yummie cuppies

I took the family up to falmouth for the day and checked out a ton of places in the heart of the town. fantastic ice cream shops, toy stores ect.

We found a sparkling gem
Cup Cakes of Falmouth.
organic cuppies in every flavor. Great frosting to cake ratio ( i like my frosting) the cupcake was moist with a good crumb.I got a rootbeer cup cake and it really did taste just like a rootbeer float.



LITERALLY!The shop was clean , the counter service was great, I was even introduced to the owner who was on site. The little tables and atmosphere of the shop made me almost sqeek with happiness. they also had the cutest little aprons. I will be going back to buy one. Fantastic shop. If your in Falmouth or even within 10 miles, check it out. So worth it!
155 Main Street, Falmouth
www.cupcakesfalmouth.com

Ernies, PLYMOUTH, MA

This past week we went to lunch at Ernie's in Plymouth.
The food was alright. I ordered the artichoke Parmesan appetizer. It again was OK. the sauce was overly sweet. The breading which was scarce at best, fell off the artichoke pieces. There was a lot of cheese but the enormous amounts of sauce and poorly cooked artichoke overpowered this dish. For $6.95 I would skip this dish entirely.
I had liver and onions. A standby favorite of mine. It came with mashed potatoes and pickled beets. The beets were neither warm nor cold and kind of just sat there in your mouth. I prefer mine cold. The mashed potatoes were a good consistency and texture. However I detected no milk or butter present. They were rather flat tasting and even adding salt and pepper on my plate did little to help them. The liver was over cooked and dryer than it should have been, however the flavor was good and it was smothered in onions. There was also a slice of bacon on the liver which was mushy and undercooked. For $6.99 this dish was passable, but not fantastic.
I also had a slice of egg plant pizza. The sauce again was the same syrupy variety used in the appetizer. There was a good amount of cheese and eggplant on each slice, and both had a good flavor. However the crust was thin and flavorless. Not the best pizza, however not the worst.
Also our waitress seemed bothered by our presence and rather cranky. She at once point snapped at one of our table guests, when she tried to inject that we would be splitting the appetizer and I believe she even rolled her eyes when I asked for a box.
They lacked in wine options but had several beers on tap.
Personally, there are far better places to eat in Plymouth. try one of them instead!

greeting -3
service -2
food -4
cocktails -6
price -6

21/50

Just Ray's Fairhaven

I've been there a ton of times and every time has been great.
This time my family and I went there for breakfast. The menu is standard fare for the local eateries. However the special board is always covered in amazing creations. Also the staff is very helpful when dealing with the multiple food allergies my family has and when I loose my keys.
I ordered the brandy cream lobster omelet. It was stuffed full of large lobster pieces and covered in the savory and delicate sauce.The eggs were cooked perfectly as was the lobster. The home fries here are always sure to please. Just the right blend of spice with perfectly cooked potatoes are a treat. The omelet was also only $9.99 which was a great deal
My oldest son ordered the french toast. Again FANTASTIC. Ray seems to have found the perfect balance between bread and eggs. The slices were thick and slightly sweet without being too sweet or overwhelming. You could taste the eggs without them overwhelming the flavors from the bread and cinnamon.
Kayla ordered the Belgian waffles without the fruit or syrup. fluffy on the inside and crisp on the outside. covered in butter and powdered sugar.Unlike a lot of waffles you get at restaurants these were not heavy sit in your belly waffles.
The service was wonderful as always with the waitress bringing us extra creams (since Sammy drank them)bowls of powdered sugar (since my boys can't have imitation syrup) and my coffee cup was always filled!
Since Sammy is gluten free we ordered him the fruit cup, and one for Nate as well. Fantastic presentation that makes you want to eat it. A plate underneath leaves you space to cut the grapes for the younger kids. Also Sammy brought a gluten free bagel with him and they grilled it for him without any issue following my directions on how to keep it Sammy safe.
Daniel had a linguica roll.Plenty of linguica and cheese grilled and warm through out, with a perfect golden brown crust.He also shared my morcala. Which for those not from the area is a Portuguese sausage. Morcala can be easily overcooked and inedible, not a problem at Ray's.
AJ got an asagio cheese bagel with extra cream cheese. It was Big... really big. AJ also got a side order of hash. flavorful and grilled so that small crispy pieces were present in every bite.
Chelsy also had her own corned beef hash and an order of pancakes. Light, fluffy and enormous, tons of flavor! Smothered in butter and powdered sugar.
All the kids ordered juice and Daniel and I had coffee (which comes with most meals)
Our bill came to about 55$ before tip which for8 people is a great deal for amazing food!
If your in Fairhaven,MA check out Just Ray's on Main Street. They have a cool new awning, you cant...and shouldn't miss it!

greeting -10
service -10
food -10
cocktails/drinks -8
price -10

48/50

Risotto fear

I have alwasy wanted to make a mushroom risotto but I have always been chicken. My mother told me that it was really hard to make and not to bother. Even the rice frightened me. However after watching Hell's Kitchen I am convinced of two things

1. I am a better chef than a lot of those people

2. If they can make risotto so can I.

So I have been working on it. My first attempt wasnt terrible really. the rice wasn't as smooth and creamy as i thought it should be. But it really wasn't hard just time consuming.

here is what I used

4 cups vegetable broth

1 cup arborio rice
1 medium shallot

1 medium onion

2 Tbs butter / divided

salt pepper and 4.5 cups wild mushrooms

in one pan heat the broth

in another pan saute the mushrooms with 1 tsp butter and 1/4 broth

and in one more pan saute the shallots and onions with the remaining butter. Add in the rice and stir until coated. put in one ladel full of simmering stock and stir until it is absorbed. continue this until you get smooth creamy rice. then add the mushrooms and stir through. salt and pepper to taste.

my new toy

I knew the mixer was going. so I searched for my new mixer slowly. I found the cuisinart 5.5 quart ( my KA was 4.5 quart) it's bigger and quieter. it has all the attachments and even has a timer for when I make certain doughs and marshmallows. I can't even wait to use it. it came in yesterday. I wanna play but I don't know what to make!

my poor mixer

my kitchen aid mixer died. I only had one attachment for it and that was the whisk. the whisk broke a prong , the motor couldn't handle my harder tasks and it didn't lock in the down position any more. It was well over 10 years old. it was time. I gave it to my mother so it's kind of like going to a rest home to live out it's last few months, years doing simple tasks like making boxed cakes *shudder*

it was strong and faithful. it made hundreds of cakes, cookies, meringues, piles of whipped cream, pizza doughs, and marshmallows. but everything good comes to an end. I have sent it to rest and die in peace with my mother. *sniff*

MIA

sorry guys. I haven't posted in a bit . things have been crazy. first camera issues, then internet issues.

now I have been working on loosing weight. Im down 12 lbs now. I still love to cook and make a ton of really great things but I just haven't been baking cuppies.
i haven't been baking really

i made the most amazing tuna salad.
before you think EWWW tuna salad.
it isnt what you think. I bought fresh tuna steaks.
soaked them in G/F soy sauce(tamari)onion,garlic, pepper and lemon.
i made a bed of greens with endive,spinach, and butter head lettuce..
I grilled the tuna on all sides until cooked medium rare. drizzled it with a little maple syrup
i deglazed the pan with a little white wine and added 1/4 cup water.
I placed some cored (but not peeled) apples in the pan and cooked them until softened but not mushy.
added the apples and the pan sauce to the salad and it was Great!

pumpkin cuppies

I again found the recipe on howtoeatacupcake.

http://howtoeatacupcake.net/2007/10/halloween-costume-party-2007.html

super yummy. i chose not to frost them since i think they just looked great with the powdered sugar

Chocolate Mint Cupcakes

from Crazy About Cupcakes by Krystina Castella- double the recipe made 70 mini cuppies. and I almost didn't have enough frosting.

I used the mint chocolate chip recipe with a few differences. First I had no chocolate milk stuff since I make mine from scratch so I just used regular milk and added .1/2 oz bittersweet chocolate. I also had no mini chocolate chips so I skipped them. I made mini cuppies since they were going with me to a party.

to the mix. after tasting the batter I decided there still wasn't a good balance of chocolate/mint so I also added a half square of hershey's special dark to each cuppie.

ohhh... lookie lookie naked cupcakes. oh the shame!

I dont know which was better the batter, or the baby with the batter on him. Nate loved every second of it and stood there while I mixed saying "some? spoon? me nate spoon?" I think perhaps I bake too much? can one ever bake too much?

I made ganche topping and whipped it up (from Crazy About Cupcakes by Krystina Castella ) This was my first try at making a ganache and It came out ok i guess. It was heavier than I wanted it to be. I used bittersweet chocolate, heavy whipping cream and light cream (since I didn't have enough whipping cream for the recipe) I added 2 tsp of vanilla and 1/2tsp peppermint and that made it a little less intense

the end result. 70 cuppies with whipped ganache frosting. some garnished with a pep'o'mint lifesaver piece. the last 24 cuppies had just a tiny bit of frosting. next time I will have to double it too.

Chocolate Mint Chip CupcakesMakes 18-20

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/3 cup (2 ounces) unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped, melted

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon peppermint extract1/2 cup chocolate milk

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup (6 ounces) mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Insert liners into a medium cupcake pan.

2. In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes. Beat the melted chocolate into the butter mixture. Add the eggs, peppermint extract, and chocolate milk. Beat until creamy. (this took my stand mixer about 4 minutes)

3. In a separate medium-sized bowl combine the flour and baking soda.

4. Add the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture and beat until well blended (DO NOT OVER BEAT). With a rubber spatula, stir in the chocolate chips.

5. Fill the cupcake liners 2/3-3/4 full. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in pan.

bittersweet chocolate ganache frosting

3/4Cup whipping cream

6 oz chocolate (chopped small)

heat the cream until just boiling. add to the chocolate pieces and whip until light and airy (7 minutes?)

I added 2tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp peppermint to the whipped cream while it was cooking