Silent Night, Holy Night

My mom used a different vendor for Dad's grave blanket this year.  I drove out to see it two weeks ago and the second I put my car in park, Silent Night came on my Christmas Pandora station.  It was very fitting, since that was his favorite Christmas carol.  In a similar way, this year's grave blanket was perfect and very appropriate.  Classic and handsome, just like my dad.

B-A-N-A-N-A-S

Wow it's been awhile!  Life has been crazy and I've constantly been on the go enjoying it!  First we vacationed in Italy for a week, then we moved from Northwest Indiana to the BIG city of Chicago, and then it was fourth quarter, which is always a blitz of busy in accounting/finance.  It's still Q4 and I'm still racing around super busy, but I've been meaning to get back to two things: A) exercising and B) blogging.  Since I did Jillian's yoga DVD yesterday, I suppose I'll blog today.  What better to start back with than Banana Daiquiri Cupcakes, right?!

So the hubby went to the store last week and got all ripe bananas.  Naturally that means some of them turned to mush before I could work them into my daily menu, so I was on the search for mashed banana recipes.  Here is this week's winner.

Banana Daiquiri Cupcakes
(adapted from this recipe)

Cake:
1/4 cup unsalted butter - melted
1/3 cup Domino Light
1/3 cup Splenda Brown Sugar Blend
1/3 cup Jell-O Banana Pudding Mix
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 mashed ripe banana
1 cup + 2 Tbs cake flour
Pinch of salt
1 1/4 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup banana liquor

Icing:
4 Tbs butter
4 oz. light cream cheese
1 Tbs rum
1 Tbs banana liquor
1/2 tsp rum extract (to enhance the flavor if you don't add extra booze)
3-4 cups powdered sugar depending on what consistency of icing you prefer
Pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line cupcake pan with 15 liners.

Whip together the melted butter, sugars, and pudding mix.  Add in two eggs and vanilla extract, mixing until smooth.  Mix in the mashed banana and begin adding dry ingredients once the banana is thoroughly incorporated in the mixture.  Add the liquor and mix until well blended.  Fill the cupcake liners 3/4 full and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

For the icing, beat together the butter and light cream cheese until the blend is one consistency.  Add the liquors and rum extract.  Mix well.  Gradually add the powdered sugar one cup at a time until the icing has reached your desired consistency.  You can also refrigerate the icing for 30 minutes while the cupcakes cool. 

This recipe is definitely a keeper; the cake baked wonderfully and was literally perfectly done at 20 minutes!  The one thing I may change next time is the icing.  The cake recipe calls for 1/3 cup banana pudding mix; since this isn't the full package I will probably add some leftover mixture to the icing next time to give it a bit more banana flavor and thicken it up all in one swoop. 

Cheers!

Halloween Wreath {Deco Mesh DIY}

Do you know what today is?!  If you said "It's the day you leave on an Italian vacation!" ding, ding, ding, you're right!  I can't wait to experience Italy for the second time!

With that said, I recently DIY-ed a Halloween wreath and wanted to post it before we leave since we get back only a week away from the festive holiday!

What I Purchased:

Medium size square wreath frame (to switch it up)
21" Orange metallic deco mesh (main color)
21" Black/striped metallic deco mesh (accent color)
Small Halloween decoration (for middle of wreath)

I found everything I needed at the local JoAnn Fabrics and had two coupons so my total rang in at less than $40.  I'm sure some of the supplies are on clearance by now, so yours may be less.  It's still a whole lot cheaper than buying the expensive version on Etsy!!

Since this is on a wire wreath frame with deco mesh, I basically combined my previous tutorials for the Christmas Wreath and the Burlap Wreath.  I tied one end of the orange deco mesh to the wire frame with a simple double knot to secure it.  Every 4-6 inches, I gathered the deco mesh and wound it either under or over the wire. I kept the orange on the outer two areas, so you can see in the materials picture the two wire barriers I used for this over/under technique.  You will use the entire roll of deco mesh if you are aiming for a fluffed look.  Once happy with the orange, I secured the black striped deco mesh and began looping it from the inner wire out to achieve the accent look.  I did not use all of the black striped deco mesh since it's just an accent.  Finally, I used a loop of deco mesh to knot the Halloween decoration where I liked it.  Make sure you're loops are fluffed appropriately and you're finished!

As a side note, I thought the square wreath frame would make the actual wreath itself more of a pronounced square.  As you can see, it still looks like a general circle wreath, so next time I will just stick to the wire circle frame.  Those corners were hard to maneuver around!!

Enjoy your Halloween wreath!

Kentucky Bourbon Cupcakes

As you all know, my dad loved bourbon; specifically Maker's Mark.  Four years ago, for his birthday present he and my mom came to visit in Kentucky and I treated them to Woodford Reserve and Four Roses tours.  It was such a great weekend.  This year, his 57th birthday would've fallen on Labor Day weekend so we had an extra day.  An extra day usually makes for a lovely, lazy weekend.  With my extra lazy time, I decided it was fitting to bake bourbon cupcakes.  With Maker's Mark of course.  The cupcake is a fabulous recipe that tastes like a spice cake and the buttercream tastes delightfully like the inside of a bourbon ball.  So go ahead, bake these babies up!

Maker's Mark Cupcakes with Bourbon Buttercream
(cupcakes adapted from Maker's Mark; icing from this recipe)

Cupcakes:
8 Tbs unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup Splenda brown sugar blend
3 large eggs
1/2 cup molasses
1/4 cup skim milk
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg 
1/2 cup Maker's Mark bourbon

Icing:

1 cup unsalted butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 Tbs Maker's Mark bourbon
2 slight pinches of salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line baking pans with cupcake liners.

Cream together the butter and brown sugar.  Add in the eggs and molasses.  Next, begin adding in all the dry ingredients.  Mix in the skim milk until all ingredients are well incorporated.  Add the bourbon and fold in manually with a spoon.  Fill cupcake liners 3/4 full and bake for 27 minutes.  Let cool in pans for at least 5 minutes and then transfer to cooling racks.

For icing, cream the room temperature butter.  Slowly add in the powdered sugar in increments.  Follow that up by adding the vanilla, bourbon, and salt.  Mix until the icing has that 'whipped' look.  Frost once the cupcakes are cool.  Cheers!   

Restaurant Review: Russian Tea Time

A few weeks ago Carl and I celebrated our second anniversary downtown.  Let me just say, we had to fight the Transformers filming road closures, traffic caused by the road closures, throngs of people trying to catch a glimpse of Transformers, and a huge protest to get anywhere near Chicago.  But don't worry, we rewarded ourselves by staying at the W Chicago City Center for the evening rather than going home (which was absolutely stunning, I may note.  Stay there if you have the chance).  Obviously, after all that traffic we wanted to relax with a glass of wine, so we enjoyed the day at the Windy City Wine Festival, which was summery and fun.  Stella Artois even sponsored beer pairing classes on the hour and that was fabulous!

Then the festival ended.  And we were hungry.  And wanted to continue celebrating our anniversary.  We brainstormed several places we could go, but some were a la carte dining, tapas, small plates, etc. so naturally we settled on Russian Tea Time.  Carl is German, and I'm part Polish, so we knew we'd definitely be able to find food we loved. 

www.russianteatime.com

I'm just going to be blunt, you must eat at Russian Tea Time!  This restaurant is absolutely beautiful inside and the staff is extremely polite.  This was a late dinner (9pm) so we had the place to ourselves, which, of course we loved.  Stuffed mushrooms and dumplings served as our appetizers and their dipping sauce was different and very good.  I got the Moulard Duck Leg for my main course and it was so good I literally can't even tell you what Carl ordered as his main dish.  I was too busy either A) devouring my main dish or B) gushing to Carl about just.how.amazing.this.duck.is.  You get the picture.  [Side Note: I do know he loved his dinner, just can't remember what he ordered.]  We mentioned we were celebrating our anniversary when we ordered a bottle or champs for the table (yep, we decided to be fancy), and the next thing you know, after the dinner plates were cleared our waiter came out with a dessert and candle.  It was the owner's anniversary as well so they treated us to dessert!  Since this was a surprise I'm not entirely too sure what the name of it was, but I am strongly guessing it was a type of strudel because the dough portion tasted pretty similar to the phyllo dough used for baklava.

www.russianteatime.com

Last but not least, as if we had not already had enough to drink between the wine festival and the bottle of champs, we couldn't go to the Russian Tea Time and NOT try a flight of vodka, am.i.right?  Not sure what to chose, we settled on splitting the house flight - Coriander, Black Currant Tea, and Lime.  Pumpernickel and pickles were provided so we took each sip the 'traditional Russian way' (that we looked up on their menu).  This vodka was smooth.  I am not a vodka person.. not not not.. just not me.  But this was good.  Now that I'm looking at the menu online to write this and I know how smooth it is, I'm wishing I could've made my own flight.  I'd pick Mint, Coffee, and Cinnamon.  Yum.  These new choices coupled with the amazing food gives us an excuse to go back, because I definitely will be stopping there again.  Delicious!

6 Can Chili

Last year I found a dynamite recipe for 8 Can Taco Soup that is absolutely delicious.  Now that fall is here, I thought "I've got to be able to find a similar chili recipe, right?"  Right.  I successfully searched the web for a quick and simple chili recipe, because let's be serious - after we both work full days and commute an hour each way, who wants to cook a detailed dinner?  Not me, I can tell you that.  Below is the recipe I followed.  Next time we plan on adding more meat (probably 2lbs rather than 1lb) and we will add more spices to taste as well. We seasoned our own bowls and found that paprika and garlic salt gave it the added oomph we were looking for.

6 Can Chili
adapted from allrecipes.com

2 tsps olive oil 
1lb ground beef
1 packet McCormick reduced sodium chili seasoning
1 can whole peeled tomatoes (14.5oz)
1 can hot chili beans, undrained (16oz)
1 can pinto beans, undrained (15oz)
1 can kidney beans, undrained (15oz)
1 can baked beans (28oz)
1 can tomato paste (6oz)
Reduced fat shredded cheese - for topping
Reduced fat sour cream - for topping

Heat the olive oil over a medium heat.  Add the meat and spice packet and cook the meat until it's no longer pink.  This should be between 10 and 15 minutes.  Pour the tomatoes into the skillet and crush them into chunks.  Transfer this mixture to a soup pot.  Add all other canned ingredients.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.  Top with shredded cheese and enjoy!

Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cookies {with Cinnamon Chips!}

After months of corresponding with the Chicago Alpha Gam Junior Circle, I finally made it to an event!  Woohoo!  It was the A(GD)mazing Race, themed after the show but taking place in Chicago and there was a potluck afterwards.  Seeing as it has cooled off lately, I baked my go-to fall potluck dish: Harvest Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.  These things are amazing.  I ran across the recipe in a Splenda cookbook I purchased several years ago and now make these cookies several times every fall.  The pumpkin makes them light and fluffy and the spices and raisins give it the perfect fall flavor!

Harvest Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
(Adapted from the Splenda cookbook)

1 cup butter or margarine - softened
1/2 cup Splenda sugar blend (I haven't been able to find this lately, so I used the Domino Light blend)
1/2 cup Splenda brown sugar blend  
1 cup Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup raisins
1 package Hershey's Cinnamon Chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

Cream together the softened butter with the sugar and brown sugar.  Add the pumpkin, egg, and vanilla, blending until thoroughly combined.  Gradually add in the flour, oats, and other dry ingredients and mix well.  Fold in the raisins and cinnamon chips.  Place dough in tablespoon sized dollops on the baking sheets.  Bake for 14-16 minutes or until bottom is lightly browned.  Cool on baking sheet for 7-8 minutes and transfer to wire cooling rack.

To achieve the more healthy Splenda version, just omit the cinnamon chips.  I was feeling adventurous and wanted a bit of extra fall flavor in this batch and therefore added the chips.  If you're all about some cinnamon-y delicious fall flavor, stick to this recipe.  This is my favorite fall cookie and super easy to prepare.  Hope you enjoy this batch of cookies as much as I always do!