Spike Your Side Dish

You might have noticed that Brian and I like to add a little splash of booze to some of our recipes from time to time, especially sweets like our Tipsy Blondies or the Bourbon-Apple Oatmeal Cookies. Recently, we tried to take our love of cocktails to a different dish—a side dish.

Bourbon-Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes by somethingwewhippedup.com

We served these Bourbon-Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes at brunch with some baked eggs, but the dish would work equally as well along side your dinner. It took less than 5 minutes to prep and then we were free to work on other things while the dish baked up. The end result is a roasted sweet potato that has an extra little touch of something that will make you smile as you eat it. And isn’t that what good food is all about?

Prepping the Bourbon-Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes by somethingwewhippedup.com

Serving the Bourbon-Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes by somethingwewhippedup.com

Bourbon-Maple Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Makes 2 servings

• 1 pound sweet potatoes (1 large or 2 small), cut to a 1/4-inch dice
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon bourbon
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• kosher salt

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF. In a medium bowl, add the sweet potatoes, olive oil, maple syrup, bourbon and cinnamon. Toss to coat and spread in an even layer on a baking sheet. Season with salt and roast for 15 minutes, use a spatula to flip the sweet potatoes over, return to the oven and roast for 10 to 15 minutes more or until browned and cooked through.

SWWU Tip 1: It’s easy to double or triple this recipe and make enough for a crowd (or leftovers). 

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3-Ingredient Sweet

Roses are red, violets are blue, who forgot about Valentine’s Day? I hope not you! But, if you did, here’s a quick treat you can whip up for a lovely breakfast in bed or dessert for your sweetie tomorrow.

3-Ingredient Strawberry & Cream Cheese Turnovers by somethingwewhippedup.com

It only has three ingredients and is embarrassingly easy to make, but we can keep that between us!

3-Ingredient Strawberry & Cream Cheese Turnovers by somethingwewhippedup.com

Strawberry & Cream Cheese Turnovers 

Makes 8

• 1 tube refrigerated crescent rolls (like Pillsbury Crescents)
• 4 tablespoons cream cheese, at room temperature
• 4 tablespoons strawberry preserves

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Pop open the crescent roll tube and roll dough out flat as shown below. Place 1/2 tablespoon cream cheese, then 1/2 tablespoon preserves in the center of the larger end of the dough. Gently fold in the two corners closest to the filling then roll up the dough until a small pocket is formed. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and repeat with remaining dough. Transfer to oven and bake for to 10 to 13 minutes or until golden.

Prepping: 3-Ingredient Strawberry & Cream Cheese Turnovers by somethingwewhippedup.com

Baking: 3-Ingredient Strawberry & Cream Cheese Turnovers by somethingwewhippedup.com

The finished product: 3-Ingredient Strawberry & Cream Cheese Turnovers by somethingwewhippedup.com

SWWU Tip 1: We used homemade preserves for our filling, but you can use anything you have on hand. Apricot, raspberry, blueberry, the list of delicious possibilities goes on and on.

SWWU Tip 2: We preferred to eat these when they were piping hot right out of the oven, but they were still quite tasty a few hours later. Try to eat them within a day or so for the best texture.

SWWU 3: Use as much or as little filling as you like. There’s no wrong way to do this one!

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The Good Egg

Pancakes and stuffed french toast are typically our go-to dishes when guests are coming over for an early-morning meal. This past weekend we changed things up a bit and added a new dish to our repertoire, and I think it might make some pretty frequent appearances in our kitchen.

Baked Eggs with Crispy Shallots by somethingwewhippedup.com

We paired baked eggs with kale, crispy shallots and fresh parmesan. They came together quickly and when paired with some home fries turned into a very satisfying and filling meal. The recipe below is for just one serving, but you can double it, triple it or more to meet your needs. We made three for our brunch. Rise and dine!

Preparing the ramekins: Baked Eggs with Crispy Shallots by somethingwewhippedup.com

Getting ready to go into the oven: Baked Eggs with Crispy Shallots by somethingwewhippedup.com

The final dish: Baked Eggs with Crispy Shallots by somethingwewhippedup.com

Baked Eggs with Kale and Crispy Shallots

Makes 1 serving

• 1 medium shallot, sliced
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup (about 1/2 leaf) thinly sliced kale
• 1 tablespoon heavy cream
• 1 egg
• 1/2 tablespoon grated parmesan
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• flavored salt for finishing, if desired (we used Salt Cellar Wild Porcini Savory Salt)
• toast, if desired

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Heat a small pan over medium-low. Add 1/2 tablespoon butter and let melt. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, for 7 to 10 minutes or until caramelized. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate and set aside.

2. Add the kale to the warm pan, and sauté over medium for 2 minutes or until wilted; remove from heat and set aside.

3. Meanwhile, add the remaining 1/2 tablespoon butter to a ramekin and top with the heavy cream. Place ramekin in a baking dish, transfer to oven and heat until butter is melted and bubbly, about 5 minutes.

4. Remove dish from oven and add kale to ramekin. Crack an egg over the top, add the crispy shallots and top with the parmesan and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Fill the baking dish with warm water until it comes half way up the side of the ramekin. Return dish to oven and cook for 13 to 15 minutes or until egg whites are set. Remove from oven and top with flavored salt if desired. Serve immediately with toast for dipping if desired.

SWWU Tip 1: Looks can be deceiving with this dish. If you want a runny yolk, check the egg at 13 minutes. The eggs will continue cooking in the warm ramekin, so err on the side of caution. 

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Framing A Love Story

It’s raining! No, not outside, but it seems like I’m getting caught up in a lot of showers these days. I’m talking about wedding and baby showers! Don’t even ask how many I’ve been to in the past year—I’ve lost count. And while I know the happy couples and expecting parents may have put a lot of thought into the items on their registries, I sometimes like to go my own way, especially if it’s for a close friend. After all, Aunt Susan can buy you that Le Cruset pot that you just HAVE TO HAVE! Instead, I like to do something I little different.

Framing A Love Story – A wedding shower gift by somethingwewhippedup.com

For a recent wedding shower I decided to create something for the happy couple to display in their home. I used cutouts of maps to tell their love story, highlighting important moments in their relationship (where they met and fell in love, where they got engaged and the new city they recently moved to together). The personalization options for a gift like this are endless!

Here’s how it all came together:

Laying out the design. (Framing A Love Story – A wedding shower gift by somethingwewhippedup.com)

Attaching the text to the picture mat. (Framing A Love Story – A wedding shower gift by somethingwewhippedup.com)

One last check of the spacing. (Framing A Love Story – A wedding shower gift by somethingwewhippedup.com)

Gluing the pieces down. (Framing A Love Story – A wedding shower gift by somethingwewhippedup.com)

The final result. (Framing A Love Story – A wedding shower gift by somethingwewhippedup.com)

Framing A Love Story

• frame with mat (I used one similar to this 11 x 14 frame)
• spray adhesive (such as Elmer’s)
• linen paper (like this sheet from Paper Source)
• circle punch (I used this 2 1/4 inch circle punch from EK Tools)
• atlas
• computer and printer
• heavy card stock paper
• scalloped scissors (like these from Fiskars)

1. Gather all of your supplies at a workstation. Take apart your frame and used the spray adhesive to attach decorative paper (I chose linen) directly to the inside of the back piece of the frame (creating a base for you to work on).

2. Use the circle punch to cut meaningful locations out of an atlas. You can also print maps on the computer, but I liked the style of the maps in the atlas a bit better than what I could find online.

3. Use a computer to design any other text that you may want incorporated into your design. Print your designs and text on heavy card stock and cut out with decorative scissors if desired.

4. Lay out your design and use the spray adhesive (a nice thin, even coat is all you need) to attach everything. Put the frame back together and give as a gift or hang on the wall.

SWWU Tip 1: Though it’s a little pricy, the spray adhesive I recommended above is well worth the investment. It allows you to use the thinnest coat of glue possible, which is ideal when working with thin paper. It dries very quickly, so make sure you’re putting pieces exactly where you want them when using it.

SWWU Tip 2: I was able to find an inexpensive 2013 atlas in a used book store for just $3. You can find similar deals at stores near your house or on eBay and Amazon.

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A Cookie for a Crowd

A Cookie for a Crowd – An oversized chocolate chip cookie by somethingwewhippedup.com

This past Saturday our home smelled like chocolate chip cookies ALL DAY LONG! Doesn’t sound so bad, right? It all started when I promised a friend that I would make a batch of our Chocolate-Covered Cookie Dough Bites for a bridal shower she was throwing. Not a problem! Sure, the treats are a bit time consuming to make, but they’re delicious and well worth the work. The trick was making them AND whipping up another dessert for a Super Bowl party that we’d be attending on Sunday. I already had all of the ingredients for the cookie dough out—butter, flour, etc.—so I thought, why not just make another chocolate chip dessert? I started out with a basic chocolate chip cookie recipe but then got a crazy idea when it came time to plop the dough onto the cookie sheet: Why not cover the entire sheet with dough! I did, and the end result was magical.

A Cookie for a Crowd – An oversized chocolate chip cookie cut up for serving (somethingwewhippedup.com)

The dough filled an entire quarter sheet pan (roughly 13 x 18 inches) and tasted way better than those cookie cakes you can usually find at your local mall. After all, this one was homemade! We ended up cutting the oversized treat into individual servings before transporting it to the party, but it would have been equally as great to present it as one GIANT cookie. Heck, throw some candles in and it would make an excellent birthday “cake” for someone looking for something a bit different.

A Cookie for a Crowd – An closer look of the gooey chocolate chip cookie (somethingwewhippedup.com)

Oversized Chocolate Chip Cookie

Makes about 30 pieces

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups tightly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract (check out our homemade vanilla extract recipe)
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tablespoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 3.5-ounce sea salt dark chocolate bar (such as Lindt), roughly chopped
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup mini chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a large bowl or in a stand mixer, cream together the butter, brown sugar and sugar. Mix for 2 to 3 minutes or until fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, and mix to combine after each one. Mix in the vanilla extract.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to the wet in two batches, mixing until completely combined each time. Fold in the chocolate pieces and both types of chocolate chips. Spread dough in an even layer on prepared baking sheet and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until cookie is golden brown and set. Remove from oven, let cool in pan on a rack.

Make sure you spread the dough in an even layer, covering the entire pan (somethingwewhippedup.com)

SWWU Tip 1: You’re going to have to stretch the batter out pretty thin to cover the entire pan. Don’t worry, it will puff up when you bake it. Just make sure the entire pan is covered and  don’t leave any holes behind.

SWWU Tip 2: Don’t have multiple types of chocolate and chocolate chips on hand? No worries, you can use any combo to dress up this dessert. 

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