Cooking Fiesta

Ever since we were in elementary school, we have both loved being in the kitchen. From watching our dad throw spices into a steaming pot of soup without using a recipe, to helping our mom sprinkle sea salt on her famous chocolate chip cookies, to taking cooking camps and classes. There is something so special about following your first recipe and preparing your first family dinner, with the guidance of a few trusted cooks. We have both been fortunate enough to work alongside several talented chefs and bakers after working as culinary assistants at Marcel’s Culinary Experience in Glen Ellyn. From learning to perfect French macarons to a week of exploring cuisines around the world, we have learned many tips and tricks from helping with a few of the many classes Marcel’s offers. Inspired by the chef’s at Marcel’s to share our love of cooking and learning with others, we were beyond excited when a family friend asked us to host a cooking class for a group of 8-11 year old girls. 

Our fiesta tablescape!

When the girls suggested a Mexican theme, Mary and I were so excited to select some great recipes for one of our favorite cuisines. We both love Hispanic food and culture, and had a hard time picking out menu items from the many great options. An authentic Mexican meal wouldn't be complete without chips, salsa, and guacamole, so we decided to make a homemade pico de gallo salsa and homemade guacamole to start. It was so fun for the girls to practice their knife skills chopping up all the necessary ingredients. After finishing the salsa and guacamole, we prepared crock-pot chicken tacos with all the proper taco fix-ins. Cooking the chicken the night before allowed the chicken to soak up the flavor and created the perfect tenderness for the chicken to shred easily.

Excellent knife skills!

For a fun and festive "dessert," we made homemade cinnamon sugar tortilla chips with a strawberry, kiwi, and mango salsa. To make the chips, we simply cut flour tortillas into small chip-sized wedges, coated them in butter and cinnamon sugar, and baked the chips at 350 degrees for about 8-10 minutes. 

Here are the salsa and guacamole recipes!

Homemade Salsa

Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy

Ingredients

• 6 ripe Roma tomatoes, diced
• 1 (14.5 oz) can petite diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
• 2 green onions
• 1/3 cup chopped red onion
• 1 sliced jalapeno pepper with seeds removed (can use less if you prefer more mild salsa)
• 1/3 cup fresh cilantro
• 1 large clove garlic, sliced
• 2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 1/2 tsp. chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. ground cumin
• 1/2 tsp. granulated sugar
• salt and pepper, to taste

Cooking Directions

1. Finely chop veggies and pour into a mixing bowl.
2. Add canned tomatos, lime juice, chili powder, cumin and season with salt and pepper to taste and stir. Serve with tortilla chips. Store in refrigerator up to 1 week.   *Remove seeds for less heat or omit pepper if you don't like spicy foods

Homemade Guacamole

Recipe adapted from Cooking Classy 

Ingredients

• 4 ripe Hass avocados, seeded and scooped from peel
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. finely chopped red onion
• 1 large Roma tomato, diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
• 1-3 pinches cayenne pepper, optional
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Cooking Directions

1. Partially mash avocados with a fork in a large bowl, pour lime juice over top and continue to mash to reach desired consistency. Transfer to a mixing bowl.
2. Run chopped red onions under cold water (to remove harsh bite from onion), drain well and add onions to avocado mixture, along with diced tomato, garlic, cilantro, cayenne pepper and season with salt and pepper to taste, stir to combine.

Berry Good Summer Day

Whenever we have a beautiful summer day with nothing on our schedules, Mary and I love coming up with fun summer adventures to make the most of the long days in our short summer. While we've been on many summer adventures this season from days at the lake to city trips to afternoons at the pool, we realized we were missing out on one classic summer activity― berry picking. While we missed our opportunity for strawberry picking in June, we discovered that now is the perfect time for picking raspberries. After finding a berry farm about an hour away (Stade's Farm and Market in McHenry, IL), we embarked on our adventure and ended up choosing a berry good day for picking with our friends!

While the weather was very hot and many of the bushes were growing wild (and were quite prickly!), the raspberry picking conditions were excellent and we all ended up with overflowing baskets of beautiful berries. Everyone had such a great time digging through the bushes and hunting for only the best berries. It was so fun to watch the kids yell in excitement as they disappeared amongst the wild bushes and emerged with a handful of perfect berries. While we all ended up covered in raspberries and had one or two scratches from the prickly thorns, we had the best time laughing and enjoying our berry picking adventure.  

Hunting for the best berries!

Of course, coming home with a pint of gorgeous, fresh-picked raspberries meant we would surely be making a delicious raspberry dessert. After looking at all kinds of recipes from bars to crisps to cupcakes to crumbles, we decided on a new recipe― a raspberry buckle.

A buckle is like an inverted crisp or cobbler, where the fruit is baked on top, rather than underneath the topping. Once the buckle goes into the oven, the cake bakes up around the raspberries, trapping the tartness of the fresh berries in the sweet cake of the buckle.

The buckle batter is made with often on-hand ingredients, and is so quick and easy to whip up. After you make the batter and cover the top with a pint of fresh berries, the rest of the magic happens in the oven.

After the buckle is finished baking, you can see how the berries become hidden inside the sweet cake, resulting in bites of tart raspberry surprises. There is a perfect balance between sweet and tart, and the buckle really showcases the flavor of the fresh berries. We used this great recipe adapted from Martha Stewart. 

Raspberry Buckle

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, plus more for baking dish
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 pint raspberries
• Confectioner's sugar for dusting, optional

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 2-quart oval or square baking dish. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition to combine. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, salt, and baking powder; with mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture until incorporated.
2. Spread batter in baking dish. Scatter raspberries on top. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of cake comes out clean and top is golden brown, 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool 20 minutes; dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired. With a large spoon, scoop out onto serving plates; serve with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream, if desired.

If you're looking for a fun summer day trip, berry picking is such a fun activity, and can give you an excuse to whip up a delicious fruit dessert! We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!

Flour Bakery's Famous Banana Bread

When Mary and I decided on attending college in Boston, we were both excited to explore the many amazing things Boston has to offer. Of course, high up on our list of things to do was to explore the Boston food scene, from trying fresh New England seafood to visiting unique cafés and bakeries.

One of the first places on our must-visit list was Flour Bakery, a bakery/cafe known for their famous baked goods. Prior to visiting, we had seen Flour featured in many different magazines, food blogs, and even on the Food Network. Ever since we saw Flour Bakery featured on the show "The Best Thing I Ever Ate," (featured for chef Bobby Flay's favorite Sticky Buns) we have wanted to visit the famous Boston bakery and sample some of their delicious treats. Owner and Harvard graduate Joanne Chang knows how to build a successful business from the ground up, as she changed paths after pursuing a degree in Mathematics and Economics to enter the culinary world. Flour currently has four locations and is continuing to expand in the Boston area. 

Made with a few key ingredients, including creme fraiche and of course very ripe bananas, Flour’s Famous Banana Bread has become one of our very favorites. We have sampled it several times from the bakery itself, and if you follow this recipe, you can re-create that same delicious flavor of the dense, yet moist bread in your own kitchen. 

We own two great Flour Bakery cookbooks which feature many of their delicious recipes!

After spending a year in Boston, we have come to love Flour bakery for much more than their delicious banana bread. Nothing on their diverse menu will disappoint, from their artisan salads, sandwiches on freshly baked bread, breakfast options, and of course baked goods. Over the course of the year in Boston, we visited three out of the four Flour locations, and made sure to stop at Flour each time a friend or relative came to visit. Mary even attended a special cookbook signing event (for the book Baking with Less Sugar) where she met Joanne Chang, the owner of Flour.

If you're ever in Boston and looking for a great spot for breakfast or lunch (or even just a baked treat!), Flour bakery should definitely be high up on your list! And if you're visiting between the months of September to May, you may even see us there!

Flour Bakery's Famous Banana Bread

Recipe by Flour Bakery Cookbook

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 3 medium/large ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
• 2 tablespoons creme fraiche (greek yogurt can also be substituted)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray two 8x4-inch loaf pans with floured cooking spray, or grease and flour the pans; set aside.
2. To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or large mixing bowl and electric mixer) add the eggs, sugar, and beat on medium-high speed until smooth, well-combined, and mixture is golden yellow in color, about 4 to 5 minutes.
3. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and with the mixer running on low speed, slowly drizzle in the oil. Don't dump it all in at once. Beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the bananas, sour cream, vanilla, and beat on medium-high speed until combined, about 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Stop, scrape down the sides of the bowl, and add the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and beat on low speed until just combined, about 1 minute.
6. Turn batter out into prepared pan(s), smoothing the tops lightly with a spatula if necessary, and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes, or until tops are domed, set, a toothpick inserted in the center crack comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs but no batter. Optionally, in the last 5 to 10 minutes of baking, tent pans with foil (loosely drape a sheet of foil over pans) to prevent excessive browning on the top and sides of bread before center cooks through.
7. Remove pans from oven and allow to them to cool on top of a wire rack for about 15 to 30 minutes before turning out onto rack to cool completely. Bread will keep airtight at room temperature for up to 1 week or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

Enjoy, 

Baked Pears and Blueberries

What a better way to make use of ripe fruit than to whip up a delicious baked crisp! After cleaning and organizing the fridge this weekend, we found that we had quite a few pears that were getting ripe, as well as plenty of fresh blueberries. Scrolling through recipe upon recipe on Pinterest, we found this Baked Pear and Blueberries recipe that seemed to be the perfect sweet yet healthy solution. Filled with fresh fruit and topped with a sprinkle of whole wheat crumble, this recipe combines the juicy baked fruit with an added crunch from the topping. It is quick to throw together and makes for the perfect brunch side or fruity treat. 

Pears and Blueberries before the addition of the crumble!

Ready for the oven!

Beautiful baked pears and blueberries! 

To turn this into more of a dessert, serve the warm fruit alongside homemade whipped cream and vanilla bean ice cream for the perfect summer sweet! This is a great, easy recipe that we know you'll want to add to your summer recipe collection! 

Baked Pears and Blueberries

Recipe by Cheeky Kitchen 

Ingredients

• 6 ripe Bartlett or Anjou pears
• 2 pints fresh blueberries
• 1/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar or coconut palm sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• Handful chopped almonds or pecans (optional) 

Cooking Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 
2. Peel and core pears, then cut into slices. 
3. Coat bottom of large baking pan with butter, cooking spray or coconut oil. 
4. Place sliced pears into bottom of pan and sprinkle evenly with blueberries. 
5. In a small bowl, use fork to combine flour, sugar, butter and spices until crumbly. Sprinkle crumb mixture over pears and blueberries. 
6. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until crumble is golden brown and pears and blueberries are soft.

Enjoy,

Blueberry Pecan Galette

Yesterday, when I (Hannah) first set eyes on the cover of the latest Bon Appetit magazine, I knew I had another summer baking adventure ahead of me. Though I made (and sampled) quite a number of fancy treats over the past weekend, I couldn't get past the picture of the gorgeous blueberry pecan galette bursting with fresh summer berries and topped with a dollop of vanilla ice cream. I wanted to save the recipe for the next special occasion, but they say every day is a special occasion, right? That was enough inspiration for me, so I decided I'd make it today.

Lucky for me, we happened to have all the galette ingredients on hand, including some beautiful blueberries at peak ripeness. Overall, the recipe is very simple, and you likely won't even need a trip to the store to whip up this summery dessert! 

The crust is similar to a simple galette crust with the addition of lightly toasted pecans. The toasted pecans give the crust a rich, nutty flavor, and the butter gives it the perfect melt-in-your-mouth texture. While the recipe calls for one cup of white flour, I used half white flour and half whole wheat pastry flour, which really added to the earthy, nutty flavor! The recipe also recommends chilling the dough at least an hour, and while I usually tend to make the dough far in advance, this time I let the dough chill for about 1.5 hours and it still turned out great! After you finish the dough and let it chill for a while, the rest of the recipe is very easy and takes very little time. 

After chilling the dough and coating the blueberries with a mixture of cornstarch, lemon juice, and sugar, you roll out the dough and place the blueberries in a mound in the center. Now is where you create the traditional galette shape by folding the dough over the edges and overlapping slightly over the blueberries.

After about 35-40 minutes, the galette had turned a perfect golden brown color and the blueberries turned a beautiful dark purple. The accidental blueberry "lava" spilling down the sides gave the galette some nice character and really showcases the juicy berries! 

Overall, this recipe is a perfect summer treat that would sure be a hit at your next barbecue, family gathering, or if you're like me, just because! With some vanilla ice cream, it's the perfect way to celebrate summer flavors. 

Blueberry Pecan Galette

Recipe by Bon Appetit

Ingredients

•     1/2 cup pecans
•     1/2 cup all purpose flour
•     1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
•     2 teaspoons sugar, for crust
•     1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
•     1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
•     1/2 cup chilled unsalted butter, cut into pieces
•     12 ounces (about 2 cups) blueberries
•     1 tablespoon cornstarch
•     1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
•     1/4 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
•     2 tablespoons milk

Cooking Directions
 
       For the dough:                  

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Toast pecans on a rimmed baking sheet, tossing once, until fragrant and slightly darkened, 10-15 minutes; let cool.             
2. Pulse pecans in food processor until consistency of coarse meal. Add flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon and pulse to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with a few pieces remaining.          
3. Transfer to a large bowl; drizzle with 4 tablespoons ice water and mix, adding another tablespoonful of ice water as needed, just until mixture comes together. Gently pat dough into a 6"-diameter disk. Wrap in plastic and chill at least 1 hour.          

For the assembly:             

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Toss blueberries, cornstarch, lemon juice and 1/4 cup sugar in a large bowl.           
2. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to a 12" round. Carefully transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Mound blueberries in center of dough, leaving a 2" border. Fold edges over, overlapping slightly. Brush dough with milk and sprinkle with sugar.           
3. Bake galette until crust is dark golden brown and filling is bubbling, 40-45 minutes. Let cool before serving. Serve warm with ice cream (highly suggested).       

         Bon appetite! 

Sweets and Treats Forever

Fourth of July is another holiday where expectations are high for our festive desserts. Our town throws a spectacular Fourth of July celebration each year with a parade, fireworks, and lots of fun parties where we are always asked to bring a festive sweet treat! We love our tried and true classic desserts but also like to spice it up each year with something new. This year, trying something new came to the tune of making not just a handful of treats for two or three parties, but making a whopping 126 cupcakes and a beautiful berry trifle!

Mary and I were so excited when we saw that one of our favorite baking accessory companies, Meri Meri, had fun and festive cupcake kits perfect for the Fourth of July! We were lucky to find them at two stores nearby—Sur La Table and Paper Source (on sale here)— so snatched them up before the big day. The cupcake kits came with cupcake liners and the cutest silver sparkly star cupcake toppers, and we found another fun and patriotic cupcake kit from Wilton. Once we picked out the liners and toppers we wanted to be sure the cupcakes themselves were just as festive, and of course great tasting. 

As you can see from the photo, we decided to go with a red, white and blue swirl buttercream icing. You might be wondering how we created the perfect color swirl without the colors running together making a light purple mess. The past few years when we have made similar cupcakes we have made the frosting the hard way—trying to somehow place the individual colors in the same piping bag without having them touch and mix (in short, a very messy and difficult process!). This year, thanks to a new and very useful tool made by Wilton, we piped the colored frostings into individual bags and used the Wilton color coupler to make the swirl. This tool makes swirled cupcakes just as easy as cupcakes frosted with one color! 

After being asked to supply the dessert for a family friends party, we knew we had to make our third annual Patriotic Berry Trifle from Food Network. A combination of fresh summer berries (that happen to be the perfect colors!), airy angel food cake and creamy whipped cream make for a light yet decadent treat. 

Before assembling the trifle, we whipped together a homemade Angel Food Cake made with real vanilla bean for an incredible flavor (though you can always purchase one store-bought if you are in need of a time-saving solution!). We then sliced up the beautiful cake into thick pieces and brushed them with a light lemon almond syrup for an added hint of sweetness. Next, we piled on fresh berries (blue and blackberries first), and later scooped a cream cheese whipped cream over the top. We repeated these three layers a second time, only using sliced strawberries and raspberries for a beautiful red color. On top, we arranged the berries into a flower for an elegant touch. 

We hope you enjoy this berry patriotic recipe! We only pull out our adorable trifle dish a few times a year, and always anticipate using it for this festive treat!

Patriotic Berry Trifle

Recipe by Sunny Anderson via Food Network

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup plus 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 angel food cake (recipe we used linked here and in post)
• 1 lb. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 2 cups heavy cream, at room temperature
• 2 pints blueberries
• 2 pints strawberries, hulled and sliced

Cooking Directions

1. Heat 1/4 cup sugar, the lemon juice and 1/4 cup water in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring, until the sugar dissolves. Remove from the heat and stir in the almond extract.
2. Brush both sides of each slice of cake with the syrup. Cut the slices into 1-inch cubes.
3. Beat the remaining 2/3 cup sugar and the cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed until smooth and light. Add the cream and beat on medium-high speed until smooth and the consistency of whipped cream.
4. Arrange half of the cake cubes in the bottom of a 13-cup trifle dish. Sprinkle evenly with a layer of blueberries. Dollop half of the cream mixture over the blueberries and gently spread. Top with a layer of strawberries. Layer the remaining cake cubes on top of the strawberries, then sprinkle with more blueberries and top with the remaining cream mixture. Finish with the remaining strawberries and blueberries, arranging them in a decorative pattern. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.

We hope you had a Happy Fourth and enjoyed some delicious patriotic treats!

Enjoy,