TWD: Tribute to Katherine Hepburn Brownies

Hello TWDers! It feels like forever since my last TWD post. I missed out on great recipes last month and I definitely need to play catch up. I had uninterrupted access to my in-laws kitchen this weekend and jumped at the chance of doing some baking. It felt great to be back in the kitchen and I can't wait until we are in our home so that I can get back into my cooking and baking routines. This week Lisa of Surviving Oz chose Dorie's Tribute to Katherine Hepburn Brownies. The brownies came together easily and I was really excited about trying this recipe. The batter was thick and the brownies came out of the oven fudgy and incredibly rich. My in-laws and Abuela liked them but, unfortunately, Alex and I didn't. Alex said they tasted too much like dark chocolate (and I used semi-sweet chocolate instead of bittersweet) and I thought the brownies tasted too much like coffee.

Thanks to Lisa for her selection and for also creating a great new logo for TWD. Don't forget to check out her blog for the recipe and the TWD site to see what all the other bakers did with this week's selection.

Some Comic Relief

The last week has been very stressful in the home department. I have learned that I need to listen to Alex more when he says things like, "don't mix family and business." Unfortunately, things didn't go quite as planned and people have been hurt. That's another thing I've learned, when you own a house nothing goes as planned. The smallest repairs end up being the biggest repairs and things you thought didn't need attention end up needing attention. It's all a roller coaster of emotions because you go from being severely disappointed to extremely happy. I was on the disappointed end of the emotion spectrum when I went to the house on Friday, but I left the house on the happy end. Friday was the first day I actually felt like I did something in the house. I figured Perla's presence in the house would lift our spirits so I took her to the house so she could get a feel for it. She definitely got a feel for the house and even marked her territory. No, I don't mean she peed in the house, I mean she walked on wet paint and left her paw prints all over the second bedroom.

Two Years Ago Yesterday...

...I was a blushing bride. I remember the day perfectly and clearly. It was one of the happiest days of my life. The days leading up to the wedding were stressful and the wedding day itself was stressful, but nothing could take away from the feeling of finally marrying the love of my life. The best moment of the day was walking down the aisle. I don't think I have ever felt anything like that. It was pure happiness, joy, excitement, anticipation all wrapped into one. No one else existed except the man standing at the altar waiting for me. I was oblivious to the world and the church full of people. Nothing existed in that moment except for us. This is the one moment I recommend all brides have because the feeling is incredible, irreplaceable, and one of a kind. Two years have passed since that moment and every time I think about it I get all giddy and stupid with joy. I wish I could bottle up that feeling and carry it with me and take a sip of it whenever I felt down. The past two years of marriage have been easy. I remember reading how the first two years of marriage set the tone for the rest of the marriage and how they are the hardest and I was scared. What did I get myself into? Was it really going to be that bad? As I look back I am truly stunned to see how easy and smooth it was. There were little bumps here and there but not anything that made it feel like being married was hard. I don't think it's marriage that's hard, I think it's relationships in general that are hard. Before I digress any further, I must say that being married to Alex for the past two years has been an amazing experience and I wouldn't want to be married to or in love with anyone else. I can't wait to see what year 3 has in store for us...

He was so handsome that day. He was thisclose to crying.

Meanwhile, I cried.

So worth it.

Thanks for loving me Alex.

A Housing Update

Things are finally moving along with our house. It's our home and all our stuff is there, yet we aren't living there. It's the oddest feeling ever...to own a house and be spending money on it but to not be living in it and enjoying it. We are literally bleeding money and the house consumes most of our free time. Actually, it consumes Alex's free time since most of what's going on in the house can't be done by me. I'm just there to smile when he gets frustrated. We saw progress for the first time weekend. The walls are getting patched up, the bathroom is usable, and our front yard has been completely transformed. It went from being a dirt covered jungle to tropical lushness. I'm still holding on to my hopes of living in the house by July 1st.

Before:

After:

Things I'll Miss: Cheap Breakfasts

One thing I loved about Boston was the ability to get a cheap breakfast. There were places where you'd pay $7 for breakfast and get enough food to keep you covered for 2 days. The closest thing to a cheap breakfast here in Miami is Denny's or driving 45 minutes to the closest Cracker Barrel. While in Boston, I was always a fan of Mike's Diner. We went every time we got a chance and every time we were craving a good, hearty breakfast. I wrote about Mike's on here (here and here) and one of the beautiful things about having a blog is that other locals read it and recommend places to you. One such reader was Michelle (Hi Michelle!) and she told me about McKenna's and how it wouldn't be right for me to leave Boston without going to McKenna's. I set a date and went with Alex and my friend Edgar and boy was it good. We went during the week so there was no wait and I was in awe of how good the breakfast was. I am so glad Michelle emailed me about McKenna's because, if not, I would have definitely missed out. This place was soo good and it had the best hash I have ever had in my life; so salty and crispy.
When I do breakfast I do it big and Alex is always amazed at how much I can eat. I ordered the McKenna's Special, which is eggs, hash, home fries, toast, and bacon, and a side of pancakes. I ate about 95% of this. The breakfast had such a fresh, homey taste, kind of like the breakfast you'd expect to have at home on a Saturday morning.
Alex ordered the waffles. The man cannot resist waffles and he adored how big and crunch these waffles were. Over breakfast he discussed how waffles are the perfect breakfast item and how they were created to ensure syrup coverage perfection because each cavity only holds a certain amount of syrup.
It was great to be able to celebrate our last breakfast in Boston and it was even better that I got to enjoy such a great breakfast with one of my Boston favorites. Edgar...you are the best and one of the reasons why I will cherish my Boston experience all the more. Thanks for being a great friend and laughing at me as I tried to understand Boston living and city names like Haverhill and Alewife.

Cookies and an Award

Ok my blogging is depressing. No, not depressing, pitiful. At least this time it's only been 6 days since my last post. Now that my schedule is semi figured out, I have all my baking stuff accessible, and I feel more comfortable using Abuela's kitchen I can get back to baking. I don't think I will be able to do anything too involving until I'm in MY kitchen but I can do easy desserts like cookies. I made some cookies because Alex wanted them and I lucked out. My brain has been a little scattered the past few weeks and when he told me he wanted white chocolate chip cookies I thought he meant macadamia nut cookies, but since I didn't want to spend money on macadamia nuts I made the recipe on the back of the Nestle white morsels bag. I was afraid to show him the cookies because I felt bad not making him the cookies I thought he wanted. I was wrong though because he did want the cookies I made not the mac nut cookies. So even in my scattered brain state I was right on target. These cookies were fabulous. The cookies were chocolaty and super chewy. I don't think I've had a chewier cookie and they were chewy for days. The chocolate cookie was deep and rich and cooled by the white morsels.
Part two of pitiful posting involves an award that was given to me exactly one month ago. Jen of Jenuinely Inspired gave me the award and I couldn't be more thankful. She's an awesome person with an awesome blog and she is one of my favorite people on the planet. Thanks Jen! The rules for this award are to accept the award and pass it on to other bloggers, so I am abiding and passing it on to Alex of A Beginner's Adventures in Photography and Vibi of La Casserole Carree. I love these blogs and the people who write them. Alex is a lifelong friend who is supportive in everything I do and Vibi is a blogging friend that is always there to support my baking by leaving encouraging comments. Thanks for making life and blogging so much better!
White Chocolate Chip Cookies
Source: Nestle (here)

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup baking cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) white morsels

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels. Drop by well-rounded teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until centers are set. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Coming Clean

I cannot believe my last post was LAST month. May 31st to be exact. I am seriously slacking. I have a good excuse too...I promise! Moving from Boston to Miami was a good excuse, but the one I have for you now is even better. I mentioned having a big secret in one of my posts and now I can tell everyone what it is. I have been keeping my mouth shut about this secret since the beginning of April and that's all because I was afraid of my dream not becoming a reality. But now that everything is said and done and that our collective debt has officially increased, I can share.

Alex and I bought a house! We are homeowners!

Woo hoo! Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would own a house at my age. The house is gorgeous and exactly what we wanted. The whole home buying process was grueling and my fingers are still hurting from all the crossing I did. Prices on homes may be down in Miami, but the desire for them is not. There were 4 other offers when we submitted ours and there was a back up offer just in case our offer fell through. I was on pins and needles the whole time. Our closing date was pushed back a few days, but nothing significant. We closed yesterday and I couldn't be happier. The house needs a little work and a lot of love and I am so excited about being the one that gets to love the house and really make it our own. This is one of the reasons why I don't have kitchen access and why I haven't been able to post as much. Buying a house is so emotionally involving! I wouldn't have it any other way though. Life couldn't be better. I need to take some better pictures, but for now, here's me sitting on the swing of MY HOUSE(!!!!):

Quick Update

Hello blog world. It's been a long time since I have posted. Sure there have been posts, but they have all been pre-scheduled posts. So much has happened within the last two weeks and I have so many stories to tell. I'm trying to readjust to being back in Miami and catching up on everything that was put on hold during the Big Move. I should get back to regular posting but I'm not too sure when I'll be back in the kitchen. I'm being optimistic and am hoping that I will be back in cooking/baking shape in two weeks. For now though, I wanted to leave you with a preview of one of our many adventures:

Daring Bakers: Apple Strudel

The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.

I know what a real strudel is now. I feel so proud of myself. This whole time I thought a strudel was a Pillsbury toaster strudel. Daring Bakers has once again enlightened me. I was so impressed and in awe of the dough because of how much it stretched (and I made it stretch) without breaking. I was a bit of a ditz in the kitchen and I almost forgot to butter the dough and I completely forgot to add the bread crumbs. I made the bread crumbs, but I forgot about them. They did, however, taste great of the chicken parmesan I made along with the ricotta gnocchi. I used Granny Smith apples and, while they held up nicely, they were too tart for me. I think the bread crumbs might have taken some of the tartness away. To sweeten it up I drizzled the strudel with a glaze. That helped, but the apples were still too tart for me. I will definitely be making this dessert again and it's going to be fun to play around with the fillings.

Don't forget to check out how the other bakers did in The Kitchen.

Apple strudel
Source: “Kaffeehaus – Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague” by Rick Rodgers

2 tablespoons (30 ml) golden rum
3 tablespoons (45 ml) raisins
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (80 g) sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick / 115 g) unsalted butter, melted, divided
1 1/2 cups (350 ml) fresh bread crumbs
strudel dough (recipe below)
1/2 cup (120 ml, about 60 g) coarsely chopped walnuts
2 pounds (900 g) tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼ inch-thick slices (use apples that hold their shape during baking)

1. Mix the rum and raisins in a bowl. Mix the cinnamon and sugar in another bowl.

2. Heat 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the breadcrumbs and cook whilst stirring until golden and toasted. This will take about 3 minutes. Let it cool completely.

3. Put the rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a large baking sheet with baking paper (parchment paper). Make the strudel dough as described below. Spread about 3 tablespoons of the remaining melted butter over the dough using your hands (a bristle brush could tear the dough, you could use a special feather pastry brush instead of your hands). Sprinkle the buttered dough with the bread crumbs. Spread the walnuts about 3 inches (8 cm) from the short edge of the dough in a 6-inch-(15cm)-wide strip. Mix the apples with the raisins (including the rum), and the cinnamon sugar. Spread the mixture over the walnuts.

4. Fold the short end of the dough onto the filling. Lift the tablecloth at the short end of the dough so that the strudel rolls onto itself. Transfer the strudel to the prepared baking sheet by lifting it. Curve it into a horseshoe to fit. Tuck the ends under the strudel. Brush the top with the remaining melted butter.

5. Bake the strudel for about 30 minutes or until it is deep golden brown. Cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Use a serrated knife and serve either warm or at room temperature. It is best on the day it is baked.

Strudel dough

1 1/3 cups (200 g) unbleached flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons (105 ml) water, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil, plus additional for coating the dough
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar

1. Combine the flour and salt in a stand-mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the water, oil and vinegar in a measuring cup. Add the water/oil mixture to the flour with the mixer on low speed. You will get a soft dough. Make sure it is not too dry, add a little more water if necessary.
Take the dough out of the mixer. Change to the dough hook. Put the dough ball back in the mixer. Let the dough knead on medium until you get a soft dough ball with a somewhat rough surface.

2. Take the dough out of the mixer and continue kneading by hand on an unfloured work surface. Knead for about 2 minutes. Pick up the dough and throw it down hard onto your working surface occasionally.
Shape the dough into a ball and transfer it to a plate. Oil the top of the dough ball lightly. Cover the ball tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to stand for 30-90 minutes (longer is better).

3. It would be best if you have a work area that you can walk around on all sides like a 36 inch (90 cm) round table or a work surface of 23 x 38 inches (60 x 100 cm). Cover your working area with table cloth, dust it with flour and rub it into the fabric. Put your dough ball in the middle and roll it out as much as you can.
Pick the dough up by holding it by an edge. This way the weight of the dough and gravity can help stretching it as it hangs. Using the back of your hands to gently stretch and pull the dough. You can use your forearms to support it.

4. The dough will become too large to hold. Put it on your work surface. Leave the thicker edge of the dough to hang over the edge of the table. Place your hands underneath the dough and stretch and pull the dough thinner using the backs of your hands. Stretch and pull the dough until it's about 2 feet (60 cm) wide and 3 feet (90 cm) long, it will be tissue-thin by this time. Cut away the thick dough around the edges with scissors. The dough is now ready to be filled.

Glazed.

Cut.Apple'd.

TWD: Chipster-Topped Brownies

This week's selection comes from Beth of Supplicious and she picked Dorie's Chipster-Topped Brownies. I had always been curious about this recipe and curious about the taste of chocolate chip cookies and brownies combined. The brownies were exactly what you would expect them to be. Frudgy brownie on the bottom and crispy cookie on the top. The only problem I had with the recipe is that my chocolate chip cookies sank but it wasn't even that big of a problem because it just made the brownies even more chocolaty. This dessert is made to be paired with a big glass of milk and it is dessert genius because of the coolness of the pairing.

Make sure to head on over to Beth's blog for the recipe and to the TWD site to see what the other bakers thought of this week's selection.

Dessert genius aka a kid's fantasy