White Chocolate Covered Brownie Bites

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Well, what do you do when you set out to make brownies and then they don't release from your pan? This is what happened to me a couple of months ago. We were having company for dinner on a Sunday and the kids wanted to make a last minute dessert. I usually have a box of brownie mix in the house just in case we need a chocolate fix so I decided to make those. Instead of making them in a square pan, we decided to make them in the mini muffin pan instead so that they were smaller servings. I did spray the pans with cooking spray, but for some reason when they came out and cooled, they were breaking in half and didn't want to release themselves from the bottom of the pan. Normally, I would have just thrown them away or threw them in a bowl to pick on, but I decided to make these brownie bites out of them. This particular brand of brownie mix from Betty Crocker is the only kind I buy and it's loaded with chocolate chunks and is so moist..all the time, every time. Because of this, I didn't even need to add anything to it! Just rolled them into balls, dipped them into chocolate and voila! Instant dessert. 

White Chocolate Covered Brownie Bites
1 Box Betty Crocker Hershey's Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix
6 oz. White Chocolate, melted

Prepare brownies as directed and let cool. Add the brownies to a bowl and using your hands (make sure they're clean!), crush them up and form into 1" round balls. Place on a baking sheet covered with wax paper and put in the freezer for 30 minutes. Melt chocolate and dip each brownie ball into the melted chocolate. Place back on the wax paper and refrigerate until ready to serve. Makes approximately 2 dz. bites. 

Enjoy!

Week 29: Seafood Frenzy Friday

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Welcome to Week 29 of Seafood Frenzy Friday where I select seafood recipes from some of my food blogging friends to showcase for all of you since I don't eat any fish myself. Simply click on the name of the recipe underneath the picture to be taken to the author's original post.  ENJOY! 

The Cooking PhotographerSpicy Skillet Red Snapper with Tomatoes, Olives and Garlic
The Kitchen Wife of a Navy WifeMacaroni Shrimp Salad
Lisa is CookingScallops with Blood Orange and Campari Granita
Forks and KissesOrecchiette Pasta with Salmon
The Healthy FoodieCalamari, Roasted Bell Peppers and Pickled Red Onions Salad
Rustic Garden BistroDiver Scallops with Caramel, Mandarin and Soy Sauce
Kristine's Cooking BlogTilapia with Avocado-Pineapple Salsa
Hun What's for Dinner?Grilled Chili Lime Shrimp
Just One CookbookBlack Cod with Miso
Guilty KitchenHow to fillet and pin bone a whole salmon and Salmon Salad

The Big Reveal!

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Well, after 50 days, my kitchen is officially open for business and I want to thank my wonderful contractors Scott and Steve from All Equity Construction for a BEAUTIFUL job! And trust me when I tell you they really went above and beyond! I just think they were a little disappointed that I couldn't cook for them while they were here working like I could when they renovated my bathroom last year, but I promised to make it up to them when all the dust settles (literally!). I still can't use the cooktop as I'm waiting for the propane company to come to hook up the lines and the town to come for approval but everything else is ready. I even created my first experiment yesterday, an appetizer (this was the most popular vote for my poll last week on the blog and Facebook), which I will be sharing with you shortly!

As for the kitchen, let me first start by saying that we saved and waited 12 years for this renovation to happen. When we first moved into our home, it literally had a padlock on the door and our family and friends wondered why we would buy this house in the shape it was in. But we saw potential to make it our own and little by little we renovated one room at a time. Our home was built in 1965 and still had the original cabinets, which were a really dark mahogany. I sanded them all down, painted them white, updated the hardware and at least it was clean. At one point, another owner had decided to start a renovation and had updated the floor to white tile (which I HATED!) and gray countertops (yeah, hated them too!) and installed skylights, which leaked with every rain storm we had. But, I couldn't bare the thought of living without a kitchen so we kept it going. That is until the drawer faces LITERALLY started to come off in my hand when I tried to open them, the cabinet doors no longer shut on their own and there were always at least 3-4 doors open at a time.

We decided to keep the same footprint but change the layout to keep costs down and even though I would have loved knocking down walls to create a master kitchen suite, it just wasn't affordable. We ordered the cabinets through Lowes and they are called Whiskey Black Glaze from Diamond, opted for Kitchen Aid appliances in stainless steel from Karl's Appliances, slate-looking tile from Wayne Tile, and Chestnut Granite from Tri-State Stone and Tile. I am EXTREMELY happy with the way it came out and finally got everything put away in it's proper place...at least for now until I get my flow back!

Here are some before and after pictures and thank you all for visiting even when I couldn't cook. Here's to the NEW and IMPROVED Carrie's Experimental Kitchen! xoxo

The kitchen before...

...and after

The cooktop on the island.

Where the refrigerator was before.

And new refrigerator. I love the separate drawer for the fruits and vegetables
but the bottom freezer is going to take some getting used to! :)

Where the stove was before. 

The new double convection wall oven. It even has a setting for proofing bread
so guess what I'll be experimenting with in the coming months! :)

This was a desk area a.k.a junk collector! 

New beverage area with a wine refrigerator. =)

Stacked Heirloom Tomatoes & Mango with a Balsamic Reduction

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For my first recipe back in the kitchen, I polled some of you here on the blog and on Facebook and the majority wanted to see an appetizer as my first experiment. So I decided to make something with the two ingredients for the places I spend the most of my time: New Jersey, with their fresh Heirloom tomatoes and Florida, where mangoes grow in abundance. Sadly, my in-laws had to recently sell the home in Florida where we had this AMAZING mango tree that was so high you couldn't possibly get all of the mangoes off of it without a rig!  My entire family loves them and they're really not as difficult to cut as you may believe. There is a fairly large pit in the center though so you have to be careful when slicing. 

Here are a few tips: 

1. WASH the skin before preparing to cut the mango. (Many people are allergic to the sap on the mango and causes a horrible rash...trust me, I've seen my husband get it several times!)

2. Slice off a thin piece so that you can lay the mango flat on a cutting board. 

3. Continue to slice off pieces around the seed, then peel the skin off each piece and chop into smaller pieces. (*For this recipe, I sliced them into thinner pieces so that they would lay flat instead of chopping them into pieces)

This was the perfect starter to kick off our meal on Sunday and was so aromatic with all of the different flavors melding together. 

Stacked Heirloom Tomatoes & Mango with a Balsamic Reduction
1 lg. Ripe Heirloom Tomato 
1 Ripe Mango, peeled and de-pitted 
1/4 c. Balsamic Vinegar
1 tbsp. Fresh Basil, chopped
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Kosher Salt, to taste
Fresh Ground Black Pepper, to taste




Directions: 
1. Add balsamic vinegar to a saucepan and heat over medium heat for approximately 15 minutes or until vinegar has reduced and has thickened. Remove from heat and let cool. 
2. While the vinegar is simmering, slice your tomato into 3-4 1/2" thick slices and set aside (number of slices will depend on how large your tomato is).
3. Slice the mango of off the pit into slices and set aside. 
4. Next, stack your tomato, then mango and repeat. (I did three layers)
5. Season with salt and pepper then, drizzle some olive oil and the reduced balsamic vinegar on top. 
6. Garnish with fresh basil and chill until ready to serve. Serves 2. 

Enjoy! 


Nutritional Information per Serving: Calories 165, Total Fat 7g, Carbohydrates 24.9g, Fiber 2.3g

*Nutritional Information by Calorie Count and may not be 100% accurate. 

Peach Crisp

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July, August and September is the heart of peach picking season here in NJ and let me tell you, they're beautiful this year. (Well, at least the markets I've been going to!) They were so plump and mouthwateringly juicy, I just had to eat one on it's own before I could even cut it up for this crisp! I used the standard yellow skin peach variety, but feel free to try the white flesh or donut peaches if you'd like instead. This is another one of those easy recipes you can make last minute if you're in the mood for a little something sweet and even top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you wish. 



Peach Crisp
4-5 large peaches
1 tbsp. corn starch
1 tsp. Ground nutmeg
1 tbsp. butter, chilled

Directions:
1. Cut the peach in half around the pit. Remove the pit, peel and slice the peaches and add to a bowl. 
2. Add the cornstarch and nutmeg to the peaches and mix well. 
3. Add the mixture to a baking dish (I used a 9"x9").
4. Cut up the butter into small pieces and place them through out the peaches. 

Topping
1 c. oats
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
6 tbsp. butter, melted

Directions:
1. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix until it is a crumbly mixture. 
2. Add the topping evenly over the peaches, then bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the peaches have softened (I use the tip of a sharp knife and stick it into the mixture) and the top is lightly browned. 
3. Remove from the oven and let cool. Serves 9. 

Enjoy!