places

Well before this started looking like a food blog, I originally started 3 letter words to share travels, photos, stories and eats with friends, explore different cultures and the like. Recipe posts will continue, but a little more focus never hurts. :)

 Creative decor/illuminated bottles | Seoul, Korea

 Sunrise | Chicago, IL

Monet's Gardens--like real life versions of his paintings | Giverny, France

 Neon transportation | Bangkok, Thailand --photo by James

Pretty glass flowers (?)/Ceilings at Bellagio Hotel | Las Vegas, NV

Broccoli Cornbread

Last year, my coworker friends and I started a tradition to celebrate birthdays. We exhausted some of the usual lunch spots so began holding Iron Chef challenges to celebrate the birthday honoree(s).  It was a slow start, but our food eventually graduated from store bought items to more elaborate dishes (e.g.: prosciutto wrapped stuffed dates, smoked tri-tip, authentic Filipino food, chorizo sliders...).  It's been a fun way to get out of the restaurant rut and learn new recipes. Did I mention there is a giant golden whisk trophy involved? It's kind of awesome. Anyways, this Cottage Cheese + Broccoli Cornbread won it for the cheese category. It's super savory and I really like the onions and broccoli mixed with the course corn meal texture. Don’t be thrown off by the name or seemingly out of place ingredients. It won for good reason--well done Rob. :)

You'll need: 
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup cottage cheese, drained
1 teaspoon salt
1-8oz. package of corn muffin mix (I used 1 cup of Bob's Red Mill Cornbread & Muffin Mix)
1/2 cup butter, melted
1-10 oz. package of frozen chopped broccoli, thawed & drained (about 1 1/2 cups)


Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a 8x8 pan.I've made these into muffins before. They tend to stick to the paper a bit, so I recommend making it in a baking pan, or greasing the muffin pan and doing it without the paper liners. 
1) Cook onions on medium low heat over oil, until translucent. Remove from heat and let cool.

2) Stir eggs, cheese, salt together till combined. Add corn muffin mix, butter, broccoli, and cooled onions.
3) Pour mixture into baking dish and bake for 25-35 minutes, or until golden brown.
4) Let stand for 5 minutes before removing pan. 

saving berries

 
I grew my first strawberry. Just barely though. I'm hiding the bulk of this pot, which at one point flourished with promising green strawberry leaves. Only this guy made it and sprouted flowers. I guess only the strong survive in my garden. I still love you little strawberry!
Speaking of berries, I just learned a method to keep your berries fresh a little longer. Just mix one part vinegar (white or apple cider) to ten parts water. Swoosh the berries in the mixture, drain, and store in the fridge. Apparently, the vinegar kills any spores that cause your berries to grow white fuzz. Raspberries will keep for about a week and strawberries for 2. 

s'mores stuffed cookies...revisited

I've made these S'mores stuffed cookies a few more times and have since developed a S'mores Stuffed Cookie science if you will.

A few tips and changes...
Instead of breaking the graham crackers into smaller shapes, I stick a whole S'more inside the cookie (1 graham cracker sheet broken in half, 2-3 pieces of Hershey Chocolate, and 1 marshmallow cut in half lengthwise). I thought putting a smaller cookie would make these a little more manageable, but I've found it works better with a full size.

When assembling your cookie, make the bottom layer wider in diameter than the S'more inside (or Reese's Peanut Butter Cup in this case). Then pick up the whole thing and fold up the edges to enclose S'more. Add extra dough as needed. 

This results in cookies that are about the size of my open hand (much more fun and impressive)...and much better looking than my original version.

Bake for 22-24 minutes or until browned on top and dough is cooked through. Gently move onto a cooling rack for a few minutes. Serve warm, of if you need to, microwave for 10 seconds.

Unbaked cookies can be stored in the freezer (in case of an emergency). Taking them from freezer to oven actually results in really fluffy cookies in my experience.

I'm brainstorming and would love your ideas! What else can would you want to see baked inside a cookie? 

flower fields forever

The Flower Fields are open till May 13this year!
I had a bit of a Grand Canyon moment when I saw this in person. At some views, it just seemed to go on forever. They also have wagon rides, tulip fields, giant sunflowers, and different exhibits (succulents and orchids when I was there).  So if you're a gardening geek like me, are looking for a good photo op, or need somewhere to take your mom for Mother's Day, go here! It's gorgeous. We didn't make it out to the Strawberry Fields which are located right next to the flower fields, but they apparently have strawberry picking. 

5704 Paseo Del Norte
Carlsbad, CA 92008
760-431-0352
www.theflowerfields.com


$11.00 for Adults, $10.00 for Seniors 60+, $6.00 for Children 3-10.
Children 2 and under are free.

You can purchase tickets on site or online here!