Orange Ricotta Chocolate Chip Muffins

One of my favorite flavor combinations of all time is orange and chocolate. Dark chocolate. So when I stumbled across this recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod, I knew I had to try it. Yum Yum Yum. But really, with this flavor profile, how can you go wrong?

Orange Ricotta Chocolate Chip Muffins

2 cups all-purpose Gold Medal flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
Zest of 1 orange
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 large egg
1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips
For the glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners. Set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a small bowl, add the sugar and orange zest. Rub the orange zest and sugar together with your fingers.
3. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar and orange zest mixture together until light and fluffy, about two minutes. Add the ricotta cheese and beat until smooth. Beat in the egg, orange juice, and vanilla extract.
4. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips. Using an ice cream scoop or large spoon, divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups.
5. Bake muffins for about 18-20 minutes, or until the tops are slightly golden brown. Let muffins cool completely.
6. While the muffins are cooking, make the glaze. In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar, orange zest, and orange juice. Drizzle glaze over muffins. Let the muffins sit until glaze hardens.
Note-we've made these muffins with low-fat and full fat ricotta cheese. Both work nicely so take your pick:)

Homemade Focaccia Bread

Tried this recipe for homemade Foccacia Bread on Sunday and liked it so much that I made it again today for my birthday party. It's absolutely delicious, especially when dipping it into a little bit of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. The recipe is pretty easy and I would definitely recommend it!

Homemade Focaccia Bread
Crepes of Wrath

For the Bread:

• 2 cups warm water
• 2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
• 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp olive oil

For the Topping:

• 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 tsp dried Rosemary
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions

1. Combine your water and yeast in a large mixing bowl, stir once, and allow it to sit for 10 minutes or so, until the mixture has foamed. Mine actually didn’t foam that well, honestly…I let it sit for 20 minutes with mediocre foaming results, but I am impatient so I went ahead with this recipe and it still turned out great! So as long as the texture changes a bit, you should be alright (so long as your yeast isn’t a year old).
2. Add in 3 1/2 cups of your flour, along with your sugar, salt, and olive oil. Knead by hand or with your dough hook for 8-10 minutes, until very well combined and beginning to look smooth, then add in the remaining 1 cup of flour very slowly. Knead the dough until it is smooth and pulls away from your hands (AKA becomes less sticky) or the sides of your mixing bowl. Place the dough in a large, well oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a cloth towel (this helps the bowl to retain heat and allows the bread to rise), and place in a warm spot to rise for 1 hour and 30 minutes.
3. After the first rising period, coat a baking sheet (standard size baking sheets are 10×15-inches) well with oil, then punch the dough down and remove it from the bowl. Use your fingers to spread it out as evenly as possible over the sheet (it doesn’t have to be perfect). Cover the sheet again with a cloth, then allow it to rise for an additional 45 minutes, until puffy looking.
4. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F. When you are ready to bake, make dents in the bread all over with your knuckle (but don’t make them so far down that you touch the baking tray through the bread), then drizzle 1 1/2 tablespoons of olive oil evenly over the bread. Sprinkle with your combined spices, then bake for 15-20 minutes, until golden and set. Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing and dipping in olive oil, spreading with butter, or making into sandwiches or pizza!

Sister Myer

My sister Riley just got called to serve a mission for the LDS church. She's the first missionary among my siblings and I could not be more excited!

She is called to serve in Richmond, VA, spanish speaking, and reports to the MTC on June 5th. 

I'm so proud of her and her decision to serve a mission. She's been thinking about this decision for the last couple of months as a lot of her friends have decided to serve missions, and she finally decided that now is the time. I have never seen her so happy and content with the course of her life. The people of Richmond, VA aren't going to know what hit them!

Here's some pictures of her opening the call in California....

The story of actually receiving said mission call is a good one, albeit long. Riley expected the call to arrive on Wednesday... it didn't come. Then she was thinking Thursday... also didn't come. Since it was a long weekend, she jumped at the opportunity to catch a ride back to California and figured the call would come the next week. Sure enough, she double checked with the post office (just in case) on Friday morning and they told her it would be in the mail that day! Imagine her disappointment to be in California when the mission call envelope was set to be delivered to her apartment in Utah. Step in trusty sidekick and sister Alyse. The plan was for me to overnight the envelope down to our home in California so she could open it with family and friends. The timing would be a little tricky as her mail is usually delivered between 2:30 pm-3:30 pm and USPS requires mail to be in their hands at 4:00 pm to be overnighted. This is how it all went down. With a squirmy baby.

3:15 pm arrive at Riley's apartment.
Upstairs to Riley's apartment to get mail key.
No mail yet.
Back to car.
Sit in car in the parking lot to avoid getting towed.
Watch for mailman.
Ryder crawling all over the car.
3:30 pm still no call.
Call Riley to tell her no call yet.
3:38 pm still wondering, baby still crawling all over car.
3:42 pm mailman walking up the stairs to mailboxes.
Back up to Riley's apartment to get mail key.
Retrieve mission call from mailbox.
Return mail key.
Back to the car to buckle squirmy baby into carseat.
Jet up to campus.
3:49 pm Unbuckle squirming baby but no time for stroller, carry baby & envelope in arms.
Run through the WILK.
Run through the bookstore.
Run down the stairs to the post office.
3:52 pm 10 people in line in front of me, out of breath, still carrying baby & envelope.
Wait 5 minutes, now number 8 in line.
3:57 pm be that super annoying girl in back of the line and ask guy behind the counter if I can still overnight. Guy says FedEx usually picks up at 4 but they're already gone.
Guy behind the counter recommends trying the USPS office by the bowling alley in the WILK.
There's another post office in the WILK?
Run back up the stairs.
Run through the bookstore.
Run through the WILK.
Run down the stairs by the bowling alley to find USPS office.
Baby & envelope still in arms.
Girl at the counter says they're last pickup for overnight is 3:00 pm.
Girl at the counter recommends trying the post office in the bookstore.
Already been there but can't hurt to double check.
Run back up the stairs.
Run through the bookstore.
4:04 pm run down the stairs to the post office.
Confirm that FedEx has gone and they have no other way to mail it out overnight with Saturday delivery.
Walk back up the stairs.
Call Riley to tell her it is a no go.
Riley surprisingly calm and insisting she can wait until she comes back on Tuesday.
Try to convince Riley to let me open envelope and she can be the first one to read it on Skype.
Riley unconvinced.
4:09 pm walk back to the car.
Baby in arms.
Decide to try the FedEx store.
Drive to FedEx store.
Baby passes out in the back seat.
4:14 pm walk in to FedEx store and nice lady behind the counter says we can send it.
Fill out all the paperwork.
Ryder is still wiggly.
Put baby on the ground and let him roam free.
Too frustrated with situation to care.
Finish filling out paperwork and take it to the nice lady behind the counter.
Says she'll have to send it Priority Overnight with Saturday delivery.
That will be $52.35.
Excuse me?
$52.35.
Call Mom to break the news.
Mom having anxiety attack, insists I send it.
Pay the lady $52.35 and tell her to send it.
Says it will get to California by noon tomorrow.
Relief.
4:25 walk out of FedEx store with baby in arms.
Call Riley and Mom to tell them envelope is en route.
Drive home.
Put baby down for a nap.

That was a long story and the next day my arm felt so sore from all the baby carrying while running. Needless to say, it was a crazy hour but the call made it to California the next day and Riley was able to open it with all of her good friends and family around. We love you Riley!

Here are some iphone pictures of Ryder and I on our adventure....

Snow Day

This was a few weeks ago, actually I'm pretty sure it was on Ryder's birthday. Way back in January when every single day was freezing and snow was our constant companion. Alright, February hasn't really been all that different, but at least today we got a little sun and it warmed up to a toasty 40 degrees. BIG improvement. Anyways... here's a flashback to our January snow day and snowman-building afternoon.

Valentine's Sugar Cookies

I stumbled across this recipe at one point in the blogosphere so naturally, I cannot for the life of me remember where it came from. However, it has become my go-to sugar cookie recipe. The cream cheese gives the sugar cookies a wonderful flavor and when you cut them out, they bake in the exact shape as the cookie cutter. This makes for some fantastic cookies to decorate. The frosting recipe is a little tricky, because there are no specific amounts... seriously, the first time I made it I was skeptical it would even work, but sure enough, it makes a frosting that makes for expertly frosted cookies. So here you go... Happy Valentine's Day!

 

Cream Cheese Sugar Cookies

1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened

3 oz cream cheese, softened

½ cup sugar

1 egg

pinch of salt

2 tsp vanilla extract

¼ tsp almond extract

3 cups flour

Frosting

a couple of Tbsp butter, softened

splash of milk (or more)

touch of fresh lemon juice and/or vanilla

ton of powdered sugar

Cream butter and cream cheese until fluffy; add sugar and mix. Add egg, salt, vanilla, and almond extract and mix well. Add flour. Wrap dough in plastic and chill several hours or overnight. Roll out on floured surface and cut out cookies (keep on the thicker side). Bake on ungreased sheet at 375 degrees until edges begin to barely brown. Cool completely and frost.

To make frosting, use an electric mixer to whip butter until fluffy and then mix in the rest of the ingredients; mix until you get the correct consistency (go thinner than you think for expertly frosted cookies). Use food coloring to dye frosting, if desired. Use a rubber spatula to carefully spread frosting over surface of the cookie.

Superbowl Party

For the Superbowl this year, we had a couple of our good friends over to enjoy good food and good company. It was pretty laid back, we had mexican food, chips & dip, and then way too many desserts. Actually, it was pretty awesome because Chad did all of the food and party prep, so I just got to enjoy! I had to work that Sunday, so I got home from work right around half time and luckily everyone waited for me to eat dinner. I'm one lucky girl! Also, Ryder was not really feeling the whole, "wearing clothes" thing so he spent most of the party in his diaper, immediately followed by his football jammies. Don't judge us as parents... Happy Superbowl 2013!

Banana Split Cupcakes

 

For Ryder man's birthday, I wanted to make cupcakes that were fun, tasty, and compatible for little fingers to dig into. Although chocolate would be my first choice, when trying to appease the flavor palate of a one-year-old you have to be a bit more selective. I found this recipe from Annie's Eats for banana split cupcakes and knew they would be perfect for the occasion. They were so fun and were quite delicious; the cake was flavorful while still being moist and the ganache was a perfectly fudgy topping. I will definitely be making these cupcakes again.

Banana Split Cupcakes

Yield: 30+ cupcakes

Ingredients:
For the cupcakes:
2½ cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
12 tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
2½ cups sugar
6 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tbsp. buttermilk
1 1/3 cups mashed ripe banana

For the frosting:
1½ cups heavy cream, chilled
1/3 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
½ tsp. vanilla extract

For the ganache:
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. light corn syrup

For garnish:
Multi-colored sprinkles
Maraschino cherries

Directions:
To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line cupcake pans with paper liners.  In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt; whisk together and set aside.  In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Reduce the mixer speed to medium low and add in eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Mix in 1 the mashed banana until well combined.  With the mixer on low speed alternately add the dry ingredients and buttermilk, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and mixing only until just incorporated.

Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, filling each about 2/3 to ¾ full.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20-22 minutes.  Allow to cool in the pan 5-10 minutes, then transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, add the heavy cream to the chilled bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment.  Whip on medium-high speed until soft peaks form.  Add the powdered sugar and continue to whip until thoroughly combined and stiff peaks form.  Be careful not to over-beat!  Blend in the vanilla extract.

Add the whipped cream to a pastry bag fitted with a large plain round tip.  Pipe a swirl of the whipped cream onto each filled cupcake, covering the filling.  Transfer the filled and frosted cupcakes to the refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes.

To make the ganache, place the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl.  Bring the cream to a simmer over medium-high heat.  Remove from the heat and pour the hot cream over the chocolate; let stand 1-2 minutes.  Whisk together until a thick, smooth ganache forms.  Blend in the corn syrup.  Let stand at room temperature at least 10 minutes so the ganache is not hot.

To finish the cupcakes, pour a spoonful of the ganache over the whipped cream topping of each cupcake.  Garnish with sprinkles and maraschino cherries before the glaze sets.  Chill the assembled cupcakes until ready to serve.

A party for our little man

Last week we had a rockin' party for our little one year old. It wasn't a huge party and there weren't very many kids but it was so much fun to celebrate one full year of Ryder man. Turns out most of Ryder's friends are actually adults, so there you go. We had good food, lots of friends, cousins, family, streamers, delicious cupcakes, and a bunch of balloons that were a hit with the kids. In fact, we've been playing with the balloons every since. They can keep Ryder entertained for a good, solid half hour multiple times a day. That's golden in the world of parenting.

Happy Birthday Ryder man!!