#andriacooks

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Vanilla Bean Custard Parfait

(Recipe by @andriaorganichomecooking)

When it’s too cold to go outside, you stay in and make delicious desserts! This is my vanilla bean Custard or pastry cream, layered with crushed graham crackers and fresh berries. You can substitute the graham crackers with granola as well or Oreo cookie crumbs…the possibilities are endless! I hope you love this recipe as much as I do! It’s one of my family favourites! Enjoy! If you make it, let me know how it turns out!

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups of cold whole milk

1/2 cup sugar

1 vanilla bean - split and seeds scraped

Pinch of salt

4 large egg yolks

1/4 cup corn starch

2 tbs of unsalted butter

1 package of graham crackers

1 cup of strawberries sliced

1/2 cup of fresh blueberries

1/2 cup of blackberries

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a medium saucepan, combine milk, 1/4 cup sugar, vanilla bean and the seeds you scraped out of the vanilla bean, and salt. Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a simmer then remove from heat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks, cornstarch, and remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Whisking constantly, slowly pour about 1/2 cup of the hot-milk mixture into the egg-yolk mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, until it’s fully mixed.

Then pour mixture back into saucepan, and cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until it thickens (approx 2-3 minutes). Remove and discard vanilla bean.

Transfer to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the butter, and beat on medium speed until the butter melts and the mixture cools, about 5 minutes.

Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours. Just before using, beat on low speed until smooth (you can also whisk by hand).

To make the parfaits, use a dessert jar, or I always use a mason jar. First add a layer of crushed graham crackers, then a layer of the vanilla custard, add some berries and repeat the layers until the jar is filled. Top with some more berries and a whole graham and serve right away. Don’t let it sit too long as it will make the graham crackers soggy.

Makes small jars, enjoy!

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Lemon Cake

Recipe by @Andria.cooks

When life gives you lemons, you make lemon cake! I guess I just have a lemon zest for life :)

I'm so excited to share with you this recipe, I've been working on this lemon cake for a long time but I keep going back to this rendition as it always turns out the best. So moist, tangy and sweet. It reminds me of a copy cat of the Starbucks Lemon Loaf.

The trick to this lemon cake is the greek yogurt and using lots of lemon zest! I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! If you make it, let me know what you think!

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup butter (room temp)

1 cup of granulated sugar

2 large eggs (room temp)

2 tbs of lemon zest (1 medium lemon)

1 tbs of lemon juice

1 tsp lemon extract

1 1/2 cups flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup greek yogurt (lemon flavour)

DIRECTIONS:

1) Preheat the ovent to bake at 325F on regular bake mode, not convection.

2) Line a baking loaf pan with parchment paper and set aside

3) In a stand mixer with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high speed, this takes roughly 2-3 minutes.

4) Once your butter and sugar is creamed together, add in the lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon extract and mix well for a minute or until combined

5) In a seperate bowl, add in the flour, baking soda, baking powder and mix by hand with a whisk until its combined.

6) Slowly combine the flour to the wet ingredients, by adding in half the flour mixture at a time, mix well then scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl to make sure it's all combined, then repeat by adding the remaining flour mixture and mix again until combined. (1-2 mins). Once its mixed, again with a spatula, clean the sides of the bowl and srape the bottom to ensure its all mixed together.

7) The last step is to add in the greek yogurt, I use lemon flavoured greek yogurt, it just adds that perfect lemon flavour to this cake along with the moistness. Combine into the batter and give it a quick mix until its combined

8) Pour the batter into the lined loaf pan and bake at 325F for 50-60 mins or until golden brown. Before removing from the oven, insert a tooth pick to ensure it comes out clean.

Enjoy!

Serves 8

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Home Made Donuts (Copy Cat Krispy Kreme)

(Recipe by @andria.cooks)

These donuts are so delicious! Not intentional, but they tasted just like Krispy Kreme donuts, so I call them my copy cat Krispy Kreme donuts. They are so perfectly cripsy on the outside and so light and fluffy on the inside it literally melts in your mouth! I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as I do! If you make them, let me know how it turns out! It makes approximately a dozen donuts

INGREDIENTS:

4 1/2 cups of flour

2 Tbs yeast

1 cup warm water

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup of milk (warmed)

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

2 cups of vegetable oil

VANILLA GLAZE:

3 cus of powdered sugar

1/2 cup water/milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

CHOCOLATE GLAZE:

1 package of high quality milk chocolate, melted

2 tbs of butter, melted

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. In a stand mixeer, mix the warm water, yeast and 1 tbs of sugar and let sit for 5-10 mins and then add in remaining sugarr, salt, warm milk, butter, eggs and egg yolks.

2. Add in the flour and mix in mixer with dough hook on low speed until dough comes together. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 5 mins, the dough should not be dry, it should feel tacky to touch. Place it in a large oiled mixing bow and allow to rise for 1 hour in a warm place. (Do not cover)

3. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and roll out to 1/2 in thickness and cut out the donut shapes using a donut cutter, if you don't have a donut cutter, you can use a large measure cup or glass and just cut out the middle whole with a knife or a small bottle lid. Once they are cut, allow the donuts to rise for another 20-30 mins.

4. Heat the oil in a medium size sauce pan over medium-low heat. Fry donuts until lightly golden brown, then flip to the other side. Once the other side is brown, remove with stainer and transfer to cooling rack to allow oil to drip off. You can fry 2-3 donuts at a time. Repeat until alll the donuts are cooked.

5. While donuts are cooling, you can make the glaze by mixing the powedered sugar, water and vanilla extract until smooth (no lumps) Then dip in each donut until both sides are covered. Let excess glaze drip off and then place back on the rack to dry. For the chocoate glaze, melt the chocolate on a doule boiler until melted, add in the butter and dip the donuts on the top, letting the excess chocolate drip off, then set back on the cooling rack for the chocolate to set. Then serve! Enjoy

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Classic Italian Pasta Carbonara

(Recipe by Andria.Cooks)

You know what they say, when in Rome! So when I was in Rome, I tried a lot of pasta dishes, but I kept coming back to Pasta Carbonara, it’s such a simple sauce and so delicious! Although I didn’t actually get any recipes, I recreated my favorite version simply by taste. It came pretty close to what I had in Italy! I hope you enjoy the recipe! If you make it, let me know how it turns out!

INGREDIENTS (I use organic)

350g of dried pasta

5 egg yolks from large eggs

1 cup of Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano

1 tsp of garlic puréed

1 cup of chopped pancetta

1/2 cup sliced mushroos

1/4 cup of sweet peas

Salt

Pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

In a large pot, bring salted water to a boil and cook the pasta as per the instructions.

In a mixing bowl, add the egg yolks of 5 eggs and beat until mixed. Add in the puréed garlic, a pinch of salt and pepper and 1 cup of shredded Padano or Parmigiano cheese. Mix thoroughly and Ser aside.

Slice the pancetta into small pieces and along with the mushrooms and peas, fry on medium heat until the pancetta is crispy. Remove and place on a paper towel to drain the oil.

Drain pasta from the water. Keep a cup of pasta broth and set aside. Add pasta to the egg mixture and toss until Coated. Slowly add a little of the pasta broth until it loosens the sauce and the coat on the pasta is shiny. Add the crumbled pancetta mushrooms and peas, mix together, Plate and top with more shredded cheese and serve.

Makes 2 servings

Enjoy!

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Shortbread (No bake) Cheese Cake Tarts

(Recipe by Andria.cooks)

With holiday season upon us, one of my favorite and often requested holiday desserts are my Shortbread cheese cake tarts. This easy no bake cheesecake recipe is a delicious idea for all those cheese cake lovers out there that are intimindated about baking cheese cake. The creamcheese filling is whipped to perfection, you almost can't tell the difference between the cheesecake filling and the whipped cream! A decadeant delight that will keep you coming back for more. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do! You can see the full video of the step by step making of these tarts on my instagram page [email protected].

If you make them, tag me and let me know how they turn out! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

Shortbread cups:

1 cup unsalted butter (Room temperature)

1/2 cup of powdered sugar

1 tsp of vanilla extract

2 cups of flour

__________________________

Remaining ingredients:

2 cups of whipping cream

1/4 cup of powdered sugar

1 package of cream cheese

1/2 cup of sugar

1 tsp of vanilla bean extact

1/2 cup of graham crackers (finley crushed)

2-3 tbs of melted butter

1 cup of Fresh Strawberries (Pre washed and dried)

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat the oven to bake at 350 and grease the inside of a 12 cupcake pan and set aside.

In a stand mixer add the butter to the mixing bowl and sift in the 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and beat on high speed until light and fluffly. Add in the vanilla extract and in 1 cup of flour, mix until combined then add the second cup of flour and mix on low speed until the dough is formed.

On a floured surface, add the dough and using a rolling pin (dust with flour first), roll out the dough until it's about 1/4 inch thick. I use a water drinking glass to cut the round shape of the dough so each one slides in nicely to the muffin tray spots. You may have to roll out the dough a couple of times to get the 12 circles.

Once the dough is spread out in each muffin hole, using a fork, pierce the bottoms of the dough to ensure it doesn't lift too much when baking and bake at 350 for about 15 -20 min (watch them, they will start to brown, you want to pull them out when they are a light golden brown. *Its important you let them cool completely before you try and remove them from the muffin tray*. Once they are cooled, they will pop right out by gently insterting a sharp knife along the edges. Set aside until they are ready to fill.

In a small mixing bowl, add the graham cracker crumbs and 2 tbs of melted butter and mix until it's all crumbly, it sould only be slightly wet, if it's too wet, add a little more of the crumb mixture. Using a teaspoon, fill the bottom of the shortbread cup and compact down, this will give you a 1/4 inch of graham cracker crust. Repeat until each shortbread cup is filled.

In a seperate mixing bowl, cold whipping cream and beat at a high speed for 2 mins, it will start to form, then add the sifteded powdered sugar and continue to whip until stiff peaks form on the whipping cream. Put the whipped cream into the fridge until you are ready to use it.

In a seperate mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla bean extract and whip on high speed for 2-3 mins. Then add in 1 cup of the whipped cream from the fridge fold in until mixed then whip for an additional minute. Remove from mixer stand and add to a pipping bag with a star tip. I let it set in the pipping bag for an hour in the fridge before I pipe it into the shortbreaad cups.

Once the cream cheese filling is set, pipe into each short bread cup and top with a spoon of whipped cream (I usually pipe the whip cream on top as well) and a freshly sliced strawberry. Repeate until all 12 cups are filled. Place on a tray and refridgerate until ready to serve.

Makes 12

Enjoy!

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Breaded Baked Crispy Chicken

(Recipe by @andria.cooks)

Chicken is one of those dishes you can only make so many ways and get bored of easily. But some classics you never get tired of. This is the crispiest chicken without deep frying! The trick is in how you bread it and then I then shallow fry the chicken to get to outside browned then bake in the oven until cooked. It keeps the chicken very juicy on the inside and so crispy on the outside you will think it’s deep fried but without all that extra fat. I'm so happy to share my recipe with you all, its gauranteed to come out perfectly each time! Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS: (I use organic ingredients)

6-8 chicken drums/thights with skin on

1 cup of all purpose flour

2 eggs

1 cup of seasoned bread crumbs

1/2 cup of freshly grated parmigiana cheese

Salt

Peppr

Freshly chopped parsley

olive oil

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to Roast at 375F

2. In a shallow bowl, add the cup of flour, season with a little salt and pepper and mix with a whisk. In a another shallow bowl, crack the 2 eggs and beat until mixed, again season with salt and pepper. In a third shallow bowl, add the seasoned breadcrumbs, if you use plain, I season with, salt, pepper, garlic poweder, onion powder, thyme, parsley and cayenne. Add in the grated parmigiana cheese and set aside.

3. line up the 3 bowls in order of 1) flour, 2) eggs and 3) breadcrumbs. First dip the chicken in the flour, make sure it's fully coated and dust off any excess flour. Then dip immediately into the eggs, coaiting it fully, then move over and dip into the breadcrumb mixture and coat the chicken drum completely until its coverd, then set asidee on a seperate dish, and repeat until all the chicken is coated.

4. In a large frying pan, turn to medium heat and add in a drizzle of olive oil just to coat the bottom of the pan, add in all the chicken drums and brown the skin, turning over every 2 mins until all sides are brown. Transfer to an oven saf dish, and bake at 375F for 20-30 mins, you will see the skin at the end of the drums pull off the bone.

Serve with roasted potatoes/grilled veggies. The chicken will be so tender and juicy on the inside and super crispy on the outside. Top with a little fresly chopped parsley and a little more parmigiana cheese and serve.

Enjoy!

[andriaorganichomecooking]

Pecan Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

(Recipe by Andria.cooks)

INGREDIENTS:

½ cup of organic butter melted

½ cup organic brown sugar

½ cup organic raw sugar cane

2 organic eggs

1 tsp organic Madagascar vanilla extract (or vanilla extract)

¼ tsp of organic cinnamon

1 ½ organic all purpose flour

1 tsp organic baking soda

½ tsp pink Himalayan salt (or sea salt)

½ cup organic sour cream/Greek yogurt

¼ cup chopped organic pecans

¼ cup chocolate chips

2 medium ripe bananas

INSTRUCTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (grease loaf pan or add parchment Paper)

In a stand mixer, mix melted butter and sugar until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Combine flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and add slowly to butter mixture. Mix on low speed until smooth. Add the Smashed up the bananas and mix until combined (don’t over mix)

Remove from stand and fold in sour cream, chopped pecans and chocolate chips and spread evenly into loaf pan. Add a few more chocolate chips and pecan pieces to the top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 50- 60 mins until golden brown. Check the centre with a tooth pick and if it comes out clean, it’s ready. Cool in loaf pan for 10 mins before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Enjoy! And let me know what you think?