Greek Yogurt and Feta Cheese Crostinis

I can't believe that I haven't posted a recipe on my blog for over a week! There just have been too many events this past week. I start school tomorrow, and still have a ton of reading for my Wills and Trusts class that I need to finish today :-/ I am just counting down the months till I never have to do reading or studying for law school again! 

I went to one of my closest friend's birthday celebration on Friday at the Local Peasant. They've opened a new location in Woodland Hills...which was desperately needed since most of the more modern bars in the valley are in the Sherman Oaks/Studio City area. It was great seeing everyone again, but also a little sad that two of my girlfriends are off to medical school and no longer living in Los Angeles :( 

Yesterday, one of my other good friends got married!! I had an incredibly great time, especially since I hadn't been to a wedding in a few years. Slowly, that is going to change...I feel everyone in my social circle is going to get married within the next 5 years or so. My boyfriend and I were late to the church ceremony so, rather than awkwardly walking in to the church while everyone is already at the altar, we decided to take an impromptu trip to Porto's bakery. While he and I were in formal wear, everyone else was dressed casually...needless to say, we stood out (but, in a good way :)). He had their pineapple custard cake and I had the fruit tart. Both were delicious! I wish I took some pictures to show you guys :-/ 

For the past week or so, I have been in the "movie mood." That happens every once in a while. I think, especially since school starts this coming week, I want to get my fill of foreign films. I went to Laemmle the other night and watched an incredible Spanish/French film called El Artista y La Modelo. It takes place during post-World War II occupied France. If the title didn't already give it away, it's the story of a sculptor who finds a new, female model to pose nude for him. Also, it's in black and white, which is so rare in movies these days! Chus Lampreave, one of the cutest Spanish actresses you will ever see, is also in this film. She's played in several of Pedro Almodovar's movies. For being 82 years old, she's a spunky little old woman! I had the theatre to myself! (not much of a surprise, as I went on Wednesday night at 10 PM). I don't know about you, but I definitely cherish alone time, especially when I am engaged with a cultural experience. 

I meant to post these pictures some time ago, but didn't have the chance. They were for my boyfriend's great-aunt's birthday celebration. I am pretty modest when it comes to anything I prepare/create/make/write, etc...but, these crostinis were, as my boyfriend loves to say, "dank." I made about 3 plates full of them, and they disappeared in about 5 to 10 minutes! I love crostinis in general because you can dress them up or down any which way you like. The greek yogurt dip on the crostinis is so incredibly light and perfect for a spring or summer party. You have to try them out at your next get-together and let me know what you think :) 

Greek Yogurt and Feta Cheese Crostinis

Serves 10-15 people

1 and a half French baguette (I need to eventually try a recipe for homemade french baguette)

2 medium-size cucumbers

3 medium-size radishes

1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt

1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese (I used Bulgarian Feta, but as I've mentioned before...any type of Feta is amazing!)

1/4 cup Kalamata olives, diced finely

1/2 of a red bell pepper, diced finely

2 stems scallions, chopped finely

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

1 clove of garlic, minced finely

The juice of 1/2 of a lemon

Salt, black pepper, chili pepper, and dried oregano to taste

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Place a paper towel over a strainer, and put the strainer over a small bowl. Add the Greek yogurt to the strainer to make sure all the excess liquid strains out.

3. If using feta cheese from a block, wash the feta cheese with water to remove excess sodium. Pat dry with paper towel. 

4. Combine Greek yogurt, Feta cheese, olives, red bell pepper, parsley, garlic, apple cider vinegar, and lemon. Add salt, black pepper, chili pepper, and dried oregano to taste. Set aside in refrigerator. 

5. Using a mandoline slicer on the 3 mm setting, slice the cucumbers and radishes. Be careful of your fingers :) This was my first time using the slicer, and I absolutely love it!

6. Cut baguette into 1/4 inch thick slices, slightly sidewise. Brush with olive oil and rub top side of baguette with garlic. Place baguette slices on baking sheet in oven and bake for about 3 minutes or so, just until they are slightly toasted. 

7. Top baguette slices with the greek-yogurt dip and decorate with cucumbers and radishes. 

Mahi Mahi with Grilled Apricot Salsa

After Salmon, Mahi Mahi is my favorite type of fish. It's so flaky, tropical, and the perfect canvas for a variety of flavors. I went to the market today and purchased a couple of Mahi Mahi fillets because they were on sale...score! I went there, though, with the goal of purchasing organic yellow peaches, but they ran out :( I wanted to prepare this dish using grilled peaches instead of apricots, but I think this recipe works well with many different fruits (mangos, nectarines, plums, and pluots would be great, too). 

I also worked on my churro coconut cupcakes today because I wanted to revise the original recipe. I started reading Michael Ruhlman's Ratio. I was so excited to check it out from the library yesterday. It is a great book on laying out the framework for batters, doughs, etc. For example, the ratio for a sponge cake is 1 part butter; 1 part sugar; 1 part egg; and 1 part flour. I realized how much I did not understand about cooking until I started reading this book. Before, I was blindly scanning recipes and following their measurements, but did not know why 3/4 cup of sugar works best with 1 and 1/4 of flour. Once you have an understanding of the ratios for each dish, you can improvise as much as you want and you never have to look at another recipe again (but please don't take this as an indication to not read my blog haha :)). 

By the way, the serrano peppers are from my garden :) They're so tiny that I lost one of those little guys in the grill :( 

Mahi Mahi with Grilled Apricot Salsa

Serves 1

Fish:

1 Mahi Mahi fillet
Salt, black pepper, garlic powder, chili pepper, cumin, and oregano

Apricot Salsa: 

2 medium-sized apricots, cut in half and de-pitted
1/4 cup red onions, diced
1 small red bell pepper, cut in half
3-4 serrano peppers
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
1 tsp. apple cider vinegar
The juice of 1/2 a lemon
Salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and oregano to taste
Pinch of sugar
Olive oil

1. Lightly brush fish with olive oil. Season both sides of fish with salt, black pepper, garlic powder, chili pepper, cumin, and oregano.

2. Lightly brush apricots, red bell pepper, and serrano peppers with olive oil. Season them with salt, black pepper, and chili pepper. 

3. Heat grill to medium heat and lightly oil the grill grates. Place apricots, red bell pepper, and serrano peppers on grill, facing down. Grill each side for about 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Grill marks :) 

4. Dice the grilled apricots, red bell pepper, and serrano. Mix in a bowl with red onions and cilantro. Add apple cider vinegar and lemon. Finally, add salt, black pepper, garlic powder, oregano, and sugar to taste.

5. Grill fish, flesh side down. Grill each side for about 4-5 minutes, until it easily flakes and is opaque in the center. 

6. Remove fish from grill. Top it with the apricot salsa. 

Churro Coconut Cupcakes (Updated)

Reminds me of a pink cinnamon rose :) 

I have to be honest...I am not the greatest baker out there. There is so much for me to learn. But, over the past two months or so, I have done my fair share of baking. I have always followed someone else's recipe for desserts because I knew I still needed to familiarize myself with the process of baking. For some desserts I attempted, I failed pretty miserably (my lemon souffle was a disaster!). But, for many others, I was so happy with the results and could not wait to have my family and friends try them out. 

But seriously, it's time to grow up...I decided to create my own cupcake recipe! For experienced bakers out there, this is probably not very impressive. For me, though, this is such a huge step forward. It really shows how much I am willing to break out of being comfortable and simply following someone else's recipe. It helped to tremendously boost my confidence level as a baker. I know there is a science to baking, but really...it's not rocket science, right?

The way I went about preparing my own recipe was looking back on the dozens of different recipes I had tried out over the past few months. I had an idea of which ingredients are important, and the quantities of each ingredient. I also wanted to play around with the typical churro recipe and added coconut flakes, because they are my ultimate favorite! The aroma of coconuts...just transports me to Costa Rica :) (by the way, a year ago yesterday was the day I flew out to Costa Rica...I miss it there!). 

This is Corcovado, Costa Rica...our tent was literally 10 feet away from where I took this picture. 

I have to give a disclaimer, though. This recipe is NOT perfect. And, to be fair, I may end up adjusting it over time before I am completely satisfied with the results. But, for now, I am very proud of the way that my cupcakes turned out and am so happy that I am finally growing as a baker. I hope that, eventually, I can create recipes to more intricate and complicated pastries. But for now, let's travel to Spain and have a churro ;-) 

Churro Coconut Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

Cupcake:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar 
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup canola oil
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup milk (I used almond milk, but any type of milk works fine)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Buttercream Frosting:

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (or, 3/4 cups butter), softened, at room temperature
1 tsp. cinnamon
3 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together sugar and canola oil. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add in vanilla extract, and about half of the milk. 

4. Slowly add in about half of the flour mixture. Then, add the remaining milk. End by adding the remaining half of the flour mixture. Combine completely, but do not overmix as this makes the batter rubbery (my mama taught me that ;-)). Scrape down the sides of the bowl. 

5. Stir in coconut flakes.

6. Line a cupcake baking tin with cupcake liners. Spoon in cupcake batter about 2/3 of the way. 

7. Place cupcakes on middle rack in the oven and bake for approximately 14-18 minutes. I would start off with 15 minutes and add additional minutes if you find that the center of the cupcakes are still wet. 

8. Let cupcakes cool on cooling rack.

9. For buttercream frosting, use an electric mixer with a whisk. I placed the electric mixer and whisk handle in the freezer for about 15 minutes to remain cool. 

10. Mix butter, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and milk. Then, add in powdered sugar. Mix on medium to high speed until fully combined, light, and fluffy. 

11. Spoon the frosting into a piping bag. The easiest way for me to do this is to place the piping bag in a glass cup while I spoon in the frosting. I then left the frosting in the fridge for about 5-10 minutes to firm up. 

12. Using a Wilton 1M tip, pipe the frosting on each cupcake. 

13. For garnish, you may mix some cinnamon and granulated sugar and sprinkle the cupcakes.

Oven-Baked Chicken with Strawberry Balsamic Sauce

Despite having a wisdom tooth removed a few days ago, I had a wonderful weekend. Last night, my boyfriend, his sister, and I went to the movies and saw Fruitvale Station. It's based on a true story about Oscar Grant, a young, African-American man who was killed in Oakland, California by a Fruitvale Valley Rapid Transit officer on New Year's Day of 2009. I highly recommend the film because it vividly portrays the racist attitudes of police officers. It's a pretty sad film, so you may want to bring a few tissues with you if you end up watching it. 

We went to the Laemmle Theatres in North Hollywood. That was our second time going to the North Hollywood location. I can't say enough good words about Laemmle because I love independent and foreign films. A couple weeks ago, we were at the NoHo location and watched Pedro Almodovar's new comedy, I'm So Excited! The entire audience could not stop laughing throughout the film....it was absolutely hilarious. Watching a new Almodovar film is always bittersweet for me...I love the experience of traveling back into Almodovar's world of vibrant color and melodrama; but, once the film ends, I am on the edge of my seat waiting for news of the release of his next film.  

I am feeling much better today and was able to easily jump back into solid foods! I opted for a pretty traditional flavor combination for tonight's dinner...strawberry balsamic. So perfect, right? Balsamic vinegar is probably my favorite condiment and I try to use it in unconventional ways when I cook. I have played around with strawberry balsamic flavors for desserts, but never for a savory dish. I am pleasantly surprised at how delicious the chicken came out :) It was extremely moist. 

I also love how you can taste each of the individual flavors, but none were too overpowering.

This strawberry balsamic sauce and salsa are also great for meat and fish dishes. 

Oven-Baked Chicken with Strawberry Balsamic Sauce

Serves 2

Chicken:

3 boneless chicken breasts, cut in half, lengthwise

Salt, black pepper, chili powder, and garlic powder

Sauce:

1/3 cup strawberries, quartered

1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, packed

3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. red wine vinegar

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. garlic powder

Dash of red pepper flakes

Black pepper, to taste

Strawberry Salsa:

1/3 cup strawberries, diced

1 Tbsp. fresh basil leaves, chopped

1/4 of a jalapeno, diced finely (optional, but I love heat)

1/4 of the strawberry and balsamic vinegar sauce (refer above)

Crumbled feta cheese (optional)

Balsamic Vinegar Reduction:

1 cup balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. red wine vinegar

1. In a blender or food processor, pulse ingredients for the sauce until smooth. 

2. Season both sides of chicken breasts with salt, black pepper, chili powder, and garlic powder. Place chicken breasts in a deep oven-baking dish. 

3. Coat chicken breasts with about 3/4 of the strawberry sauce. You want to leave about 1/4 of the strawberry sauce for the strawberry salsa (see step 5). I put the marinated chicken breasts in the refrigerator for about half an hour so that the sauce could soak in. You can eliminate this step if you'd like. I don't think it makes too much of a difference in the end product.

4. Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Use aluminum foil to cover the baking dish with chicken breasts. Bake for approximately 45 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, combine the ingredients for the strawberry salsa. Set aside.

6. In a saucepan, boil balsamic vinegar and red wine vinegar. Once boiled, bring to a simmer on low for approximately 10-15 minutes until the mixture is reduced to about 1/2 cup and has the consistency of a syrup. Leave the lid off the saucepan while reducing the balsamic vinegar.

7. Once chicken breasts are fully cooked, plate them and top them with the strawberry salsa mixture. As a garnish, top with feta cheese crumbles. I used Bulgarian feta cheese, but any type is great (LOVE feta!). Using a spoon, lightly drizzle the reduced balsamic vinegar over the chicken breasts and salsa mixture. 

By the way, I had some extra strawberry sauce that I used as a topping for my ice cream :) 

Caramelized Mashed Carrots

Two days ago, I went to my dentist for a wisdom tooth extraction. I was so nervous because I had never previously removed a wisdom tooth. I was surprised at how quickly the procedure ended! But, once I got home, I had to deal with the reality of liquid and mashed foods for the next couple of days. With almonds as my go-to snack, I knew I would have a difficult time adjusting to my new diet.  

The day of my surgery, my diet consisted of chocolate brownie ice cream and baked potatoes. I love both, but I knew I would be bored of each fairly quickly. I knew I did not want to have variations of potato over the next two or three days, especially since I am not the biggest fan of mashed potatoes (I know...I know...heresy, right?). I love carrots, but I don't find myself incorporating them in my meals as often as I should. So, I figured my sensitive mouth would be a great excuse for me to prepare a dish centered around carrots! 

Caramelized Mashed Carrots

Serves 4

2 lbs. carrots, peeled and cut in half, lengthwise (I didn't cut mine in half, but it still worked out great)
3 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. dried oregano
2.5 tsp. cumin powder
1 tsp. Aleppo crushed red pepper (any type of chili powder will do, really)
3 tsp. brown sugar
1 cup vegetable broth
Salt and pepper
Parsley, chopped (optional)
Pine nuts (optional)

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

2. Place carrots on baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil. Add garlic powder, dried oregano, cumin powder, red pepper, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Using your hands, coat the carrots in the delicious spice mixture. 

3. Roast carrots in oven for about 40-45 minutes. Mine took about 42 minutes. If you cut your carrots, I am certain it won't take as long. Just make sure to pierce your carrots with a knife to make sure they are soft and ready to come out of the oven.

4. In a large pot, heat up the vegetable broth. Add carrots to broth (don't forget to scrape any juices left on the baking sheet into the pot :))

5. Using an electric mixer, mash the carrots coarsely. You can also use a potato masher, but it was a little difficult for me to mash the carrots manually. Add additional broth to help you with this process.

6. Place mashed carrots into serving dish. Garnish with chopped parsley and pine nuts.