Christmas Break

Spending quality time with family and friends... chowing down on hometown favorites and holiday treats. Check back soon for pics and stories!

Happy Holidays!

All Quiet on the Kitchen Front

All is quiet in the Diaczun kitchen today... except for garlic cloves roasting in the oven, pasta bubbling on the stove, and the smell of freshly chopped herbs lingering in the air. This humble culinary offering is what I hope to be a quick but satisfying dinner so I continue crafting away in the workshop. Too many gifts to be made, and too little time to make them. Holiday crunch time is in full effect... but a girl's got to eat!

Peppermint Crisps

Curiosity got the best of me today and the result was bubbly peppermint crisps. I originally purchased tiny candy canes as part of my holiday gift wrapping scheme, but I couldn't shake the inclination to throw them on a silpat and pop them in the oven. A few short minutes later, these lacy little beauties were born. While I haven't quite figured out the best use for the paper thin wafers, nestling them in a cloud of whipped cream seemed like a festive way to top off a warm fudge brownie. Delicate enough to melt in your mouth, these merry candy garnishes were sweet minty perfection.

Cornucopia

Thanks to the Guerrilla Gourmet for putting together a wonderful collaboration of posts from bloggers all across the country. Yours truly is representing Michigan in their featured "Cornucopia Project".

The Final Act of Gluttony

Still nursing the side effects of my holiday food coma, I woke up this morning with a serious hankering for something savory. I stumbled to the fridge and found a ziplok full of leftover garlic mashed potatoes, half a red onion, a bag of spinach and the last swig of orange juice that didn't make it into the mimosas. Mmmmm... breakfast.

I scooped the mashed potatoes into a hot skillet with some butter and created a crispy potato cake (a Thanksgiving leftover trick I learned from my mom). I topped my crunchy little cake with wilted spinach and red onions that I sauteed in the o.j. With a quick sprinkle of salt, this breakfast was the perfect finale to a long weekend of gluttony. Goodbye, indulgent holiday... hello, daily workouts.

What Thanksgiving Tastes Like

Today's goal was to make a Thanksgiving inspired cupcake. I decided to make a list of the first five flavors I associate with the holiday. Here's how the list shook out: salty, sweet, sage, citrus, and maple. As a non-baker trying to make a cupcake, I started with a boxed yellow cake mix to which I added fresh sage and orange zest. Homemade maple buttercream was in order to counteract my previous shortcut. Perched on the fluffy icing was a small piece of bacon that delivered the final salty punch. All in all, not a bad little cupcake.

The Week of the Carrot

It all started when my co-worker told me about his chilled carrot soup with coconut foam. My interest was instantly piqued and I quickly became obsessed with the idea of making my own carrot soup. During the course of that same week, two other co-workers came forth with their recipes and thus the week of the carrot was born. There was no question that my Sunday post was unfolding before my eyes. My adaptation was warm and involved pureed celery root, red curry paste, coconut milk, lime zest, and cilantro. The taste was delectably sweet and the texture... velvety smooth. Thick like bisque and full of flavorful heat, it was the perfect lunch on a chilly afternoon. Carrots - not just for rabbits anymore.