nigella says: everyday brownies

"There are many questions in life to which chocolate seems to be the answer, but here it really is the answer."

i have made these brownies and they are wonderful.

didnt get to taking pictures

they freeze very well 

give it a try!

my family is coming into town tomorrow

we are in a bit of a frenzy to get everything clean and organized

at this point i think i am going to settle on clean versus organized

we are going to be dropping off little brother for his mission on friday

this will be an exciting week!

nigella says: no fuss fruit tart

fun news: we think there is a currant bush growing in the corner of the garden- yippee! but it could be a something else...not sure yet- only time, water, and sunshine will tell. and if it is a currant bush, i hope they are the red or white-pink color! not that i don't love black currants as well because i very much do.

but when i think of currants i think of nigella's no fuss fruit tart. it looks divine. i think i am going to make it anyways. with or without currants.

a great lemon curd recipe here and tart recipe here

look at how berry-packed her fruit tart is

my meager strawberries and blueberries

still think it looks lovely though

YUM.

nigella says:spanish omelette (scrambled eggs)

 a while ago i made spanish omelette via nigella 

this cookbook is pretty fabulous

my omelette did not turn out exactly like nigella's

it became scrambled eggs

but it was still quite yummy!

you need green onions. eggs, roasted red peppers, butter, and red potatoes

chop up the peppers, green onions, and potatoes

add them to the eggs

scramble them up and then cook em in a skillet!

super easy and a nice change to the plain scrambled eggs

nigella says: chocolate key lime pie

i love this cookbook

before we moved ry and i decided to make chocolate key lime pie 

a celebration of green for st. patty's day

the mint green color of the pie was just beautiul

(even if it was unnatural- food coloring)

the key limes gave the pie just the right amount of "umph"

the crust was my favorite part for sure

the chocolate chips, graham cracker, and richly dark cocoa powder

it was pretty much amazing

see this video for a similar mint green colored pie 

aren't the ingredients just beautiful?

ry helping with the filling

hand blenders are awesome

crust firming up in the fridge

pouring the luscious key lime filling in the crust

voila! isn't the color just lovely?

dark chocolate shavings

and some lime zest for color and flavor

nigella says: get it to go part two

ham with cranberry glaze and a beautiful loaf cake

quadruple chocolate loaf cake

oh dear

perfect for Easter yes?

i am hoping to prepare now so i don't mess up on the actual day

this looks absolutely divine

and the love continues 

nigella says: get it to go part one

lots of nigella today 

its time to get ready for Easter and i think nigella's get it to go series is the best way to prepare

first off 

mushroom pasta bake

sorry anti-mushroom people

i started liking mushrooms in high school

took me awhile to realize what i was missing out on

this looks just oh-so good

nigella says: breakfast bruschetta

"i never ever skip breakfast"

and 

"there is, for me, no bad way to eat bread." 

i have eaten the avocado bruschetta for breakfast

it is divine

my dad gave me a strange look

as if to say 

"really chloe? that for breakfast?"

of course dad!

i love a non-breakfast food for breakfast

a nice change from the usual 

recipe via

breakfast bruschetta

INGREDIENTS

• 
• 
• 

FOR THE TOMATO BRUSCHETTA

• 2 x 15ml tablespoons olive oil
• 2 thickly sliced short pieces sourdough or rustic toast
• 1 ripe tomato (approx. 100g), roughly chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste

FOR THE AVOCADO BRUSCHETTA

• 1 ripe avocado
• 2 teaspoons lime juice
• 4 thickly sliced short pieces sourdough or rustic toast
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

METHOD

1. To make the tomato bruschetta: drizzle most of the olive oil over each piece of toast and top with the chopped tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper to taste, before drizzling the remaining few drops of oil on top, and you're done.
2. To make the avocado bruschetta: halve the avocado; scoop the flesh into a bowl, along with the lime juice, then mash roughly, using a fork, and season to taste. Spread clumpingly on each waiting piece of toast and sprinkle with the parsley.

Serves: 3-6, depending on appet

nigella says: grasshopper pie

this grasshopper pie looks ah-ma-zing! 

i hope to make it in the coming green weeks.
how do i remove the alcohol?
hmmmm

just made a chocolate key lime pie over the weekend to celebrate cold february being over. pics to come soon! 

nigella says: chocolate chip bread pudding

my favorite way to use stale bread

nigella says: summer by the sea pasta

a beautiful tangled mess 

when utah weather gets bad (which 6 out of 12 months it is bad)

it makes me miss my family and of course good weather

today the sun is out and it makes me happy

i would love to go back and live in hawaii

seared ahi tuna every week? 

sign me up please

oh how i wish this could happen

in another life perhaps

till then i will continue to make this mussel pasta 

and be reminded of childhood summers by the sea

nigella says: chocolate mousse

"don't worry if you cannot produce the perfect swirl, i cant"

thank you nigella 

i shan't worry any longer

i decided to try out nigella's chocolate mousse

its beautiful really

take a look

weighing my chocolate on my biggest loser scale

oh the irony

chopped dark chocolate and mini marshmallows

i love how there are no eggs in her recipe and its practically instant

the finished product in my little espresso cups

not as fluffy as hers

but so rich and yummy

add cream on top

and enjoy

recipe here

and the goddess is right here to show you a how-to

nigella says: rocky road crunch bars

"you know, cooking portable food for myself is never going to be difficult cause i eat everything. children are such fussy eaters. it can be really hard cooking for them."

dear goodness

even if i were a picky kid i would still eat everything that woman made for me

her children are quite lucky 

recipe via

Rocky road Crunch bars

INGREDIENTS

• 
• 

• 125g soft butter
• 300g best-quality dark chocolate (minimum 70% cocoa solids), broken into pieces
• 3 x 15ml tablespoons golden syrup
• 200g Rich Tea biscuits
• 100g mini marshmallows
• 2 teaspoons icing sugar for dusting

METHOD

1. Melt the butter, chocolate and golden syrup in a heavy-based saucepan. Scoop out about 125ml of this melted mixture and put to one side.
2. Put the biscuits into a freezer bag and then bash them with a rolling pin. You are aiming for both crumbs and pieces of biscuits.
3. Fold the biscuit pieces and crumbs into the melted chocolate mixture in the saucepan, and then add the marshmallows.
4. Tip into a foil tray (24cm square); flatten as best you can with a spatula. Pour the reserved 125ml of melted chocolate mixture over the marshmallow mixture and smooth the top.
5. Refrigerate for about 2 hours or overnight.
6. Cut into 24 fingers and dust with icing sugar by pushing it gently through a tea strainer or small sieve.

Serves: Makes 24

nigella says: hot chocolate

hot chocolate is my craving of the season

it is so cold/windy/snowy

some might say breezy

it hurts 

but this makes me feel better

nigella is leading the way 

nigella says: chocolate raspberry pavlova

"sometimes i want to go the holy way of the noodle or steam veg and seared fish, other times only chocolate will do and in this mood i have to have my chocolate pavlova."

 a couple of nights ago

i had the case of the munchies

sugar munchies

to be exact 

so i facebooked my friend N 

to let her know what horrible of a deed i was about to do

and like a true friend

she said

  its okay- let me know how it tastes

so here i am to tell her and you how it was

divine

a bit too much on the sugary side

but still divine

if you like marshmallows

you will love this

nigella asks for 1.5 cups of sugar in her recipe

next time i will take it down to 1/2 of a cup

when it was still warm from the oven 

i added whipping cream

the river of cream meandering its way into the warm crevices of the earth-like pavlova

when you bite into it 

its like a crispy crunch 

then slowly melts down to a soft spongy texture

oh so good 

i didn't add raspberries

but i wish i did 

this is nigella's pavlova

image and recipe via

and here is mine

i love the crackled exterior 

so rough and delicate at the same time

the inside marshmallow texture is my favorite 

chocolate chips bursting with warm gooey-ness

here is the goddess making it

enjoy

nigella says: totally chocolate chip cookies for broken hearts

"now, i agree that to some people using half a kilo of chocolate to make 12 biscuits may seem excessive but i can tell you i don't put a price on alleviating human suffering."

i couldn't stop laughing for 5 minutes

here is the goddess at work on some cookies that i am hoping to make soon

oh chocolate goodness

totally chocolate chip cookies

chocolate = love 

recipe via

totally chocolate chip cookies

INGREDIENTS

• 

• 125g dark chocolate, minimum 70% cocoa solids
• 150g flour
• 30g cocoa, sieved
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 125g soft butter
• 75g light brown sugar
• 50g white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg, cold from the fridge
• 350g (2 bags) semi-sweet chocolate morsels or dark chocolate chips

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C/gas mark 3. Melt the 125g dark chocolate either in the microwave or in a heatproof dish over a pan of simmering water.
2. Put the flour, cocoa, bicarbonate of soda and salt into a bowl.
3. Cream the butter and sugars in another bowl. (I use my freestanding mixer, itself an odd source of comfort to me.) Add the melted chocolate and mix together.
4. Beat in the vanilla extract and cold egg, and then mix in the dry ingredients. Finally stir in the chocolate morsels or chips.
5. Scoop out 12 equal-sized mounds - an ice cream scoop and a palette knife are the best tools for the job - and place on a lined baking sheet about 6cm apart. Do not flatten them.
6. Cook for 18 minutes, testing with a cake tester to make sure it comes out semi-clean and not wet with cake batter. If you pierce a chocolate chip, try again.
7. Leave to cool slightly on the baking sheet for 4-5 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to harden as they cool.

Serves: Makes 12 

my girl crush: nigella

i loved watching her on food tv

and she is still one of my favorites

its like martha unwound and relaxed

two nights ago i made Chicken with 40 Garlic Cloves

from her book Nigella Kitchen 

excessive in all the right ways

moist, garlicky chicken

the garlic tasted wonderful mashed onto slices of wheat baguette

with a gravy that made a creamy wonderful soup the next day

divine divine 

here are some recipes i hope to be trying soon 

noodle soup for needy people

doughnut french toast

chocopots
oh my heavens
this woman knows how to eat