perfect lemon cookies

My love for lemon flavored desserts is no secret. So when I came across this recipe claiming to be the best lemon cookie, I clearly had to give it a shot. In appearance these cookies closely resemble my gooey butter cookies, but they have a completely different taste. I absolutely loved these cookies, and can't wait to make them again. They are so easy and simple to make, give it a try!

Perfect Lemon Cookies
Makes 20 cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare baking sheet by using parchment paper, a baking mat, or non-stick spray.

Cream butter and sugar together using a stand or hand mixer. Once light and fluffy, add in vanilla extract, egg, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Beat until combined. Slowly add in dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda).

Pour powdered sugar onto a plate or shallow bowl. Using a cookie scoop, or tablespoon, form dough into balls, and roll in powdered sugar. 

Place sugared cookies on a baking sheet, about 1 to 1 1/2 inches apart from each other. Cookies will spread upon baking. 

Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until edges just turn brown. Cookies should look matte, not shiny. Remove from cookie sheet 3 minutes after removing from oven. Let cool completely before eating (if you can wait that long!). 

YUM! These were pretty darn good. Definitely the best lemon cookie I have tried to make thus far. I had about 8, then decided to bring the rest to friends to eat. Otherwise, I definitely would have eaten the entire batch (for real).  These are great for any occasion, and I assure you people will love them! 

Happy Eating!

mexican stuffed shells

I'm so happy fall is here! I pulled out my boots and happily swapped my t-shirts for sweaters this past week. Although St. Louis is notorious for weather "fake-outs", I'm hoping that the cool weather is here to stay. I mean, who doesn't love wearing a chunky sweater, drinking apple cider, and going to the pumpkin patch? Fall definitely wins the best season award in my book! 

A friend of mine recently asked if I could feature a Mexican stuffed shells recipe, and of course I willingly obliged. I searched around the internet and found several that I liked, but this one seemed to be the easiest and I had most of the ingredients on hand.

 This one is for you, Sarah! 

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Adapted from food.com

Makes 4-6 Servings

15-20 large pasta shells

1 lb ground beef (or ground turkey)

1 packet taco seasoning -- I used Trader Joes

4 oz. cream cheese

1 cup salsa

1/2 ro 1 cup Taco sauce -- not enchilada sauce

shredded cheddar cheese

shredded Colby jack cheese

scallions, chopped

sour cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

In a frying pan, brown the meat. Add taco seasoning and cook according to package directions. I just added mine in and cooked with the meat (Trader Joes seasoning is spicy and flavorful, I highly recommend it!). Once meat it cooked, add in the cream cheese. Stir, cover, and let simmer until meat and cheese is fully combined. Set aside and let cool. 

While meat is cooking, cook pasta shells. Once they are done cooking, lay them out on a baking sheet, or wax paper. This will prevent the shells from sticking together as they cool. 

Fill the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish wish salsa. I didn't have a full cup, so mine looks a little sparse. But the more, the merrier. 

Fill each shell with 1-2 tablespoons of taco meat, and place in baking dish seam side up. Then top with taco sauce (I didn't have taco sauce either, so I used what little salsa I had remaining). 

Bake for 30 minutes. Remove dish and sprinkle liberally with both cheeses. Then bake for 15 minutes more. Take out of oven, and add chopped scallions to the top. 

Plate it up, serve with a nice dollop of sour cream, and you've got yourself one heck of an easy and tasty meal. 

Excellent! Super easy to make, and this recipe makes plenty. I have lunches for the rest of the week, which is always nice. I highly suggest this recipe if you like mexican food and you are sick of the standard taco. 

Happy Eating!

loaded baked potato soup

 

Anything with the word "loaded" in it, I generally try to avoid. Loaded guns. Loaded questions. Herbie: Fully Loaded. I mean, er...I never saw that movie. Anyway, you get my point. As a general rule, I also try to stay away from food items listed as "loaded" because there is a good chance my digestive system won't agree with it. However, I saw this lightened up version of loaded potato soup in Cooking Light a while back, and I decided it was finally time to try it! 

Lightened Up Potato Soup

As seen in Cooking Light

Serves 4-6

4 red potatoes (6 oz each)

2 tsp olive oil

1/2 cup pre-chopped onion

1 1/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth

3 tbsp flour -- if you are gluten free, use an AP flour substitute

2 cups 1% milk, divided

1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream

salt and pepper to taste

Shredded cheddar, bacon, and chives for garnish 

Pierce potatoes with a fork, and cook in the microwave for about 10-12 minutes or until tender. Cut in half and let cool slightly. 

While potatoes are cooking, heat oil in saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion, and cook for about 3 minutes. Add broth. 

In a separate bowl add flour (or flour substitute) to 1/2 cup milk. Add the mixture to the pan, then add the rest of the milk. Bring to a boil; stirring often. Cook for 1 minute then remove from heat. Next stir in the sour cream, and mix in salt and pepper to taste. 

Next step is to prepare your potatoes. The original recipe said to lightly mash, but I suggest more of a cubing method. I "coarsely mashed" mine, and my souped turned into more of a mashed potato soup. So cube the potatoes, then add to soup. 

Garnish with cheese, bacon, and scallions. 

Not too shabby for a 20 minute meal! The taste was great, especially with the addition of the cheese, bacon, and scallions (definitely don't skimp on those!). The only thing I would have wanted to change was the texture--more chunks, less mush. Next time, I will cook the potatoes for less time, and cube them. Otherwise, this was pretty darn good. The best part, you don't feel like there is a brick in your stomach after eating! Excellent. 

Happy Eating!

chocolate souffle cookies

Um, it's about to be October. WHAT?! When did this happen? Where does time go? The realization that the Halloween month is upon us nearly gave me a panic attack. Why, you might ask. Well, I've committed myself to running a 10K (my first, and probably my last) in a few weeks. My training for this race has been nearly nonexistent. Yet, I am supposed to run the entire thing. I'm going to employ the "I think I can, I think I can" mentality and hope for the best. I really have always wanted to be a runner. However, it just might not  be in the cards for me. Oh well.

Enough about running. Let's talk cookies. More specifically, let's talk about these chocolate souffle cookies. All I have to say is WOW. These cookies have no flour, no butter, and no oil, and yet they are completely flavorful and delicious. I kid you not. This cookie is the Superman of all cookies.

Chocolate Souffle Cookies
Adapted from Fine Cooking
Makes about 15 cookies

6 oz. bittersweet good quality chocolate, chopped
2 large egg whites, room temperature
1/8 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts

Start by arranging your oven racks to the top 1/3 and bottom 1/3 of your oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Melt your chocolate in double boiler, or in the microwave. If using a microwave, melt in 40 second intervals, and give it a healthy stir in between.

In a medium bowl, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat egg whites (make sure they are room temperature, and yes this does matter) and cream of tartar together until soft peaks begin to form. With the beaters still running, slowly add the vanilla and sugar. Let mix until stiff peaks form. It should look pretty, glossy, and hydrated. Not frothy. 

Gently fold in the melted chocolate and finely chopped walnuts. Do not continuously stir the batter, you will deflate the egg whites. Continuously fold until all ingredients are uniformly combined. 

Using a cookie scoop, or a tablespoon, place dollops of batter on to the prepared baking sheet, leaving about one inch area around each cookie. They will spread significantly whilst baking. 

Bake for 10 - 15 minutes. I baked mine on convection for 10 minutes, and they came out perfect. Once the tops being to crack but the insides still looks gooey, they are done. 

If  you can resist, let them cool a bit before eating. Otherwise you will burn your mouth, because you won't be able to stop eating these once you've had a taste. 

These were the most surprisingly awesome cookies. They are gluten-free, and they have no butter or oil. This of course meant that I felt it was appropriate to eat three five in one sitting. 

I can't wait to make these again. I will definitely be making them for the holiday season as well because they are so light and airy, yet pack a serious sweet punch. Perfect for the "post food comma yet I still want to eat every dessert" feeling I seem to find myself in every year around the holidays. 

Happy Eating!

spinach frittata with cheddar and bacon

Mmmmm brunch. What a fantastic concept. I do love me some brunch. I am also a firm believer that breakfast foods at any time of the day are completely acceptable. I go on kicks for weeks at a time when I will exclusively eat breakfast foods for every meal. Weird, I know. 

Generally, I don't have much luck with eggs, especially fried eggs (or poached eggs for that matter). I guess I never quite get the flipping of the egg down, and they then turn into slightly scrambled eggs instead of fried. Still tasty, but not very aesthetic. However. one of the easiest breakfast/brunch foods to make are frittatas! Try it, you'll love it. 

Spinach Frittata with Cheddar and Bacon

Makes 4-6 servings

8 eggs

1/2 cup whole milk

1/2 lb fresh spinach, rinsed, dried, and torn into 1 inch pieces

8 slices bacon, cooked and chopped

1/4 large onion, finely diced

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

Chives, chopped for garnish

salt and pepper to taste

Start by preheating the oven to 450°F.

Cook the bacon in a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat. When bacon is crispy, remove it from the pan, drain on paper towels and set aside. When it's cool, roughly chop it into ¼ inch pieces — or just crumble it up.

Reserve about 2 Tbsp of bacon fat, then add diced onion and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes or until it's slightly translucent.

Turn off the heat under the pan, then add the spinach pieces and stir with a wooden spoon for a minute until the leaves are fully wilted.

In a glass mixing bowl, thoroughly beat the eggs until nice and frothy. Add the milk and stir until combined. Season to taste with Kosher salt.

Pour the egg mixture into the skillet, and sprinkle the bacon pieces in as well. Give everything a stir to distribute the ingredients evenly. This is the last time you're going to stir, so get it all out of your system now.

Turn the heat under the skillet back on to about medium and cook for about 5 minutes or until the egg begins to set. No stirring!

Add the grated cheese, sprinkling it evenly across the top, and then transfer the skillet to the oven. Bake about 10 minutes or until the eggs are fully cooked. 

Frittatas are completely versatile, and you can add anything that suits you and your family's tastes. Also, if you do not happen to have a cast-iron skillet, no worries. You can use a baking dish as an alternative, with about the same result. Now, go cook! 

Happy Eating!