Eat France on a dime!

Crème fraîche

 

              I love Crème fraîche! I sometimes feel I should've been born in France. I can picture it now, sitting on a corner at a patisserie sipping wine and eating madeleine. My confession for the day: I'm fascinated by anything and everything French. But I should probably tell you something you don’t know already. Okay. Back to this masterpiece called Crème fraîche. 

I love its creamy, slightly tangy, very rich, thickness. As a matter of fact, I substitute it for american sour cream. Chocolate cake, coffee cake, and pound cake are just a few mouth-watering delights that turn into signature treats, due to this phenomenal ingredient. Looking to add some additional flavor? You can also add vanilla bean, freshly picked summer berries, or even waffles anywhere the sour cream was originally required. Moving away from the desert domain, why not try using it for tacos by adding a small squeeze of the lime juice piquancy? Absolutely delicious!

Now at this point, I want to avoid doing you an injustice by not sharing all the facts. The truth is that crème fraîche can be expensive. The last time I checked, it was around $4.99/8oz. You might be thinking, that’s not too expensive, right? Well, when your plan is to use it for a cake, and then you decide that you want some pancakes, you’re going to have a problem. Confession number two: that’s exactly what I did. To be fair, it’s not an uncommon occurrence when you like to create things from scratch. I enjoy making things from scratch because I know exactly what’s going in, and where it’s coming from. In addition to the satisfaction of knowing you made it with you own two hands, it’s cheaper too! Who wouldn’t want that?!

I paid $2.39 for a pint of heavy cream, and one quart of buttermilk for $1.79. In total, that's $4.18. You’re already looking at $0.81 in saving! You only use 4 Tbls or ¼ cup of the buttermilk, and there are 16 ¼ cups in 32oz of buttermilk. Do the math, and it comes out to roughly $0.11 per ¼ cup. If you were to buy the heavy cream for $2.39 and use the buttermilk ($0.11), you've spent $2.50 for 2 cups of Crème fraîche instead of $4.99 for 1 cup. CONGRATULATIONS! You've double the product for half the price! 

So there you have it, with only 2 simple ingredients, and a bit of time, you'll have beautiful, thick, and creamy Crème fraîche.

Ingredients:

2 cups heavy cream

4T or 1/4 cup buttermilk

Method:

1. Pour the heavy cream and buttermilk in a glass bowl. 

2. Cover with plastic.

3. Set it on your countertop overnight in the morning give it a quick stir, and voilà Crème fraîche.

It will keep for about 5 days in the refrigerator.

Enjoy, and thanks for reading.

FOOD IS LOVE!

Great Expectations

Do you remember the last time you had a craving for something? I’m not talking about a time in which you temporarily pondered acquiring that oh so special something. I’m referring to those cravings that are guilty of tampering with your sense self control. You talk about, think about, and sometimes even smell your craving at the most impromptu moments. I couldn’t count on one hand the amount of times this has happened to me. I’ll see something on television or in a magazine, and later find myself daydreaming; only to be woken up by a mouth-watering sensation.

This ladies and gentlemen, is the exact moment I find motivation to hunt CHOCOLATE CAKE! Trust me when I say I will go on a quest to find a rich, smooth, licentious piece of perfection. Unfortunately, there has been too many times that the slice I find is everything but perfection. I’m talking dry, bland, with frosting so cloyingly sweet that I’m turned off and disappointed after one bite. By now I’m sure you’re asking yourself the same question I did. “Brandy, you’re more than capable. Why not make your own chocolate cake?!” You’re right… it’s time to make the cake I’ve not only been craving but dreaming about. It’s time to fulfill my great expectations.

            It was only a matter of time before I began foraging through my pantry to find all the right ingredients. Low and behold, I had just enough of what I needed to satisfy my (and your soon to be your) craving for mug cake.  Fifteen minutes later, (from start to finish) my mouth connected with my first warm, flavorful,  and luscious piece of mug cake.  I kid you not, something happened to me at that very moment. My eyes closed, head propelled back as if earth’s gravitational pull increased exponentially. It was the closest thing to a state of euphoria that I’ve ever experienced. I had to lean on the table so that I wouldn’t fall over. This was the most rich, chocolaty, decadent piece of chocolate cake I had ever eaten. If you’re not blown away yet, you wont believe that it only took 3 minutes in the microwave. Don’t believe me? Try it yourself feel free to thank me later 

Ingredient:

-       4 T self rising flour

-       4T granulated sugar

-       1 egg

-       3T cocoa powder

-       3T nutella (surprise!)

-       3T olive or vegetable oil

-       3T whole milk

-        

Directions:

-       Combine all ingredients in a decent size mug.

-       Place mug in the microwave for 2-3 minutes (depending on your microwave)

-       Watch carefully to prevent overcooking

-       Enjoy your delicious treat

Dinner time!

I'm soo full right now! This post is one example of why I love watching television for inspirational dinner ideas. I'll see something and adapt it to my taste. Confession #2....I can be very impressionable, which makes me feel bad for my wallet during infomercials LOL!  When I'm in a food bind and I can't decide what I want to cook, I flip through old cooking magazines as a solution to my problem. Magazines likes Bon Appetit, Food and Wine, and Saveur and even current magazines that I receive in the mail make me so happy! I'm also fortunate enough to have wonderful friends that assist in my cooking magazine obsession  and just give me there old Saveur (thank you Macaroni).  With these magazines I can get real creative. Sometimes all I need is an ingredient like the  herb cilantro for example.  I'll see it in the produce department and think fish tacos....that's what's for dinner! Lets make no mistake, when I'm really blanking breakfast it is and BACON is a given. I ❤🐖 #ifyoudontknownowyouknow. Now for my dinner tonight (which I've been thinking about for the majority of the day) I've prepared a patty melt with caramelized onions and an abundance of melted Swiss cheese....mmmm mmmm good!! Here's what it looked like from start to finish. ENJOY!!!!!! 

That's dinner oh and it was served with sour cream and chive tater tots! 

Making memories that last forever

There are times like these that make my heart glad I have friends whom could easily be considered family. I just made it back to Plymouth after a day moving and decorating my friends apartment in Wallingford, CT. These last 24 hours have included fun, laughter, creativity, collaboration and of course good food. It's  times like these in which I will think back days later and laugh hysterically!  The day started off with brunch (bacon, cheesy eggs, and hash browns) and ended with a mouth-watering homemade cheeseburger. Even though I'm exhausted it's worth it, because I'm  surrounded by delicious food, amazing people, and laughter.  Last but not least, a quick thanks to my new Editor-in-chief Tiffany. Goodnight everyone!!

Candy lover!!!!

Confession 1:  I have the biggest sweet tooth in the history of mankind. I LOVE LOVE LOVE  candy!!! My favorite candy is Tropical Starbust. Anything chewy like is a close second. Take these Airhead Bites I found for example....soooooo good!! Oh yea, and nevermind the price, they were $1.00 each!

Feeling good

I had a great time today baking for some friends and everyone loved it! I posted a picture below of what I whipped together. These spiced peach hand pies and cherry almond hand pies with cream cheese crust were a hit! Hmmmmm hmmmm DELISH!! It makes me so good when I see people loving my food. It's moments like these that make me anxious to take my baking and pastry skills to the next level. On Saturday, I am going out to Passport (Hingham, Ma) with a few of my girlfriends. I have an idea of what I think I'll try and I hope it's delicious. I'm super excited and I can't wait to tell all of you about it.

My welcome to my first blog!

Hello everyone,

 My name is Brandy. I'm starting this blog because I LOVE food. Making food, talking about food, and watching food related shows and movies is what I love to do. As a graduate from Johnson and Wales University Culinary School (Providence, RI), I have a plethora of knowledge about the world of baking and pastry making. I am not currently working in the profession, but i continue to learn and practice my culinary skills on a daily basis. Quite honestly, what prevents me from fulfilling my dreams in culinary art, is my fear of failure. With that said, until I get over these fears my  extrinsic motivation will be the joy and happiness my food brings others.  As you explore my blog you will notice the infinite amount of pictures I share along with my posts. This blog will consist of my own inventions as well as dishes from restaurants I visit. I am a food critic by nature, so stay tuned to get an honest assessment of restaurants from America's hometown to the beautiful city of Boston.  Thank you for reading and feel free to comment and make suggestions! 

Food is love,

Brandy