The good things in Texas

Being home is great for many things, but its amazing for all the great eats in Dallas and from the rents and of course seeing all the friends and family. 

First meal at home: an amaze burger

The crew for Gorman Christmas Tea

Dave chowing down at The Common Table

The brew search for dad 

The Rustic for a good catch-up sesh

My brisket burger from the Rustic (it was unreal)

Dad and I's staying in pork dinner

Salad that Erin made me for a quick lunch

The dreamy night of chocolate

Baking day: pecan bars

Baking day: orange chocolate sandwiches

Im sure there will be more to come, especially Christmas morning breakfast (my favorite meal of the year).

Cacao and Prosecco

As Christmas time is coming in hot, the holiday parties are in full force. After all the cakes, dips, and punches they all blend together, but this one was way better than the rest. My sister's friend Jessica decided to have a chocolate and wine party…definitely the best idea ever. I am not the usual chocolate lover, I'm more of a white chocolate fan but I've started to migrate and really love a good dark chocolate.

Don't be alarmed by the bleu cheese, I am not a fan of that funky cheese but it just adds major saltiness to the chocolate. Now the fungus amongus was probably my favorite, it legit taste like Texas sheet cake…and if you don't know what that is please go find some and eat it now. Both of these can be found at Dude, Sweet Chocolate. Oh and those little gems in the back are mint oreo balls that Jess made.

The favorite here was the red velvet milk chocolate, which tasted like you were biting into a piece of red velvet cake…yumm. (found at World Market)

Yummy set up for decadent hot cocoa.

Obviously with all the sweetness, a taste of salty was necessary. Sister made these little swirls that had goat cheese (my love), sun dried tomatoes, and olives.

There was plenty of wine that night but my favorite was this Prosecco and these darn napkins. I love me a good mustache anything…except on a man.

So everyone, take note. Because this night was such a success and y'all should try to do it too…and then invite me :)  

the good things

Just a little update of the past week. 

Grace and Jules on wine and homemade donut night.

They were even more amazing than they looked. 

The preview to Jules proving to us that she can cook. 

She proved us right: Orange chicken, lo mein, and asian green beans. (click for recipes)

Wife her up gents. 

My unreal carrot cake, that finally filled the craving. 

My first home cooked meal of this break. 

Christmas Treats

For the end of the season, I wanted to make my team some treats for the end of the year party. Now I'm gonna tell you, I got up and started baking right away. I literally went from 8:30-3, I was exhausted and could not be happier to get out of the kitchen-but I would say it was all worth it, and so would my team.

The line up: peppermint candied oreos, candied nuts, and biscoff puppy chow. Yeah..so I'm not gonna act like I came up with all of these recipes on my own…I mean I did search specifically on interest, does that count for anything? 

OREOS

Okay so I tried to be smarter than the directions and just push the lollipop in the the oreos…that does not work. They either crack the oreo or just fall apart once you dip them in the candy melts.  I just decided to nix the lollipop ideas, I mean they still taste the same right? 

CANDIED NUTS 

I this candied nuts its a great little gift during the holidays, they taste amazing and make your house/apt smell amazing! I've made candied nuts multiple times and have used many different recipes, and they have all turned out great!

BISCOFF PUPPY CHOW

So I don't know if I have expressed my love for biscoff…but its unreal. I was introduced by my sister, she first got in it Europe where it is called Speculos. There are no words to describe its amazingness, you just have to go out and try it yourself. (For the baking you need creamy, but just for eating get the crunchy, its so much better).



They turned out really pretty and festive, and everyone loved them! The puppy chow was the biggest crowd pleaser, so I will probably give that another try. 

More S'mores please

The fall semester is always a little hectic. With volleyball every weekend, traveling every other and then school in between its a rarity that I find a chance to do what I really love to do in the kitchen…BAKE!

But when the chance arises that someone needs something out of the oven, I never reject. I have to admit I was a little stressed when I said I could bring something sweet because I was completely swamped but like I said, I never say no. Cookies, although easy and convenient for a group I knew bars would be a lot quicker because it was just a one pan fix rather than constantly dealing with the multiple cookie sheets. 

I should also probably tell y'all that I have been craving s'mores like its my job lately. Not the chocolate, not the graham cracker, but mainly the ooey gooey goodness of a warm marshmallow. 

The combination of these two necessities lead to…S'Mores Bars. 

S'Mores Bars

1 stick of butter

1 egg

1 1/2 cup brown sugar 

1 Tb. vanilla extract

1 cup flour

5 graham crackers roughly chopped

1-2 cup marshmallows 

1 cup chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350

Melt butter in a microwave-safe bowl 

Wait to let the butter slightly cool--so that the egg won't scramble and the choco chips won't melt

Whisk in the egg, brown sugar, and vanilla 

Add in the flour and stir until just combined

Add in graham cracker, marshmallows, chocolate chips

Pour batter into greased pan 

Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until film and mallows are golden

Allow bars to cool for 30 minutes before slicing 

Regarding the s'mores ingredients, I didn't really measure anything. I just grabbed some crackers and broke them with my hands so they were in bite size pieces. With the chips, I had so many half open bags laying around so I did a mix of semi sweet, milk, dark, mini…it really doesn't matter since they all melt together anyways. And for the marshmallows, in all honesty I probably added closer to 3 cups of mallows, but I seriously can never get enough of those suckers. 

The point is, it really doesn't matter. My advice, just add the most of whatever is your favorite…and then add a little more. 

The hardest part…you neeed to wait to cut these bad boys. Their ooey gooey warmness will make it nearly impossible to cut semi-cleanly (trust me, I tried). But since I was in a hurry I put the pan in the freezer for 15 minutes to speed up the process. I am having bloggers remorse right now because I never got a shot of the bars while they were cut, so that I could show how everything melts all together. 

Ahhh..my mouth is watering. 

Without a doubt, these deserve an "I can't". Because I just can't stop eating them. 

Mid-week Mexican

Since season is in full swing in the fall, it's a rare occasion that I am able to cook for myself. However, with a day off I was able to plan something for dinner. Now I knew I wanted to do something with the chicken and veggies I had, and most importantly something warm!! Let me tell you, it is fah-reezing here in Iowa City, when I woke up it was 21 feels like 11...brrrrrr. 

Since I was missing my Texas warmth and the delicious Mexican food, I decided to go with fajitas, well...something like fajitas. I only had bell peppers and zucchini on hand, and since it was beyond miserable outside I decided to nix the onion and just go with what I had. 

"Fa-gee-tas"

Cut zucchini into bite size pieces

Slice bell pepper and chicken (or beef) into thin strips

Mince a clove of garlic 

(This is where I was lacking onions, feel free to add them or anything else)

Toss veggies into a hot skillet with a little oil, S&P

Cook for about 5 minutes, then add chicken

(I preseasoned my protein with chili powder, cumin, and oregano)

Cover and let cook for about another 5

Add 1/2-2/3 cup of Rotel tomatoes to the skillet and let simmer 

Add any additional spices and continue to simmer until any liquid is gone. 

(I added some hot chili powder for a little more heat)

S&P to taste 

I just added a wheat tortilla to make mini fajitas out of the veggie/chicken combo. 

My favorite part of this meal was how the chicken turned out, it was really juicy and held onto all the flavors that were incorporated. 

Nothing special, but I just love being able to pick things out of the fridge and experiment with spices and techniques to get something a little different each time. I'm still learning to be a pro in the kitchen, but practice makes perfect and I am definitely enjoying the practice...and the taste testings!

The good things

Another weekend of home games, which means the parents are back in Iowa City! I'm lucky enough that I get to see my parents about every two weeks due to my schedule this year.

Having the rents in town is a triple threat: great times, grocery shopping, and great food. No shocker here, but everyone in my family is a big foodie. My rents and I have decided that for our lunch meet ups we have to try somewhere we haven't been before.

So on Friday since it was just Dad and I, we decided to try Iron Hawk. Now I have to admit, I was a little bit skeptical that it wouldn't live up to the high standards the Bedell's have for food. Iron Hawk is just one of the many bars downtown, however they are all about pork...which is exactly what Dave loves. They get their pork from Brenneman Pork Inc. which is a local Iowa company.

Dad decided to go with their biggest pork specialty: breaded pork tenderloin sandwich. We joked that mom would be jealous especialllly because it could be dipped in buffalo sauce...let me tell you my mom loves anything that makes her sweat because it's so damn hot.

We also got a kick out of the bun to pork ratio...I don't know how they expected anyone to eat this like a classic sammy.

I went with the pulled pork po' boy. It had pulled pork, with bacon and cole slaw on this buttery thin bun. We both were pleasantly surprised with our meals, however Dave couldn't finish tackling the massive pork.

You know how we said we like to try somewhere different for lunch? Well that is not the case for post-game meals, Mondo's and Backpocket are our staples for late night eats. For Friday night we went with Mondo's. It's easy to grab a seat at the bar, and my rents enjoy the selections on tap.

I have been addicted to anything Salmon lately, so it's a no brainer that I got the salmon salad. I don't only love this salad for the salmon, but it has, wait for it...goat cheese. Jon always makes fun of me, because I will probably eat anything with goat cheese on it. Salmon, goat cheese, sautéed onions, and a light vinaigrette, this salad is an A++ for me.

Saturday came around and my parents headed to the football game. I was busy getting ready for my game, so I didn't catch up with them until after my game. My ma had the great idea of ordering Backpocket Togo, so I just met up with them in their hotel room. If you saw the last the good things 
you read about the description of the Produce Pie and the Tatonka, but I actually remembered to take
pictures this time!!

Produce Pie: gooey mozzarella and fresh veggies

Tatonka: buffalo chicken with celery and bleu cheese

Beer Cheese. This is just spicy beer cheese with slices of brick-fired bread.

Let me tell y'all, the bread and crust from this place is ahh-mazing. I even had to slap Dad's hand away so I could snap a picture before we devoured all of this.

Sunday morning came around and we decided to go for a healthy breakfast due to all the greasy eats.

We toasted up some Ezekiel bread, fried up some Canadian bacon, sautéed some spinach, mushrooms, and green onions, and cracked some eggs and scrambled it all together. This was surprisingly filling and really good!

Well that's another edition of The Good Things, it was full of delectable food and as usual great laughs and love with the parentals.

The countdown for 2 weeks begins!

Eggs in Clouds

Well it's safe to say that my senioritis is in full blast. Having no class on Thursday is amazing, but being able to lay in bed until noon without a single worry other than if I missed the re-runs of How I Met Your Mother is dangerous…and a little sad.

So after taking the liberty to sleep in late I decided to get in the kitchen. I always try to finish off my food before the parents come in so that I don't have food go to waste when I get a whole new batch of groceries.

My kale was the first to go, so I went with kale chips.

Kale Chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Toss the cleaned kale in some olive oil.
Sprinkle with the seasonings of choice
(I went with garlic powder, paprika and s&p)
Bake for 15 minutes or until crispy

Next up was something I had just seen on Pinterest the night before and was eager to try it out. Let's call it "Eggs in Clouds".

Eggs in Clouds
2 eggs
Grated Parmesan cheese
S&P

Preheat oven to 450 degrees
Start off with separating the egg yolks from the whites, but save the yolks…or yoke in this case!
Beat the egg whites until they make stiff peaks. Now let me tell you, don't flatter yourself and think that you can do this by hand. I didn't think it would be that hard, but after a few minutes and a long burn in my arm I called it quits and switched over to the electric mixer.

Fold the cheese into the egg whites. Spoon the egg whites onto a greased baking sheet and make a mound in the middle. Bake for three minutes.

Plop that left over yoke in the middle of the mound and sprinkle with salt and pepp. Place it back in the oven for 2-3 minutes or until the yoke is done to your fancy.

The egg whites get this bread like texture and was salty and yummy with the parmesan cheese.
It was safe to say this lunch was a winner in my books, tasty and healthy!

Don't worry I counteracted all of my healthy with a butt-load of choco chips, rice krispies, and froyo.

I'm okay with it, it's Halloween  :)

The good things

I'm copycatting Erin's "Weekend Update" with more words than pictures... I forgot to take pictures of two yummy meals this weekend and was bummed out after I realized it with a cleaned plate sitting in front of me. I am still getting use to this whole blogging thing. And let's be honest, I love to talk.

Regardless of the missing pictures, this week was full of good times with friends, family and of course food. The boy was in town for work so he was ready to have some of his old cravings and I didn't hesitate to tag along.

Our first stop was Formosa. 

My Eel roll

Jon's Vegas Rolls

I have to admit, I did end up getting one of those Vegas roll on Jon's plate. I definitely had eater's remorse. 

The next day I met up with Jon, his coworker Brice and some of our friends while they got some boots. Now if you have ever seen Beerfest, these are the boots straight out of the movie.

 I had a few good laughs when people got splashed in the face by "the bubble". 

Like usual, time flew by and it was time for Jon and Brice headed back to Chicago the next day. Luckily  my parents were just getting in a few hours after the guys left. My mom was in need of fulfilling Short's burger craving, which you can't blame her. Once you've had one of these bad boys you can't really resist. So I met up with my rents to grab some Shorts for lunch. Although my tastebuds were watering for the Dundee (a burger with cheese, bacon and a fried egg...amazing), I knew that wasn't the greatest idea for a pre-game meal so I went with the chicken sandwich with peppers and onions. I do have to say it did not disappoint and I didn't hesitate to eat up all of my fries too. 

After the game I met up with the rents and g-rents at another favorite Iowa City joint, BackPocket Brewery. Its a little micro-brew with brick stone oven pizzas. Small fact about me, I could eat pizza for every meal and have finished multiple pizzas on my own...not personal size. But I have to admit I am quite the pizza snob and these pizzas live up to the criticism. They are on the smaller side so we got two to share. We decided to go with the Produce Pie, which is just a bunch of vegg on some gooey mozzarella and the Tatonka, a buffalo chicken pizza with bleu cheese and a little celery for crunch. Let me tell you, I am beyond upset that I forgot to take a picture of these bad boys because they are just so damn good.

Sunday morning the rents came over to make a some breakfast before they had to head back to the great state of Texas.

We looked for turkey sausage at the grocery store with no luck, so my mom decided to go with chorizo. My ma cooked some eggs sunny side up (my favorite) and layered it onto of the chorizo which was on a piece of ezeikel bread. It was so good, I love chorizo and love even more the smell that lingers when you cook chorizo. yumm.

I didn't have much action in the kitchen this week, however I am totally okay with letting other people do the work and just having to devour the food. I would love to try a new little place daily but I don't think my waistline or my wallet would enjoy that as much as I would. 

That's it for the good things this week! 

Pumpkin time

Even though I am trying to be better in the kitchen as a cook, I have to say my skills thrive when it comes to baking. This is probably because when I cook I have to follow recipes to a tee and that's pretty much all baking is! The problem is I am obsessed with sweets, I coined the term "I can put down the sweets" because well, I can do exactly that. So when I found out the boyfriend and his coworker were coming to town I jumped on the opportunity to bake a bunch of goodies.

Here is my setup for my baking filled morning. My absolute dream in life is to have a setup like Giada and have all those little containers filled with everything that a baker could ever desire. Ahh a girl can dream!! 

Both of these baked goodies are pumpkin based, so if you are not a loyal pumpkin lover like me then just go away now....and please never come back. I'm kidding, but seriously, how can you not absolutely loveeee pumpkin?!

Let's start off with the banana bread, I decided to make the loaf into muffins just so it was easier to share and I don't mind the opportunity to be able to taste test one...or two. 

The concoction is a mix of my sister, Erin's skinny banana bread recipe and another website's recipe I found for pumpkin banana bread. Greek yogurt is an easy substitute for oil and/or butter. I also realized halfway through my mixing that I accidentally doubled up the pumpkin but that was okay with me. And a constant habit of mine across the board with baking is always adding a little more vanilla extract than called for, but thats a minor crime that never hurts anybody.   

Pumpkin Banana Bread/Muffins 

1 cup sugar (but I substituted for baking Splenda)

2 eggs

2 ripe bananas, mashed 

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1/2 cup pumpkin purée

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda and baking powder

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven at 350 degrees

Beat the sugar and eggs

Add in bananas through vanilla 

In another bowl combine the dry ingredients (flour through cinnamon)

Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet one!

Grease loaf pan or muffin pan and pop in the oven!

Loaf bake for about 50-55 minutes

Muffins bake for about 20-25 minutes

After those were finished off, I started the pumpkin cookies. Now these are a little less healthy due to the butt-load of chocolate chips...but once again, Im okay with it. 

Now the recipes for these two are very similar so thats why I added a lot of those little pieces of heaven and also added oats to give the cookies a different texture.

Don't worry, I taste tested the dough and it did not disappoint, so I popped those in the oven. Well after batch one finished off I put batch two in the oven and I couldn't help but try myself a gooey warm chocolatey cookie....so good. I may or may not have continued to eat three total to sum up my nutritious lunch of pumpkin baked goods, I just couldn't say no. Could you?

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup canned pumpkin purée

1/2 cup Sugar (Splenda)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup oil (Greek yogurt)

1 egg

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 cups flour

1 cup oats

2 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon nutmeg 

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 (ish) cups chocolate chip 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Mix pumpkin purée through vanilla

Combine flour through baking soda

Slowly add dry ingredients to the wet ones and then mix in the chocolate chips, or any chip of choice. 

Grease baking sheet

Plop a spoonful size of cookie ( they don't really spread so don't worry about them being too close together)

Bake for about 9 minutes 

By the looks of this, you could probably say that I went a little bit over board with the baking. After all of my taste tests I boxed up most of it for the boy and co. and bagged up the rest for the team since I knew keeping them around were way too dangerous for my waistline. It seemed like the team liked them too so it was another win-win for me! 

Until next time.