substitute for peas if you happen to not like peas. All and all it turned out pretty tasty (and looked gorgeous). I would definitely make this again.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes: Slainte!

For the last few days I have seen recipe after recipe for chocolate-stout (insert baked good here). I had a recipe that I'd found last year but didn't have the chance to make before St. Patty's day had come and gone. So I decided this would be the year I would try. I learned a few lessons making this recipe, hopefully they'll help you out!

1) Have the beer at room temp if possible. That way the melted butter won't solidify

2) There's no need to use an electric mixer in the beginning (or at all really) unless you have one with a deep bowl and won't make a mess. The wet ingredients are very, very wet and will cover your counters in a beery solution if you're not careful.

3) The recipe does not call for cupcake liners, but we all know life is better if you use them.

4) The recipe says to fill the cupcakes 3/4 full which seems a lot, and when you rotate the pans at 12 minutes you might be worried at the ginormous cupcake mounds in your oven. Fear not, I think something chemical happens with the beer/carbonation and they end up being perfectly normal sized cupcakes.

5) There's a recipe on Food Network for a cream cheese frosting. I was lazy and bought mine from the store - Betty Crocker's popular for a reason.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients

· 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

· 2 cups sugar

· 2 cups all-purpose flour

· 1 teaspoon baking soda

· Pinch fine salt

· 1 bottle stout beer (recommended: Guinness)

· 1 stick butter, melted

· 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

· 3 large eggs

· 3/4 cup sour cream

Directions

1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2) In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt.

3) In another medium mixing bowl, combine the stout, melted butter, and vanilla. Beat in eggs, 1 at time.

4) Mix in sour cream until thoroughly combined and smooth. Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture.

5) Lightly grease 24 muffin tins. Divide the batter equally between muffin tins, filling each 3/4 full.

6) Bake for about 12 minutes and then rotate the pans.

7) Bake another 12 to 13 minutes until risen, nicely domed, and set in the middle but still soft and tender. Cool before turning out.

Home-Made Brownies

Ladies and Gentlemen - presenting Master Baker Tim!

That's right - Tim made homemade brownies all by himself last night. I didn't help at all. And let me tell you, those brownies are delicious. I'd even consider making these instead of boxed brownies. I mean, boxed brownies are amazing, but these were so chocolatey. I knowing that we made them ourselves (or Tim's self) is so awesome. I've only attempted brownies from scratch once before and it went ok. This is by far a better recipe. Give it a try!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x9 inch baking pan.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the oil, sugar, and vanilla. Beat in eggs. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt; gradually stir into the egg mixture until well blended. Stir in walnuts, if desired. Spread the batter evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the brownie begins to pull away from edges of pan. Let cool on a wire rack before cutting into squares.

Baking Triumph

I have to give credit where credit is due. After reading the blog of my best friend (and Matron of Honor), Dessert Diva, I had an urge to make snickerdoodles. So while the fiance was at work for the day, I picked up my trusty spatula and got to work.

I've made snickerdoodles plenty of times in the past and I always encounter the same flaw: they go flat. I seem to recall that a certain aunt of mine (who may or may not read this blog - seriously, is anybody out there?!?!?) has mastered the art of the fluffy snickerdoodle, but I have yet to see that recipe. So I turned to the tried and true: AllRecipes.com

After sifting through plenty of options (hahaha, see what I did there?), I finally settled on the Mrs. Sigg's Snickerdoodle Recipe. It's fairly simple for a snickerdoodle recipe. I noticed that not many people had made comments regarding alterations to the recipe, so I figured it must be pretty good. (The comments on allrecipes are key to success. A recipe can be "ok" but with the comments from others you can end up with a stellar product. So pay attention to them!). I noticed that some people commented on the "flat snickerdoodle" dilemma that I've been dealing with. Huzzah! I'm not alone in my strife. Turns out this is a common complaint and some people noted that if you don't have fresh baking soda - the cookies will end up flat (btw - fresh means that if you throw a dash of the baking soda into water it fizzes immediately. If this doesn't happen, your baking soda's gone flat and so will your cookies).

I have to admit - although this recipe isn't perfect (the cookies weren't as fluffy as I imagined) it was by far the best I've ever used. These cookies are slightly crunchy on the outside and soooo chewy and delicious! Definitely give them a chance.

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup butter, softened (room temp)
  
• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs (room temp)
  
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons white sugar
• 3 tablespoons ground cinnamon (or less to taste)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. By hand - Cream together butter, shortening, 1 1/2 cups sugar, the eggs and the vanilla. By hand - Blend in the flour, cream of tartar, soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls.
3. Mix the 3 tablespoons sugar and the cinnamon into a zip-lock baggie. Roll balls of dough in mixture, covering completely. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.
4. Bake 8 minutes (this is exact). Remove immediately from baking sheets and place on wire rack to cool. Store in air tight container.