Posts tagged ‘chocolate’

May 6th, 2013

Chocolate Coconut Almond Meal Cookies

by Lauren

almondcookie

Chris and I saw Billy Elliot on Broadway this weekend and loved it. I couldn’t believe what an amazingly talented dancer this little twelve year old was. Is everyone on Broadway this amazing? Perhaps I’m out of the Broadway loop.

It gave me a whole new outlook on dedication though. This kid has given up a “normal” childhood to follow his dream. What a sacrifice. It sure is paying off though, he was incredible. His dancing and singing were as good as any adult in the show who had been practicing their whole lives.

Who knew a twelve year old could give you such a kick in the pants. A new level of chasing down what you want and diving in head first.

almondcookie4

That had nothing to do with cookies, I just wanted to fill you in on some LYK musings of late.

With all the almond milk we’ve been making we have loads of almond meal left over.

I’d been searching for something to use it on and these cookies were the without-a-doubt winner. I’m some what of a chocolate/coconut combo addict.

almondcookie1

While this is not an original recipe, I felt compelled to share it with you because it was that good.

After an epic fail with a lemon tart this weekend I didn’t have the guts to try and transform another recipe that requires baking.

Give these a try this week. They are really quick, healthy(ish), delicious, and a great way to put a smile on some family, friends or coworkers faces.

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This recipe is by Minimalist Baker and adapted from the Sprouted Kitchen Cookbook.

I just couldn’t resist.

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From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Lauren

February 26th, 2013

Fluffy Chocolate Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

by Chrissy

Fluffy Chocolate Cupcakes w Cream Cheese Frosting_LYK2

These sweet little engagement party cupcakes were such a hit with our friends. And yes, they are as good as they look! Probably even better, since me + a pastry bag of frosting = a little bit sketchy.

My sister has already requested them for her baby shower, next month.

Apparently, we do catering now. Keep it rollin’. We take requests. We just need to work on the space issue. After all, we do reside in a very little…yellow…kitchen.

Fluffy Chocolate Cupcakes w Cream Cheese Frosting_LYK1

The great thing about these mini cupcakes, is that they are really much easier to make than you would think!

If we are being really honest here–which we will be–when it comes to baking cakes and cupcakes, Lauren and I tend to go the lazy route and buy a box of cake mix (gasp!).

I mean, we usually doctor them up, but it’s still slightly embarrassing to admit.

Now that I am confident in the end result for these tasty morsels of chocolatey, cream cheesy goodness, I’ll have to wave goodbye to that box of Duncan Hines.

Promise. :)

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Fluffy Chocolate Cupcakes: recipe via Joy the Baker

*Little Yellow Note: this recipe makes a big batch, so halve the recipe if you don’t want to make a billion. For mini cupcakes, only fill the liner halfway with batter. You can also make regular-sized cupcakes, filling them 3/4 of the way full.

 

Cream Cheese Frosting

Print Recipe!

Makes 3 1/2 cups frosting (covers about 75 mini cupcakes, or about 2 dozen regular cupcakes)

Ingredients:

1 stick (1/2 cup) of butter, softened

2 ½ packages of cream cheese, softened (8 oz packages)

2 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted

2 tsps vanilla extract

small pinch of salt

decorations (I used, edible pearls, gold sprinkles, and yellow iridescent dust.)

 

Directions:

Cream the butter and cream cheese, both softened at room temperature, beating for about 1 minute on medium high speed. Slowly add the sifted powdered sugar, beating on a slow speed until incorporated. Add vanilla extract and a small pinch of salt and beat on medium-high speed until fully mixed and slightly fluffy and smooth. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes, before frosting your completely cooled cupcakes. Pipe or smooth on with a knife and add desired decorations. If making them ahead of time, keep in the fridge, and pull them out an hour before serving.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

January 9th, 2013

The Marine Room {preview of San Diego Restaurant Week}

by Chrissy

San Diego Restaurant Week is hitting the scene again from January 13-18 and you locals won’t want to miss it! Check out the site to see the participating restaurants and make your reservations.

We had the pleasure to preview The Marine Room, and here is the recap of our exquisite dinning experience.

***

At the end of the day, sometimes it’s hard to find true relaxation; even when we step out of the kitchen and go eat elsewhere, worries and responsibilities seem to come along for the ride.  I’ll admit that this happens more times than not, with a busy schedule and a lengthy to-do list. When we are always on the go, it’s hard to slow down even when we are in the perfect setting to do so.

 

The Marine Room provides just the atmosphere for guests to truly enjoy their time away from routine, while sharing good conversation over an impeccable meal.

 

These dishes are so creatively built. Before digging in we couldn’t help but admire the beauty of what was placed before us. As we began to work through the food, we would uncover various components, which had been neatly tucked behind the main attraction or carefully nestled underneath a delicate garnish. It was like uncovering gold, only better because you could eat it.

 

Due to Lauren’s current situation, my friend, Brittany, joined me for dinner. We both melted over the following dishes…

To start, we had the Mushroom Torte and the Humboldt Fog brûlée.

Trumpet Mushroom Torte {white asparagus, artichoke, truffle, royal ambrosante sherry}

The torte was a completely unique way of enjoying mushrooms and was richly blanketed in a sherry sauce that was to-die for.

Cypress Grove Humboldt Fog Brulee {butter lettuce, squaw crisp, Angelino plum coulis, chestnut agridolc dressing}

This is probably the only kind of brûlée that I will ever eat, from now on. Very few words were spoken at the table once I cracked through the sugary brûléed top. Simply amazing.

 

We moved onto the entrees, of which we both chose Chef’s Specials. Fancy that!

Sesame Togarashi Crusted Ruby Ahi Tuna {avocado fritter, black thai rice, harvest corn, honshimeji, white port pomegranate reduction}

Ever so lightly seared, this rare hunk of ahi melted in my mouth. The black thai sticky rice was subtly sweet and paired perfectly with the pomegranate sauce and sesame ahi. Fried avocado? Yes, please!

Neptune’s Trilogy {Maine lobster tail, diver scallops, wild prawns, mochi rice, persimmons, la quercia prosciutto, elysium black muscat essence}

The plate was fit for King Triton a king. A perfect seafood trio, you couldn’t possibly want anything else in life. The mochi rice was packed with flavor and the surrounding moat of sauce was lovely with the buttery lobster.

Luckily, we saved an inch of room for dessert and, naturally, we asked our server to point us in a chocolaty direction.

Feuillentine Gianduja Crunch Pyramid {Rose Pomegranate Consommé, Griottine, Pistachio Tuile}

I’ll tell you, this was a one chocolate champion of a dessert. A pyramid of dense chocolate with a hazelnut crunch and fruit accents to round it all out, wrapped up our night of sheer food coma bliss.

After a couple hours of relaxing, eating, and truly enjoying what each dish had to offer, we agreed that Marine Room is the place that you can sit and linger at — without asking promptly for the check. On the contrary, with the best seat in the house, watching the ebb and flow of the night tide from inside the cozy candle-lit dining room, we were quite content.

From the Little Yellow Kitchen,

Chrissy

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