Satori Cupcakes

Satori is now more attainable with this healthier twist on the classic Carrot Cake, transposed into a delightful cupcake.  The cupcake starts with a base of whole wheat pastry flour and fresh carrots.  Crystallized ginger is added for a zesty, exotic flavor, balanced with coconut and maple syrup.  The cupcakes are filled with a maple pastry cream, and topped with a heavenly cream cheese italian meringue butter cream.  This almost vegan cupcake is a crucial first step to experiencing cupcake nirvana.

Note: The cupcake can be made dairy free by substituting soy milk for milk.  The frosting and pastry cream both contain milk products that are less trivial to substitute.  Google likely knows how to do this!

 

Car Bomb 2 Cupcakes

Here is a delicious variation to the original Car Bomb cupcake recipe.  Instead of Bailey's ganache, substitute Bailey's pastry cream for a gooey and delicious treat.

 

Recreational Chemistry Cupcakes

How can brown sugar and caramel be topped?  With moe. brown sugar and maple.  This cupcake starts with a brown sugar cake, filled with a salted soft caramel blast, topped with a brown sugar maple buttercream and finished with smoked fleur de sel.  Only a cupcake that can jam different ingredients in balanced harmony is worthy of being called Recreational Chemistry.  This cupcake is also dedicated to the biggest moe.ron I've ever known, my friend Jeff.

This recipe makes about 24 cupcakes.

Roasted Red Pepper Soup with Turkey and Fingerling Potatoes

This is perhaps the best soup I have ever made.  My only regret was skipping the fresh basil.  It has a minestrone flavor, yet the feel of a chicken soup.  The organic fingerling potatoes really added pizazz.

Baked Onion Rings

Onion rings are a timeless comfort food classic, yet do not exactly fit in well with "healthy eating".  However, I am here to inform the world that non-fried, tasty onion rings do indeed exist!  Here is a recipe that can be made two ways: All buttermilk or half buttermilk, half egg whites. 

The all buttermilk version is easier, and tastes great.  The use of egg whites does add an extra element of crunch, but also is trickier to pull off without a helper, as the egg whites loose volume quickly.  Keep this in mind.  Also, make sure to coat the onion rings with panko well, even if it means manually pressing panko into the onion ring.  You'll thank me later!!

Cornmeal Encrusted Sockeye Salmon

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tbsp mango or peach preserves
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 (6-ounce) center-cut sockeye salmon fillets with skin
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil