Eggplant Parmesan

So Chris first made this for me for Valentine's dinner this past Valentine's. I was quite impressed he came up with making Eggplant Parmesan for me and then even more impressed with how much I loved it! In fact, I've been thinking about making it a lot lately, I just need to remember to get more eggplant!

Instead of your traditional Eggplant Parmesan, this is a little different as it's layered almost like lasagna...and actually the last time I made it I had the idea to add a cottage cheese layer the next time I make it. I added it this time and it was delicious! Feel free to omit the cottage cheese layer if you like;)

Eggplant Parmesan
1 large eggplant, peeled and thinly sliced
3 eggs, beaten
1 1/3 cups Italian seasoned bread crumbs, approximately (I don't measure but just use as much as needed)
3 1/2 cups Rose sauce, (you can also use regular spaghetti sauce, but we prefer the rose sauce), approximately
1 1/2 - 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, approximately (again I don't measure but use as much as needed)
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese, approximately
1/8 tsp dried basil

Optional cottage cheese layer:
16 oz cottage cheese
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Dip eggplant slices in beaten egg, then in bread crumbs. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with PAM. Bake in the preheated oven for about 10 minutes on each side.

In a 9x9 inch baking dish (that has been sprayed with PAM) cover the bottom of the dish with a thin layer of spaghetti sauce. Then place a layer of eggplant slices in the sauce and sprinkle with the mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses. Repeat the sauce, eggplant, cheese layers, ending with the cheeses on top. Sprinkle basil on top.

Optional cottage cheese layer:
Add a layer of the cottage cheese mixture sprinkled with a little mozzarella cheese in place of one or two of the cheese layers.

Cover with tin foil and bake for 35 minutes. Then remove the tin foil and bake for another 10 - 15 minutes or until golden brown.

*Note: If you don't slice the eggplant thinly enough you might want to bake the dish for an extra 10-15 minutes, as you want to make sure the eggplant is tender before removing the tin foil and baking for the additional 10-15 mins.

Enjoy!

The "I'm Addicted" Chocolate Cupcakes

My sister Rachel is a professional cake decorator and made these cupcakes for our wedding (the first pic). Chris absolutely LOVED them and was thrilled to find a number of them in the freezer waiting for us when we got home from our honeymoon (thanks to my mum for saving them for him).

I made them for Chris as a surprise on our first Valentine's Day thanks to Rachel sending me the recipe. Then I made them for him again this past Valentine's Day and decided I was addicted to them so they've been a staple in our freezer ever since. (They freeze perfectly, you just pull them out of the freezer about 1/2 hour before you want to eat one and voila...fresh yummy addicting cupcakes).

The funny thing is it's only been since this last Valentine's Day that I've become addicted to them...for some reason I'm way more into chocolate now than I ever used to be. In fact, I think I like them even more than Chris now which I wouldn't have thought was possible.

You can use any chocolate cake recipe for the cupcakes, but since Sarah discovered the Extreme Chocolate Cake recipe that's the only one I use. It really is the best.

The "I'm Addicted" Chocolate Cupcakes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two muffin tins with liners and then spray with PAM. Make the Extreme Chocolate Cake recipe and pour into each muffin cup. The easiest and non-messiest way I have found to do this is to fill up a large 2 or 4 cup measuring cup with the batter and then pour the batter in to each cup. Be sure not to fill each cup more than 3/4 full as they will overflow and spread flat (instead of making a nice round top like most cupcakes/muffins). Cook the cupcakes for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted in middle comes out clean.

Remove cupcakes from the pan and cool on a metal rack. Once cooled, fill with chocolate ganache and then frost with Chocolate Buttercream Icing. Then try to eat just one..I dare you;)

If you're feeling really fancy you can top the cupcakes with strawberries dipped in chocolate (Rachel used Dove dark chocolate, but Chris and I like milk chocolate more than dark chocolate, so I use Dove milk chocolate).

Chocolate Ganache/Truffle Filling

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream (6 oz)

8 oz (8 squares) semi-sweet or dark Bakers chocolate, depending on your preference

1 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

Chop the chocolate into fine pieces and put in a bowl, along with the vanilla and salt. Heat the heavy cream in a saucepan until hot, but not boiling (you will see bubbles forming just around the edges which will tell you it's hot enough). Pour hot cream over chocolate. Let sit for 30 sec or so and then whisk until the chocolate is melted. Cover and refrigerate until it reaches the desired consistency, approximately 2 -3 hours.

Fill a pastry / icing bag with the ganache and using a decorative tip with a large hole fill each cupcake with some ganache. (You'll use the tip to make a hole in the middle of the cupcake and then insert the tip in to the cupcake about 1/2 inch and squeeze some of the ganache into the hole. You'll know when it's enough as the ganache will start coming out the top.)

*Note: If the ganache is left too long in the fridge and you're unable to squeeze it through the pastry bag, let it sit at room temperature for 10 - 15 minutes and try again. You can also handle the bag a little and it will soften from the heat of your hands.

*Note: If filling 24 cupcakes you will most likely have a little ganache left over. No worries, you can keep it in the fridge and eat it with a spoon;) Or spread it on graham crackers or of course use it in another recipe. However, if you're a little more conservative in how much ganache filling you put in to each cupcake you can get away with halving the recipe: 3 oz heavy whipping cream, 4 oz (4 squares) semi-sweet or dark Baker's chocolate, 1/2 tsp vanilla, smallest amount of salt.

Chocolate Buttercream Icing

4 cups icing sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup shortening

1/2 - 3/4 cup cocoa powder (depends on how chocolate-y you want it) or 3 oz unsweetened chocolate squares, melted
1 tsp vanilla

3-4 tbsp milk (just enough to get to the right spreading consistency)

In a large bowl or Kitchen Aid, cream together shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add cocoa powder and vanilla and beat till smooth. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Fill a pastry / icing bag with the icing and then using whatever decorative tip you'd like, frost the cupcakes.

*Note: Keep bowl of icing covered with a damp cloth when not in use.

*Note: Icing should be refrigerated in an airtight container when not in use and can be stored for up to 2 weeks. To use after icing has been refrigerated, return to room temperature and re-whip.

The Bestest Carrot Cake...yum, yum

Ok, so I've been craving and wanting to make Carrot Cake forever...well maybe not forever, but for a very very very long time. Don't ask me why I haven't done it before today, because I seriously love it...and with the cream cheese icing...yum, yum as Winnie the Pooh would say (can you tell we watch a lot of Winnie the Pooh at our house?).

This recipe is an old one from when I was living at home, with some changes of course... like the brown sugar (as I really liked how it worked in the Zucchini Bread a couple weeks ago), the pineapple (as I love it in the Best Banana Bread recipe) and then of course substituting half the oil with applesauce.

Carrot Cake

4 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil *optional: 1/2 cup oil, 1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup milk
1 cup white sugar
2/3 cups brown sugar
2 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 generous tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup (8 oz can) crushed pineapple, juice drained *optional
3 cups shredded carrots
*optional: 1 cup chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, etc)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare desired pans (2 - 9 " round or square) by spraying with PAM and covering with a light layer of sugar.

Beat the eggs, oil (and applesauce), milk, sugar and vanilla together until well combined.

In a separate bowl add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and stir together then add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat until well combined.

Add in the pineapple and shredded carrots and mix thoroughly.

Bake for 40-45 minutes until toothpick inserted in comes out clean. Cool cakes for approximately 10 minutes before removing the cakes from pans and then cool completely.

Frost the cake after it has cooled completely.

*Note: I made one 9 " square pan and then 6 large cupcakes today. The cupcakes take approximately 25-28 mins to cook.

Cream Cheese Icing
8 oz Cream cheese or Neufchatel cheese, softened
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups icing sugar

Cream the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth, then add in the icing sugar one cup at a time and beat in between each cup until smooth and fluffy.

*Note: Just beware this is quite sweet with the icing... in fact I almost couldn't finish the piece shown in the picture above. So go small and then go back for seconds if you like, or don't put as much icing on;)

Enjoy!