her baking & his cooking

she bakes. he cooks. we eat.

our: weekly menu

we’re getting back to it, folks.  cooking at home.  saving money. and eating right.  the boy likes to get caught up in fad diets. those aren’t really my favorite.  i like food too much for all that paleo-i’m only allowed to eat sticks-diet nonsense.  but, i’m totally down for making healthy choices and  tasty dishes.  

on sunday, we went through a few of our favorite cookbooks & magazines and put together a weekly menu.  

the plan to is to post the weekly menu on sundays and post dinner & recipes throughout the week.  hopefully it works out that way.  *fingers*crossed*

cookbooks/magazines:

happy monday! 

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her: lemon & poppy seed mini cupcakes

the little one turned 14 this weekend.  14. it blows my mind how grown up he is.  makes me sad & happy all at the same time.  he’s one of my most favorite people in the whole wide world.  so when he asked for lemon & poppy seed cupcakes for his birthday… duh, i made it happen. 

ps. what kid asks for lemon & poppy seed cake for their birthday? this kid does. oh, franco.

the cake was delish. light, fresh & zesty. perfect for a hot, sunny, PNW day!  

cheers to the little one’s 14th year of life! 

recipe source: always with butter

ps. happy mother’s day to all the mommas out there! 

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His: Portuguese Mac’N’Cheese

I have many restaurant ideas in this noggin of mine and one of them is a Mac’N’Cheesery. I’d pretty much just serve all kinds of mac’n’cheese…and I’d make them sort of fancy. People love a good mac’n’cheese because it’s one of those comfort foods that’s great all year ‘round.

This is one of those mac’n’cheese ideas. I called it Portuguese because I put portuguese sausage in it. Other than that I don’t really know how else it’s Portuguese. 

What’s inside:

Cavatapi noodles

Colby jack cheese

Cheddar cheese

Pepper jack cheese

Bell peppers

Shallots

Cilantro

Queso fresco

Butter

Milk

The first time I made mac’n’cheese it didn’t go well but that’s because I didn’t make a roux. Roux!! That’s the trick! Saute the shallots in about a tablespoon or so of butter and let it all melt get cozy. THEN add about a tablespoon of FLOUR to let it thicken up. After about a minute you can then add your milk. Let that warm up and THEN add your cheese.

That whole process took me a bit but I feel like I’ve got down pretty solid. Mac’N’Cheese ain’t no big deal. It’s actually pretty simple.

Once you’ve created the cheese sauce, add in your noodles and whatever else you wish to put in and give it a good mix. Then put it in a baking dish and make for about 10-15 minutes at 400 degrees. No big.

-‘til the next dish-

her: vanilla bean cupcakes

i just love these. that’s all.

i love the uncomplicated, fluffy, moist, bouncy vanilla cake.

i love the little flecks of vanilla bean that make everything just a tad bit sophisticated.

i love the bright, beautiful vanilla buttercream. 

i love the little heart sprinkles.

i love the classic vanilla/vanilla combo.

love.

recipe source: my baking addiction 

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her: salted chocolate chip cookies

this batch of cookies. is my new favorite thing. in the whole wide world. 

i didn’t use the cocoa nibs that the recipe calls for… not because i didn’t want to use them, but because my trader joe’s only had cocoa nibs that were covered in dark chocolate. which seems like a good idea, but with all the flavors in this cookie already, i didn’t want to add another dimension.  i’ll probably use those cocoa nibs for biscotti-or something like that.

but, back to these cookies. please use the walnuts. even if you’re not a huge fan of nuts in your cookies. and then, please toast the walnuts. use good chocolate. none of that milk chocolate, nestle stuff. (which i’m not hating on completely-because i love me some nestle every once in a while. but not in these) and then. add the sprinkle of sea salt. 

these cookies have so many complimentary flavors. each little bite is like a surprise. if we’re internet friends, then you’ll like these. if you don’t like these, then we shouldn’t be internet friends. just sayin’

recipe source: design sponge/jennifer martine 

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His: Chicken and Bell Pepper Ravioli

Hello!!!

It’s been a while but don’t you worry, I’m still alive and cookin’!

This dish is really quite simple when you think about it. You start off my making your home made pasta. I make mine as such:

  • 1 cup of regular flour
  • 1 cup of semolina flour
  • 4 eggs
  • Tablespoon olive oil
  • Salt to taste

Check this out, I got a ravioli press to speed up the process and it’s super awesome!! Just roll out the dough a usual, make it pretty thin since you’re essentially doubling up the dough. Lay one strip down and them fill with the filling. Lay the top strip of dough on top and then cut it with a rolling pin. *Be sure to get rid of as much air the the ravioli as possible to keep it from popping.

The filling is simple!

  • Grilled chicken
  • Orange bell pepper
  • Oregano
  • Parmesan
  • Salt
  • Pepper

Finely chop those ingredients together to alllmost a sort of paste like texture and then add about a quarter cup of cream to bind it. It’s simple!

-‘til the next dish-

her: banana bread

sometimes you find a recipe that is no fuss with amazing results. hello, banana bread.

no kitchen aid? no big deal. all you need is a wooden spoon.  no fancy ingredients?  no big deal. all you need for this little loaf of wonder is a batch of ripe bananas, butter, flour, sugar, eggs, baking soda, vanilla extract and a pinch of salt.  stuff i always have in the kitchen anyways.  it takes 5 mins to whip up and an hour to bake.  

that hour? heavenly. you’ll figure out why soon enough.

recipe source: simply recipes

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her: creme brulee

we’re officially the worst bloggers in the history of life.  i applaud folks who have the time to blog regularly.  i try. i think about it. i bake. i take pics and then say, i know i should blog about this. but, i don’t. so, i apologize. we’re a work in progress!  

do you like creme brûlée? i one of my favorite desserts, ever. the little flecks of vanilla bean, the crunch from the caramelized sugar and the creaminess of the custard makes my heart go pitter patter. and seriously, who doesn’t love using a little butane torch?  best. thing. ever.

it’s a little time consuming but totally worth it. i usually make the custard in the morning and then let it cool/settle in the refrigerator for the rest of the day. you can leave it in the refridgerator for up to 3 days, but be sure to let it rest on counter for a few minutes before you caramelize the sugar.

anyways. i hope that you’re enjoying the first signs of spring. the weather in WA has been a little fickle… but when it’s nice-it’s sooooooooo nice.

see what i mean?

we may not be here as often as we’d like… but, we are on instagram (jenmagofna & paolocampbell) and the boy started his own blog as a part of his new years resolution… it’s just a random hodge-podge of his daily thoughts.  

recipe source: alton brown/food network

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her: strawberry cheesecake cupcakes

so here’s the thing about these cupcakes.  i think they’re my new favorite.  they’re so fresh… they remind me of summer-and warshington has been pretty friendly with the sun lately so it’s a win/win situmation.   the strawberry flavor is subtle and mixed with the cream cheese, it’s almost like strawberry ice cream.  

which is almost like the best thing, ever. 

btw. i’m working on finding some new words. obviously there’s more than delicious out there.  wonderful? amazing? fantastic?

…it’ll happen. 

recipe source: joylicious

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