More Than Burnt Toast

Annie. NYC. This is my kitchen. These are a few of my culinary adventures. Three years ago I decided to live a healthier lifestyle. Fast forward: Today I am 100lbs lighter and two things I absolutely love to do are cook and eat. Surprise! When I moved to NYC three years ago, I promised myself that I would never buy Ramen or live off of Chinese food. So far so good and I have every intention of continuing a healthier lifestyle. I'll be posting recipes of my own, from my family's cookbook, websites, friends and other cooking blogs! I hope these ideas help you in your own kitchen and that you find inspiration for your own creations. Buon appetito, m'dear!

[morethanburnttoast]

I love your blog!! Just stumbled on it this morning. I have been on a weight loss journey myself and I have hit a plateau. Did you ever plateau and what did you do to résumé weight loss?

Greetings,

So sorry if this is a late response! I've hit many a plateau and am at one right now actually. It took me MONTHS to get out of the 170s and then when i finally did i am now stuck in the 140s-150s. It's annoying but you really just have to keep pushing through. Sometimes our bodies just need a break. Keep the cardio up and just keep a keen eye on what you're eating. Change up your workout a bit! If it's all cardio maybe try some weight training (i found that really helped me). 

I wish you the best!

[morethanburnttoast]

Tommy's 16'th Birthday Cake

Wanted to share a picture of our own S'more cake.  We opted for a thin chocholate cake instead of the layer of melted Chocolate and a blonde cookie for the bottom (mostly because we had so many people coming).  My son is a Life Scout and we just fell in love with this idea for his surprise party.  Thanks for the great idea.

This is awesome!! Thanks so much for sharing with me!!!

[morethanburnttoast]

Orange/Soy Marinated Pork Chops with Pineapple Mango Salsa

Between the previous pancetta and now the pork chops... I guess you could say I'm on a pig-kick, so I think I'm due for a break from the other white meat for awhile.

Billy mentioned pineapple salsa and it gave me the idea to make a pineapple mango salsa to pair with something a bit more bland. Since I was sick of cooking chicken breast I opted for pork chops (they were also on sale, win!)

They were out of this world!

No, but really... you're oinkin' for this recipe... so check it out after the jump...

Pineapple Mango Salsa

1 small pineapple

1 ripe mango

1 TBSP cilanto

1 small red onion

1 jalapeno

Juice and zest of 1 lime

Chop the pineapple, mango, onion, jalapeno and cilantro and toss together. Squeeze the lime juice and zest over the top, mix and let sit. You don't have to let yours sit, but knowing on Friday that I'd be preparing this meal on Sunday, I made the salsa Friday afternoon and let all the juices come together in the fridge over the weekend. It was delicious.

Orange/Soy Marinade

Orange Juice

Low Sodium Soy Sauce

Minced or crushed cloves of garlic (1 big one or two small)

Mix together and place in your air-tight container or ziplock back. Be sure to have enough to completely cover your pork! I used about 3 cups of orange juice and 3 heaping tablespoons of soy sauce for mine.

Pork Chops

2-4, 1/2 to 1 inch thick pork chops, bone-in

Aluminum foil

Cooking spray

Rinse pork chops under cold water and place in your marinating container/baggie. Let sit in marinade for 2-3 hours. They'll be cooking for about an hour so plan accordingly and be sure to heat the oven to 300 degrees about 20 minutes before they're ready to go in. Lay out larger pieces of aluminum foil and spray lightly with the cooking spray. You're going to be making little pouches/homes for them! Wrap them up and place in heated oven with a cookie sheet on the rack below to catch any possible drippings. I cooked mine for 80 minutes but next time I'll be cutting the cooking time down to 45, checking them and then letting sit in the hot oven for 15 more minutes. When they've finished cooking, unwrap them from the foil and let sit on a cutting board for about 5-10 minutes to rest.

I served all of this on a bed of brown rice with paprika and a little butter, lightly steamed green beans and an ear of corn since it's in season. Overall an incredible delicious meal and it was my first time preparing pork chops! Not too shabby! I'm just glad they didn't turn out like hockey pucks.

[morethanburnttoast]

Tossed together a delicious wine & dine with my wonderful boyfriend on Friday evening. I picked up some fresh pancetta at the Italian deli in Chelsea Market to make pasta alla carbonara with the homemade ricotta I made the previous night.

What you'll need:

4 ounces of pancetta, diced into chunks

1 small shallot, diced finely

1 clove of garlic, chopped finely

3/4 cup frozen peas

3 eggs

1/2 cup of ricotta (if you don't have ricotta, use pecorino-romano or parmesan)

Salt & pepper to taste

1lb pasta (of your choice), prepared per instructions (add salt to the water)

Before you start anything, prepare the pot/water for the pasta and begin heating to a boil. While that's starting, in a large skillet over medium heat, cook the pancetta.

While the pancetta is cooking combine the egg with half the cheese, salt & pepper, whisk thoroughly.

Once the pancetta is cooked, remove from pan and drain on a paper towel (you don't have to drain it but it was nice to rid the pancetta of the extra grease).

Add shallots to the same skillet & saute until tender. Add garlic & saute for 30 seconds.

When the pasta has about a minute left for cooking, add the frozen peas to the boiling pot (you will strain these with the pasta).

Remove skillet from heat and add the hot pasta to the pan with the shallots & garlic.

Add the egg mixture & stir thoroughly until creamy (be careful not to over cook the eggs - you don't want them to scramble). Add pancetta, parsley and remaining cheese - taste & re-season if needed. Serve immediately. Enjoy.

(photo credit: my super awesome sous-chef)

[morethanburnttoast]

Creamy Homemade Ricotta

Apologies for the lack of cheesy photo - but I made homemade ricotta Thursday evening and it was delicious... and addicting. I'll be making this a lot more often now, especially with chocolate and sugar for a dessert mousse.

I stumbled across the recipe over at Food52. Check it out below:

Makes 2 cups

4 cups whole milk

1 cup heavy cream

3/4 cups buttermilk

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

Add the ingredients to a 4-quart pot. Bring to a very gentle boil over medium heat. Meanwhile, line a sieve or fine mesh strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth and place it over a deep bowl or pot.

Once the curds begin to separate from the whey (you'll see little specks of white bob to the surface), stir gently and set heat to the lowest setting (see NOTE). Cook for 2 more minutes, then remove pot from heat and set on an unlit back burner for at least 30 minutes, and up to one hour. (this will help the curds further develop).

Gently ladle the curds into the cheesecloth-lined strainer (this helps produce a fluffier, creamier curd, than pouring it into the strainer). When all the curds have been spooned into the bowl, pull the cheesecloth up the sides to loosely cover the ricotta in the strainer. Let sit for 10 minutes to drain (this will yield a very moist ricotta. If using for a cake recipe, you may want to let it drain longer for a drier consistency).

Store in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator for up to three days.

NOTE: I've learned it likes to be left alone to produce the highest yield, so resist the temptation to stir it frequently once the curds begin to separate from the whey. One stir is enough, and if you're curious, you can dip the spoon in the pot once or twice to see how the curds are developing.

[morethanburnttoast]

It's summertime and the best thing about warmer weather is sitting around the campfire, enjoying scrumptious s'mores with good friends and family. Since I live in Hoboken and, clearly, can't be making a fire pit in my non-existent backyard (or on my rooftop), I decided to bake these s'more cookies as part of the birthday gifts I gave to Billy. I yoinked the recipe and above photo from Sprinkled with Flour, and every single person who had a cookie decided that they were the best I've made so far. Serious caution: You'll want s'more after the first few bites.

S'mores Cookies

1-3/4 cups all purpose flour 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (I used cinnamon graham crackers) 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp salt 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened 3/4 cup sugar 3/4 cup brown sugar (use dark brown, you wont regret it) 2 tsp vanilla extract 2 eggs 2 cups mini chocolate chips 1-1/2 cups mini marshmallows, or large ones cut up 2 Hershey bars, chopped (I opted for the dark chocolate Hershey bars)

Preheat oven to 375F.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs and vanilla to the butter mixture, and mix until combined. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, graham crackers, salt, and baking soda. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips. Use 2 tablespoons or a medium-sized ice cream scoop to drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto cookie sheets. Bake for 7 minutes and remove from oven. Push a few marshmallows and pieces of chocolate into each cookie and return to the oven to bake an additional 3-4 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack before inhaling the entire batch!

[morethanburnttoast]

I wanted to bake something a bit different for my boyfriend's birthday BBQ, so I opted for a simple apple tart that I found at The Family Kitchen.

It was super simple and the glaze had a refreshing orange zest kick to it. You can use a pre-made crust, but I always prefer homemade crusts. Anyway... enjoy!

Simple Apple Tart (adapted from the Smitten Kitchen by way of Alice Waters)

for the crust 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour 6 tablespoons cold butter 1/4 cup ice water 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 teaspoon sugar

for the tart filling 3 granny smith apples 2 tablespoons melted butter 3 tablespoons sugar good pinch salt

for the glaze apple cores and peels 1/2 cup sugar zest and juice of 1 orange 1/2 cup water

In the bowl of your food processor, combine the flour, salt, and sugar. Drop in the butter and pulse several times until the dough has a sandy texture. Drizzle in the water and pulse just until combined. You can also mix the flour by hand, and cut in the butter with a pastry knife, and then mix in the water just until combined.

Scoop the dough out onto a lightly floured board gather into a round disc. Wrap the  round in plastic and refrigerate for a half-hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the chilled dough into an 11” round, and then press it into a well-buttered tart pan. Fold any excess dough into the sides of the tart.

Wash and peel, and core the apples, reserving the peels and cores. Slice the apples into 1/8” thick slices. Starting on the outer edge, arrange the apple slices in a tight circle, working your way toward the middle. Brush the apples with the 2 tablespoons of melted butter. Sprinkle the apples with the salt, and then 3 tablespoons of sugar.

Place the tart on a rimmed baking sheet and then into the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, until the dough is golden and the edges of the apples have browned. Rotate the tart pan halfway through. Let tart cool for 15 minutes.

While the tart is baking, combine the apple peels and cores, orange zest, sugar, juice and water in a medium saucepan. Simmer for 30 minutes. Add extra water if needed. Strain the glaze, cool, and brush on the tart just before serving.

[morethanburnttoast]

I made Huevos Rancheros for dinner... in mini home-made corn tortilla cups! I took the Epicurious recipe and simplified it a bit more and decided to test this out tonight because I'd really love to make it for my boyfriend this weekend. The recipe below yields six, but I only made one for myself and some extra tortilla cups for later use.

You'll need:

4 tablespoons of olive oil

6 6- to 61/2-inch-diameter corn tortillas

1 15-ounce can pinto beans or black beans, drained

2/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro, divided

6 large eggs

3/4 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese

Salsa and hot sauce

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush six 10-ounce custard cups with 1 tablespoon oil. Stack tortillas; microwave uncovered until warm and flexible, about 25 seconds. Gently press 1 tortilla into each cup. Brush tortillas with 2 tablespoons oil.

Place pinto beans, remaining 1 tablespoon oil, 1/3 cup chopped cilantro in small bowl; mash coarsely with fork. Spoon bean mixture into bottom of tortilla cups, spreading and dividing evenly. Crack 1 egg into each tortilla cup atop beans. Sprinkle each with grated Monterey Jack cheese, covering egg completely. Bake uncovered until egg yolks are firm to touch and whites are set, about 27 minutes (yolks will still be soft inside).

Using large spoon, lift tortilla cups from dishes; transfer to plates. Top eggs with additional cilantro, salsa, hot sauce... even pico de gallo!

[morethanburnttoast]

Ice Cream Maker

Finally, guys. After a year of wanting one... I finally got one. Stay tuned!!!

[morethanburnttoast]

Jumbo Soft Pretzels

They're probably my favorite thing about carnivals, amusement parks, sports events and NYC in general. I love pretzels. I love the taste, texture, the crunch of the salt... they're probably one of the best snacks out there. I decided to whip some up for my friend Kim's carnival-themed birthday extravaganza. I yoinked the recipe from Elissa over at 17andBaking but the picture above is actually from Lillian at Sweets By Sillianah. Both of them are wonderful and I highly recommend you checkout their blogs as well!

I made these Thursday night for the party on Saturday. I highly recommend you make them the DAY you will be serving them so the toppings don't soak into the pretzels and they stay fresh and tasty. Mine ended up a bit chewy after sitting around for more than a day. Also - if you want to use cinnamon and sugar as a topping, put it on AFTER! I did about of them before and they ended up caramelizing and looking burnt. Womp womp.

Anyway, recipe is after the jump!

Soft Pretzels Adapted from Martha Stewart via Smitten Kitchen Makes 16 full sized or 32 mini pretzels

Pretzels 2 cups warm water 1 tablespoon + 2 tablespoons sugar 1 packet active dry yeast 5 to 6 cups all purpose flour 1 tablespoon salt 2 teaspoons canola oil ¼ cup baking soda 1 large egg

Toppings Sea salt or pretzel salt Cinnamon sugar (mixed to taste) Grated Parmesan cheese Brown sugar mixed with water and chopped almonds

Add the warm water and 1 tablespoon sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer. Use the dough hook and stir to combine. Sprinkle the yeast on top and let it sit for 10 minutes, until the yeast is foamy.

On low speed, mix in 1 cup flour until combined. Mix in the salt and four more cups of flour until combined, about 30 seconds, then beat on medium-low speed for 1 ½ minutes until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Knead in another ½ cup of flour for a minute on low speed. Depending on your dough, you can knead another ½ cup of flour. Knead for 30 seconds, until combined, then transfer to a floured board and knead 10 times until smooth.

Coat the sides and bottom of a large bowl with oil. Transfer the pretzel dough to the bowl, turning it so that all sides of dough are coated with oil. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel and let rise in a warm spot for an hour, or until the dough doubles in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line two to three baking sheets with parchment paper, or spray with cooking spray.

Punch down the dough. Knead it once or twice on a lightly floured surface, then divide into sixteen 2 ½ ounce pieces. Keep the pieces wrapped in plastic so they don’t dry out.

Roll each piece of dough into an 18 inch long strip and twist into a pretzel. Place on the prepared baking sheet and cover with a kitchen towel. Let the pretzels rest for 15 minutes.

Fill a large, shallow pot with a couple inches of water and bring to a boil. Add the baking soda (it’ll foam up) and the last 2 tablespoons of sugar. Reduce to a simmer and poach the pretzels – cook 3 to 4 at a time, a minute on each side. Transfer to the baking sheet with a slotted spoon.

Beat the egg with a tablespoon of water and brush over the poached pretzels. You can sprinkle them with toppings – grated cheese, cinnamon sugar, salt. My favorite pretzels were almond. I mixed a few spoonfuls of brown sugar and water, and added chopped almonds. Bake the pretzels until golden brown, 12-15 minutes, and cool on wire racks. I thought they were best warm and fresh, but you can keep them uncovered for up to two days.

[morethanburnttoast]

Your blog is algebraic

Haha thanks Finn! You're phantasmagorical.

[morethanburnttoast]

Upcoming Baking Adventures

Hoping to make traditional Irish soda bread this week.

And for the end of the month, per request by my sister-in-law, oatmeal-raisin chocolate chip walnut cookies, almond cupcakes with fresh raspberry frosting (garnished with crushed toasted almonds) and either jumbo pumpkin muffins with a drizzled maple/caramel glaze or apple bread with the same glaze.

My oven's gonna get some serious lovin'

[morethanburnttoast]

That's exactly what it looks like. A giant s'more... cake. I've always wanted to make something like this and found it over at The Birthday Blog and couldn't resist. Challenge accepted for a dear friend's birthday. So my handsome-devil-sous-chef-boyfriend and I created probably the most awesome cake ever.

I chose to use actual chocolate for the s'more. If you don't want to deal with melting it down and everything, you could also use chocolate frosting.

Melt one large (24oz) bag of semi-sweet chocolate morsels, stirring until it is smooth and then pour it into a pan lined with wax paper. Let it set up. It may take several hours. I let it cool a bit and then tossed it in the fridge for about an hour, removing again to let it finish harden on its own. After it hardens if it has streaks, get a dry rag and "buff" the chocolate. The streaking is usually only on the surface and you can lessen the streaks by doing this.

GIANT GRAHAM CRACKER RECIPE

2 sticks of butter

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup dark corn syrup

Cream these together and then add

2 tsp baking soda

4 cups flour

4 tablespoons water

Chill for 30 minutes before rolling out on wax paper and then cut the dough to be about 9 inches by 10 inches.

I used the end of a wooden spoon to make that pattern like on a real graham cracker.

Bake each cracker for 15 minutes each at 375 degrees.  This way they will be hard enough to hold their shape and crunchy like a cracker. If you want it softer (like a sugar cookie) bake it for less time. I baked the bottom cracker for 15 minutes and the top for 18 to ensure it wouldn't flop. (Note: Make sure they're cooled completely before moving them or else they might crack)

We made a two-layered round white cakes and frosted it with vanilla frosting. You can either make your own cake/frosting or just used the boxed kind. We had the idea to put marshmallow cream between the two cakes but time was on our heels and we had to head out the door... sounds yummy though.

Anyway, the cake was a huge hit and everyone wanted s'more of it. I wish I had better pictures of it - if any are sent to me I'll be sure to post them!

Serving Note: I removed the top graham cracker and sliced the cake normally. Each piece was served with a broken piece of the graham cracker and a piece of the chocolate.

[morethanburnttoast]

Mind-Blowing Banana Walnut Chocolcate Chunk Jumbo Muffins

Mouthful, right? Well.. they were the most delectable mouthful of choco-nutty banana goodness I’ve had in quite some time.

I also tested out using my own “muffin cup liners” to give it a more artisanal look and they came out surprisingly well and looked like ones you’d get in a swanky West Village cafe.

Anyway… the recipe was super easy and instead of using white flour I highly advise using wheat.Also, as you can see I used cream cheese… it kept them super moist inside without crumbling apart.

You’re gonna go bananas for these muffins… it’s on like Donkey Kong.

The Most Awesome Banana Walnut Chocolate Chunk Mind-Blowing Jumbo Muffins Adapted from Taste of Home Makes 1 loaf, 6 jumbo muffins or 12 regular muffins

Ingredients 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 4 ounces cream cheese, softened 1 cup sugar 1 egg 1 cup mashed ripe bananas 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (again, I advise using wheat!) 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup chopped walnuts, divided 1 cup chocolate chips/chunks (save 1/4-1/2 cup to garnish on top before baking)

Method In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add egg, beating well.  Beat in bananas and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; add to creamed mixture.  Fold in 1/2 cup walnuts and 1/2 cup chocolate chips/chunks.

Transfer to a greased 8x4x2-inch loaf pan or greased muffin tin.  Sprinkle with remaining walnuts and chocolate chips/chunks.  Bake at 350F for 1 to 1 1/4 hours for a loaf, 30 minutes for jumbo muffins or 20-22 minutes for regular muffins, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

[morethanburnttoast]

I didn't think I could love you more than I do but now you have this awesome cooking/food blog. As someone who is trying to live a healthier lifestyle, do you have any recommendations for working out as well? I'm getting pretty bored of the elliptical machine.

Aww yaay! haha That just made me so happy. And totally... I've realized that a healthier lifestyle is really 80% of what you eat and 20% working out so do your best to cut out excess sugars/salt. As for working out, I've become a fan of running but it took me awhile to get there. I'd go for super long walks and light walk/jogs and over time made my way to a steady run. I'd also recommending simple things like taking the stairs everywhere, some pushups/crunches/lunges in the morning to get the blood flowing... even jumping jacks! You have to switch up your work out routine or else your body will simply adjust to it. Try taking a kickboxing or zumba class. Those are so much fun. <3

[morethanburnttoast]

Saturday night was so much fun. I loved being all cute and cooking dinner with the boyfriend (insert adorable and cheesy aww's). We decided to make these scrumptious Crab Tostadas that we found in the cook book my mom gave me for Christmas. The recipe serves 8, but we devoured everything like sea-cows. For dessert, we dipped fresh blackberries in dark chocolate and enjoyed the meal with a bottle of white wine.

Anyway, it's a super easy recipe. Perfect for those not big on cooking and a lot of fun to make together so nobody's getting crabby in the kitchen.

You'll need:

1lb lump crab

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

3 plum tomatoes, cut, seeded/cleaned out and diced

3 tablespoons finely chopped red onion

1 ripe avocado, thinly sliced or in small cubes

1 jalapeno, finely chopped

The zest and juice from 2 limes (buy a third to slice and have on the side)

2 tablespoons mayo (we left this out)

1 tablespoon olive oil

Dash of sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)

6" flour tortillas, lightly fried in canola oil

To fry the tortillas, put about 1/2 cup of oil in a deep pan on high heat. It'll be hot enough when you flick some water into the oil and it sizzles immediately. Place the tortilla in the oil to lightly brown on one side, flip and fry the other side. Place on paper towels, leaving a paper towel in between each fried tortilla to absorb the excess oil.

Before using the crab, be sure to check it for cartilage. When it's set to go, take the remaining ingredients and toss gently in a large bowl. Serve on top of your fried tortilla and garnish with additional cilantro, sea salt, pepper and a lime wedge. We also tossed some hot sauce on them.

[morethanburnttoast]

I made this Broccoli Crunch Slaw that I found on Everybody Likes Sandwiches. Only thing I changed was using non-fat greek yogurt and not a full 1/4 cup of onions. Next time I might substitute the rather overbearing red onion for shallots...

But it was definitely scrumptious and I'll be making it again!

broccoli crunch slaw 1 large head of broccoli 1/4 red onion, diced 1/4 c roasted almonds, coarsely chopped 1/4 c dried cranberries 2 T greek yogurt 2 T mayo juice of 1/2 lemon (or the whole thing, depending on taste) couple of dashes of hot sauce a small squirt of honey salt & pepper to taste

Use a large knife to thinly chop up the broccoli into a rough slaw. Dump into a medium sized bowl along with the red onion, almonds, and cranberries. Put the remaining ingredients into a small jar with a lid and shake. Taste & adjust seasoning if necessary. Pour onto broccoli slaw and toss until everything is coated.