from my kitchen. Simply prepare a boxed chocolate cake mix, allow cupcakes to cool, and use a pastry bag and tip to fill cupcakes with vanilla buttercream.

Topped with chocolate ganache: add 1/2c scalded milk to bowl containing 8 oz. finely chopped dark chocolate and whisk.
Note: the hot milk didn’t melt all my chocolate, so I set the bowl over a pan of boiling water for just a minute to two to finish melting the chocolate.

I brought them in for the co-workers and they indicated they liked them-hope they weren’t just trying to be nice. Anyway, I got one, “tastes like a Yodel,” and one “tastes like a Ding Dong.”

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Back when I lived in Boston the gang and I usually made a stop at the Delux Cafe at least once a week. If we ate, I always had the chips and fruit salsa — this is my homage to those nights of little bites and cheap drinks in a smoky bar.

1/2 red onion finely chopped
1 clove garlic finely minced
1 jalapeño pepper finely chopped (remove seeds for less heat)
1 small apple finely chopped
1 plum or nectarine finely choped
1 cup red grapes halved
2 or 3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro
juice of about 1/2 lime
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients and store in the fridge for a few hours before eating to allow all the flavors to marry. I like to serve with freshly fried flour tortilla wedges.

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This is my version of a recipe from Vegetarian Times from 1995 or ‘96. I don’t have the issue, but this is how I’ve been making it the last few years.

1 cup apple juice
1 onion chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 jalapeño chopped
4 or 5 stalks celery, chopped
28 oz. can tomatoes, chopped
2 cups vegetable broth
28 oz. can black beans
28 oz. can red beans
2 cups frozen corn
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon cumin
¼ cup honey
Salt and pepper
Monterey jack or cheddar cheese, grated
Sour cream

Sauté onion, garlic and jalapeño in apple juice until tender, about 5 minutes. Add chopped celery and cook another 5 – 10 minutes until tender.

Add in all other ingredients (except for cheese and sour cream) and bring to a boil, then let simmer for about 30 minutes.

Serve hot topped with grated cheese and dollop of sour cream.

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Have you noticed the frequency of ads from the Idaho Potato Commission? I have. The commission and I go way back.

Back in my fourth grade English class led by Mrs. Gage we were tasked with mastering the business letter. In order to keep our little minds engaged (back before Ritalin) and make the assignment more personal, she gave us the opportunity to send a business letter to any organization of our choosing.

In 1984, in a fourth grade classroom in Rochester, NY, both the Kirk Cameron and Michael Jackson Fan Clubs were by far the most popular destinations for our handwritten letters. Girls with big, curly hair practiced their swirly cursive in letters asking for autographed photos from the stars du jour. The size of my hair may have matched the rest, but my little grey cells understood the finicky nature of fame. What if my star was out of style by the time I received a response? No doubt that would kill my own social status among the group.

I chose to send a letter to the Idaho Potato Commission asking for recipes. Perhaps it was at that moment that my fate was sealed and I was started down the foodie path. In six to eight weeks when the rest of the class brought in big envelopes with glossy photos, I proudly showed-off my folded brochure touting the health benefits of the Idaho potato.

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I adapted this recipe from one of my favorite Food Network hosts, George Duran.

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cake flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

Pre-heat oven to 350 degreesIn mixer, beat butter until smooth. Slowly beat in white and brown sugar until mixture is light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs 1 at a time. Then add in vanilla and pumpkin puree.

In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.

Slowly beat flour mixture into the wet batter. Stir in the nuts and chocolate chips. Scoop the cookie dough by heaping tablespoons onto silpat lined cookie sheets. Bake for 15  minutes.

What did I change from the original recipe? I used a combination of AP flour and cake flour to make sure the dough stayed tender. I also substituted semisweet chips in place of the milk chocolate. The cookie is fairly sweet and the milk chocolate chips overpowered the cookie the first time I made these. I also added nuts.

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After doing a tiny bit of research on how to make my own beignets, I realized there are two varieties; yeast and no yeast. Does anyone know if one recipe is more “authentic” than the other?

I’ll have to do some digging on the history and current variations.

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I started off the new year in the kitchen — frying up beignets. We found Cafe du Monde mix in the grocery store and thought I’d give them a try.

I only ate at Cafe du Monde once and that was back in 2000, but from what I remember, the cafe’s beignets were a bit lighter and fluffier. I tried not to overmix the dough, and I made sure the oil was hot enough. But, it was just a mix. Perhaps I’ll try to make a batch from scratch–but not today!

Or perhaps we should take a quick weekend trip down to New Orleans to do some comparative tasting.

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