Welcome to my kitchen! There was NOT a whole lot going on in the kitchen in January. I believe I had the January blahs. (No, I know I had it.)
There were a few things that made me smile and I wanted to share.
I am a sucker for all things Día de los Muertos or anything with a sugar skull on it. So, I really bought this bottle because of the imagery on it and not what was in it. In fact, it was difficult from label reading to figure out what was exactly in it.
OK–it ended up being a low alcohol, super sweet, sparkling concoction. Not my favorite cup of tea.
And as you can see, it is a huge bottle. Oh, well, I wanted it for the bottle and not the contents.
We’re starting the gardening season a bit early and while it’s not really in my kitchen YET, I still wanted to share. We’ve got a lot of tomatoes planted along with lettuces and other greens.
Barely baby tomatoes
The chard you see I actually dug up before our first frost. They’ve been hanging out in the green house for a while now. I hope their friends catch up soon.
Radishes and carrots (look closely for the carrots)
I had five days that I was home (you can imagine why) so I was finding all sorts of distractions. I started perusing through old blog posts (especially old Food ‘n Flix posts) and I was reminded about this recipe: Coconut-Pecan Brownie Bites. Since I wasn’t running out to stores during my isolation, I used what I had and came up with a (perhaps) better recipe.
Fudgy Pecan Brownie Bites
These are delicious and not too bad for you (in moderation).
Ingredients
- 1c. coconut oil
- 1 c. Splenda brown sugar (for baking)
- 1 t. pure vanilla
- 2 large eggs
- 6 T. cocoa
- 1/2 c. flour
- 1/4 t. baking powder
- 1/2 c. pecans, chopped
Instructions
- In a 8 quart glass measuring cup (or other microwavable mixing bowl), melt coconut oil. Do not over heat the oil. Melt at 30 second intervals. When melted, stir in sugar and vanilla. Add eggs one at a time, stirring well after each. Stir until well blended. (If mixture is too hot, let it cool to room temperature before adding eggs.)
- In a separate small mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa powder. Add dry ingredients to the coconut oil/sugar/egg mixture. Stir well. Add pecans.
- Use a small cookie scoop and fill prepared mini-muffin tins (1/2 full). Bake 12-15 minutes or until brownies pull away slightly from side of pan.
- Remove from oven and let cool in pans a bit before removing.
Yield: 2 dozen (depending on the size of the muffin tins)
These were delicious. I only had Splenda on hand because I had been doing some reduced sugar baking. I liked the added fudginess the brown sugar added. Hint: Use a really good cocoa powder for these. I used both a regular mini-muffin tin and a brioche pan.
Honestly, that’s it. I’ve been doing LOTS of reading (but the only foodie book review I posted in January was for Midnight Chicken for Cook the Books. I am anxious to dive into Red Sparrow (the Februayr/March selection for CTB) and The Last Chinese Chef (which I just purchased on my Kindle.
Has anyone read either one of these?
“In My Kitchen” is hosted by Sherry’s Pickings.
I have a friend who buys her wine based on the label. Sometimes she licks out. When drinks are too sweet I add lots of sparkling water. Low sugar brownies- yum! Haven’t read any of the books. Glad you’re staying safe.
I read The Last Chinese Chef quite a while ago — in fact, in 2009! Reviewed it here:
https://maefood.blogspot.com/2009/03/fabulous-book.html
January was indeed a frustrating month, with all the dangers lurking out there.
best… mae at maefood.blogspot.om
i too love Day of the dead stuff! i can see why you’d buy that bottle regardless of the contents. and how lovely to have edible things growing. thanks for joining us at IMK.
keep well. (hope the dreaded lurgy has all gone.)
cheers
S
I’m a total sucker for beautiful labels that catch my eye, always a bit of a disappointment if the insides don’t match but I guess we cant help what our eyes are attracted to!
That’s a cool bottle! OK to buy stuff just ’cause it’s nice to look at. 🙂 Fun post — thanks.