Welcome back!  Today, we have a new twist version of a breakfast staple: Blueberry Muffins with Streusel! This might seem like our Blueberry Muffins , but a quick comparison shows that their differences are not negligible. Besides the streusel, which is clearly a new addition to the recipe, this version of muffin has a simpler procedure (so that you'll have the energy to make the streusel) while still retaining its moist and flavorful goodness. Baking is a science, but you can always use multiple methods to achieve the same goal. Blueberry Muffin With Streusel Makes 12 muffins Ingredients: For the muffin batter: 1/2 cup oil 2 eggs 1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 cup flour 1/2 cup sugar 2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 2 cups blueberries For the streusel: 1/4 cup flour 2 tablespoons brown sugar 2 tablespoons sugar 1/8 teaspoon teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons cold butter Directions: In a bowl, mix the oil, eggs, milk, sugar, and vanilla extract together. Sift in the f...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a recipe for the most iconic cookie ever: Chocolate Chip Cookies! Loaded with smooth chocolate, these cookies are an absolute treat that everyone is sure to love. Plus, this recipe's pretty easy to whip up quickly, so it's super convenient when you need to prepare something for a party or if you just want some indulgent snacks.  Chocolate Chip Cookies Makes 18 cookies Ingredients: 1 stick (1/2 cup) butter, softened 100 grams white sugar 75 grams brown sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 large egg 1 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon baking powder (optional) 1/2 teaspoon sea salt 6 ounces chocolate chips or chunks Directions: In a mixing bowl, cream the butter with the white and brown sugar. Add in the vanilla extract and egg and mix. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and sea salt into the wet mixture. Mix this together, but don't overmix! Add the chocolate chips or chunks and mix. Let the cooki...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a classic breakfast-dessert dish: Cinnamon Rolls! Cinnamon rolls evoke the feeling of a nice American brunch spread, or a breakfast at a Southern cafe - who market their cinnamon rolls as the gooiest, fluffiest, most cinnamon-y delights you've seen. Well, cinnamon rolls actually find their strongest roots in Scandinavia, with Sweden in particular. In fact, Sweden and Finland originated a National Cinnamon Roll Day, on October 4th, to celebrate their cultural delicacy. The American version really isn't too different save for the use of a cream cheese frosting. Cinnamon Rolls Makes 9 cinnamon rolls Ingredients: 375 grams bread flour 1 egg 1 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast 1/2 teaspoon salt 40 grams sugar 180 grams milk, slightly warm 40 grams softened butter 4 tablespoons softened butter 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon 4 ounce softened cream cheese 2 tablespoons softened butter 2/3 cup powdered sugar 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 9...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a famous Brazilian dish: Pão de Queijo! This dish is essentially what the Portuguese name translates to: "cheese bread". But this baked good is actually a lot more nuanced because of the ingredients that go into it. Specifically, the use of tapioca flour mixed with a cheese like mozzarella gives this bread a very chewy texture on the inside that perfectly complements the crisp exterior. Pão de Queijo Makes 18-24 pães Ingredients: 1 1/2 cup (170 grams) tapioca flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup (60 grams) Mozzarella cheese, shredded 1/8 cup (15 grams) Parmesan cheese, grated 1 egg 160 grams milk 80 grams oil Directions: In a food processor, add in all the ingredients and pulse until evenly incorporated. Brush oil in a mini muffin tin and pour in the batter. Try not to fill the pan up too much because they will expand significantly while baking. Bake at 400°F for 15-20 minutes. If you just looked at the final product, you'd be surprised at how eas...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a delicious and aesthetic dessert: the Cake Roll! As the name suggests, it is the wonderful innovation of cake in log form. But it's not as simple as just rolling the sheet of cake up - we have to worry about the cake cracking when it rolls and the outside surface looking smooth and clean. So for this recipe, we switched up our usual Chiffon Cake recipe for something a little different, as you'll see in the first few steps. Cake Roll Ingredients: 50 grams neutral oil 70 grams cake flour 60 grams milk 5 egg yolks 5 egg whites, chilled 50 grams sugar 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 cup whipping cream 1 tablespoon sugar Fresh fruit, like mango or strawberry A 11" x 10" or 11" x 11" baking pan Directions: Heat the oil in a small pot to 158-167°F. Remove the pot from the heat and mix in the flour thoroughly. Mix in the milk until evenly incorporated. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time until homogenous. Whisk the egg whites with lemon juic...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a fiery Habanero Salsa! Salsa is deceptively easy to make - just chop up a few ingredients and put it through a food processor - and if you do it yourself, you're able to get it to exactly the right consistency and flavor that you want. In this case, we were able to concoct a devilishly spicy salsa with a fresh habanero. Plus, this is so much fresher than the store-bought variety of salsa! Habanero Salsa Ingredients: 3 medium tomatoes (or Roma tomatoes), deseeded 1/4 small red onion 1 jalapeno 1 habanero Cilantro 1 tablespoon lime juice Pinch of salt Directions: Chop the tomatoes, onion, jalapeno, and habanero into rough chunks - not diced. Cut the cilantro so that there aren't any long stems. Add the chopped ingredients into a food processor along with the lime juice and salt. Pulse until the desired consistency is reached. This salsa is great by itself but it also is an amazing way to add an extra kick to guacamole or some Brisket Queso, and of ...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a variation on the beloved breakfast dish: Lemon Ricotta Pancake! This recipe adds a little bit of extra flavor to your typical pancake with the lemon, and the ricotta helps to fluff up the texture of the final product. The combination of these two special ingredients is also a well-known pairing - we even made an Italian Lemon Ricotta Cake  that used them in a similar fashion to elevate a standard dish. However, this is not a drastic transformation of a normal pancake - you can still enjoy it with the classic syrup or serve it with some fresh berries - and it's just as delicious! Lemon Ricotta Pancake Makes 10-12 medium pancakes Ingredients: 1 1/2 cup flour (210 grams) flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 50 grams sugar 1 cup milk 2 eggs 3/4 cup ricotta cheese 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Juice from one lemon (about 2-4 tablespoons) Zest from one lemon Directions: In a bowl, pour in the milk and crack the eggs in...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a delicious holiday side: Roasted and Spiced Kabocha! This is a simple pumpkin dish that brings both the sweet and savory undertones of the kabocha through a complex blend of spices. Adding the pecans and cranberries on top of that brings forth even more flavor and texture. Pair it with some roast beef, holiday ham, or even seafood like lobster, and you’ll have a great meal for the holiday season! Roasted and Spiced Kabocha Ingredients: 2 pounds kabocha, peeled (optionally) and cubed 1/2 cup pecans, broken into pieces 1/4 cup dried cranberries 2 tablespoons olive oil Salt to taste Spice mix: 2 tablespoons brown sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin  1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground coriander 1/4 teaspoon cayenne 1/4 teaspoon allspice 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper Directions: Season the cubed kabocha with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and salt, and bake at 400°F for 15-20 minutes. Mix together t...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a fun festive recipe: Gingerbread Cookies! Gingerbread cookies are a staple for the holiday season, featuring an iconic blend of spices mixed with the smooth richness of molasses. Plus, they're super fun to make with cookie cutters and then decorate with candies or icing. It makes for a great holiday activity that also gives you a delicious treat afterwards! Gingerbread Cookies Makes about 20 large cookies Ingredients: 3 cups flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon ground ginger 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/2 cup butter, softened 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed 1/2 cup molasses 1 egg Directions: Cream the butter and brown sugar in a bowl using a hand mixer. Add the molasses in and mix. Crack the egg in and mix until smooth. Sift in the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Mix everything together with the hand mixer until the dough st...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a delicious Thanksgiving treat: Pumpkin Cheesecake! Pumpkin is a wonderful seasonal ingredient that works well in many contexts, and since we had already made a Pumpkin Basque Cheesecake , we decided to incorporate pumpkin in a more traditional-style cheesecake this year. This cheesecake features a spiced, nutty crust in addition to the smooth, creamy filling for a rich blend of flavors and textures. Pumpkin Cheesecake Makes a 7" cheesecake Ingredients: Crust: 30 grams pecans 70 grams cookies such as Biscoff or Speculoos 3 tablespoons melted butter 1/4 teaspoon salt Filling: 2 boxes (16 ounces) cream cheese, softened 300 grams steamed pumpkin (we used a kabocha pumpkin) 2 eggs 40 grams Greek yogurt 1/4 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup sugar 1 tablespoon corn starch 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon powder 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/2 teaspoon salt Directions: Prepare the crust: Add the pecans and cookies into a large food processor or...

Welcome back!  Today, we have another recipe in our pesto journey: Pesto Calabrese! This variation also hails from Calabria in Southern Italy - in fact, it is the same region that produced the Nduja Pasta. This pesto deviates from the typical Genovese Pesto much more significantly than the Sicilian Pesto, with two main notable differences. The Pesto Calabrese incorporates cooked ingredients to provide an additional dimension of flavor as well as ricotta cheese to thicken up the texture. And because it is a Calabrian dish, you can always add an extra kick of spice with some extra Calabrian chili flakes. Pesto Calabrese Makes 4 servings Ingredients: 12 ounces pasta 4 tablespoons olive oil 1 small red onion or 2 shallots, chopped (about 1 cup) 1 large red bell pepper, charred, peeled, and diced* 12 ounces tomatoes, chopped 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes 1 teaspoon dried oregano 20 grams basil (about 1/4 cup packed) 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt to taste 200 grams ricotta cheese 50 grams Peco...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a recipe for one of the most classic American breakfast dishes: Pancakes! Pancakes come in all shapes and sizes across different cultures, but the American pancake is iconic for its thin-but-slightly-fluffy texture that's conducive to all sorts of variations, including pancake art, and being topped with a small slab of butter and/or maple syrup. Plus, they're a quick and fun dish to make (something that the kids will love!) and you can experiment with all sorts of different fillings. Pancakes Makes about 8 medium-sized pancakes Ingredients: 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons sugar 1 egg 1 1/4 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons melted butter (optional) Directions: Sift the flour and baking powder into a mixing bowl. Add in the salt and sugar and mix. Beat an egg and pour it into the dry mixture. Pour in the milk, vanilla extract, and butter (if you want to use it). Mix until the ingr...

Welcome back!  Today, we have an fresh and easy Italian dish: Caprese Salad! Caprese salad is possibly the most iconic Italian dish that isn't also loaded with carbs: it's really just cheese, tomatoes, and basil. These are also the three colors that make up the Italian flag, as well as the three ingredients that you find on the classic margherita pizza. There's just something refreshing about eating the juicy tomato with the creamy mozzarella together; plus, it's super healthy! Caprese Salad Ingredients: Fresh mozzarella cheese Tomato Basil leaves Extra virgin olive oil Balsamic vinegar Directions: Slice the mozzarella and tomato into similar sized slices. Aim for about a quarter of an inch. Pick and wash some basil leaves. Arrange the ingredients in the pattern of tomato, cheese, and then basil. Drizzle some olive oil and balsamic vinegar on top. Balsamic vinegar isn't always a necessary addition, but we found it to be a nice flavor contrast with the rest of the in...

Welcome back!  Today, we have a recipe for a delicious summer treat: Fruit Tart! When you find yourself with a wide range of fresh fruit - especially berries - you can put this dessert together for a dish that everyone will love. In addition to the fruit topping, you'll need a tart crust, obviously, and a nice pot of creme patissiere. In a way, that makes this rather similar to our Apple Tart  recipe, but the preparation is still slightly different! Fruit Tart Makes a 10" tart Ingredients: For the crust: 90 grams unsalted butter, softened 20 grams sugar 35 grams powdered sugar 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 egg 20 grams almond flour 150 grams all-purpose flour For the filling: 2 cups milk 1/3 cup sugar 1/4 cup cake flour 2 tablespoons corn starch 4 egg yolks 2 tablespoons butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or 1/2 vanilla pod For the topping: Fresh fruit, like berries, peaches, kiwis, mangoes, or whatever is in season. Directions: Prepare the crust as specified in our Sweet Tart Crust rec...