Chocolate Stout Cake

Mar 13, 2012 by lovelypantry

I tried to resist making this. I really did. But I had all the ingredients! I just had to.

I picked up a little recipe book called Irish Favourites and the recipes were interesting… as in, I’d make most of the recipes in the book! It was perfect timing seeing that St.Patrick’s day is right around the corner. The original recipe had a cream cheese frosting but I opted out. The chocolate cake is bad enough. And by bad, I mean good.

 

 

 

Look what I found – Jamaican Dragon Stout. The sweeter alternative to Guinness. My hubby had a stash and was nice enough to let me use one. I’m not a stout drinker myself, but I think I may like cooking with it.

 

 

 

The recipe called for a 13 X 9 inch baking pan but I thought it would be more interesting to use a Bundt pan. Okay, I just really wanted to use it. This is my first Bundt cake. Chocolate Stout Bundt Cake. Sounds good!

 

 

Glazing was some messy fun! Me and my daughter had green fingers for a while…

 

 

 

 

A rich but not too sweet chocolate cake, made with a Jamaican stout…just in time for St. Patrick’s Day.

 

 

About how long do I need to walk on the treadmill to fix this?

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Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Feb 14, 2012 by lovelypantry

Today is Valentine’s Day and although I don’t celebrate it, I thought it would be awesome if I made something I’ve been wanting to make for a while now. A friend of mine made it and it was really nice and ever since, I keep seeing the recipe everywhere. It was a sign! So I did it. And it was FABULOUS. I swear, I ate my cupcakes in moderation.  I will not swear the same for the frosting! My daughter ate the frosting and half a cupcake. She then refused to eat any other cupcake without frosting. Major meltdown if her frosting had no sprinkles.  MAJOR.

 

 

 

I’ll say this now – I will likely make these Red Velvet darlings once per year. Or maybe on a REALLY special occasion. No more than that. Perhaps this will be my Valentine’s Day treat for the family. I guess it’s better than nothing 🙂 It tastes great but oh my, could we use a bit more oil? Sugar? Please? I’m sure there’s a “light” version out there somewhere in cyberland. I’ll come across it eventually.

A general warning…don’t wear white or a light coloured shirt while making this recipe. Don’t say I didn’t tell you. I really ought to invest in an apron 🙂

 

Here’s the recipe and a few photographs. Cupcakes are awesome models.

 

This recipe was adapted from Annie’s Eats.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

So anyway, I had a great time photographing my cupcakes. Like my silicone hearts? Beats the reusable cupcake liners! There were only 12 in a pack so I used 12 paper liners also. Fact: The cream cheese frosting was the star of the show. It’s just so GOOD!

 

 

 

I won’t be doing much romancing today – no more than the usual (wink). But I’m sure I’ll be watching some romantic comedy or the other on television tonight with the husband. If you celebrate Valentine’s Day, have a good one. If you don’t celebrate, have a good one!

 

~Lyn

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Ginger Molasses Cookies

Jan 5, 2012 by lovelypantry

Holiday baking was fun for me. I generally look for recipes that are quick and have fairly simple ingredients. I had been searching  for cookie recipes for a few days during the holiday season (lots to go through) and I was really happy to try this. I did not adapt the ingredients for this recipe in any way. It was perfect just the way it was. Find the original recipe here.

My kids loved it, and honestly, I had a hard time restraining myself while they were cooling. I messed up my first batch because I tried to bake 8 cookies on a tray. And when I say messed up, I just mean they baked stuck together and I had to cut them so they looked like weird squares. Tasted great all the same :-). These cookies start out small but they do spread quite a bit. 6 Cookies go on a 15.5inch X 10.5inch rimmed baking tray.

I made this recipe 3 times over the holidays! Yep, they were that good! I was able to give them as gifts and as a treat at a New Year gathering. I did my cookie baking at night so I did not get to take too many photographs but here are some that I shared on Facebook while I was making them.

Here they are, “chilling out” in the fridge before baking.

 

And here is the first batch cooling. Thank goodness for stackable cooling racks! I only have 3 racks but once the cookies cooled, I transferred them to a cookie pan to make way for the set coming out of the oven. I definitely need more baking trays. This will reduce the overall cooking time drastically.

 

 

 

 

 

I really enjoyed these cookies. They were delightfully crispy and had a satisfying crunch. I might make some more this week – just because! 🙂

 

 

 

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Family Dining During The Holidays

Jan 4, 2012 by lovelypantry

For a holiday meal for my family, I generally don’t go overboard. There’s no need since there’s only 2 adults and 2 little picky eaters. Larger families may prepare turkey or ham or a whole chicken, but this does not work for my household at the moment. I did however, prepare some things for the first time. As always, I cook with faith, hoping that the meal will turn out great.

Success strikes again! I made Lamb Loin Chops – freestyle. Plus Buttermilk Chicken and my husbands favourite lasagna. I’m sharing the recipe for the Lamb today because it is so simple and the lamb chops were so elegant.

 

 

 

 

 

The lamb smelled wonderful as I browned them. I’m not sure how often I’ll be cooking lamb, but these pieces were very tender and flavourful.

 

And here was our holiday family dinner. Just for us 🙂 Small. Simple. Made with love.

 

 

 

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Happy New Year 2012!

Jan 3, 2012 by lovelypantry

I just wanted to start the year off by thanking everyone for all their support and encouragement since I created The Lovely Pantry. I have so many ideas for recipes and concepts for photographs. I’ve grown so much and met so many wonderful people along my journey so far. I’m excited and grateful to be able to continue my passion through this medium. The holiday season has been quite busy for me, to say the least. But it was wonderful to be around friends and relatives and to share meals and watch the children play together. I miss my own family immensely (parents, brother, cousins etc) but hopefully I will get to see them later this year. There’s nothing like having your own family with you during the holidays! I’m still very thankful and blessed for those that I have around me that make me feel “at home”.

Now that things are slowing down a little bit, I have a lot of posts to catch up on! I have a few goals for myself which includes posting more often, improving my photography, meeting more foodies and making bread! Those are just a few things I have on my list. Below are some photographs of a meal I prepared for an informal gathering at my home during the holidays. No recipes today. 🙂 I still have to show you what I cooked for my own family after Christmas. I found a new love for cookies! My husband says he thinks he’s found his new favourite cookie – this may mean trouble for me! 🙂

The menu is as follows, served with Jamaican style Rice and Peas:

Lemon Herbed Salmon. I’ve made this before – here’s the recipe. Underneath that herbed crispy topping, is moist salmon. It was lovely.

 

 

Veal Pastitsio – a definite crowd pleaser. I really love it, especially because my children enjoy it.

 

 

My guests specifically requested Oxtail! I aim to please! I don’t have oxtail very often but I definitely indulge the few times for the year that I actually make it. It brings back memories of Jamaica.

 

 

Perhaps I went a little overboard, but you have to know that I enjoy feeding people. I also love getting feedback from my experiments! So basically I used the Ginger Carrot Bread recipe and modified it. I split the batter in 2 and used smaller loaf pans to bake them in. I made a plain Ginger Carrot Bread, and another with raisins. I modified the same recipe and used Vanilla Chai Soy beverage instead of carrot juice. I made it before so I knew what it would taste like however, this time (again, I split the batter) I made one with dark chocolate chips and the other with dried cherries. Then of course I made a cake that I had not tried before – Orange cake made with orange rind and freshly squeezed orange juice. Heavenly! I will be posting that recipe very soon!

 

 

After a night of entertaining, I decided to make cookies. I don’t usually make cookies but I realized if I’m going to be a kitchen Goddess, I need to be able to make everything! 🙂 They turned out to be a success and I was even able to give them as gifts during the holiday season. Well, not the one’s my hubby loved the most.

 

 

And finally, this is the reason my husband adores me. Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies. No flour required. I was even able to use low-fat peanut butter, clearly for my own satisfaction. I plan to use organic peanut butter next time to see if there’s any major difference in the taste. That’s our secret though. He doesn’t have to know.

 

 

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed ringing in the New Year. I wish everyone the utmost success in everything they hope to achieve and accomplish this year and beyond. 2012 is going to be an awesome year filled with personal growth and wonderful friendships! I believe this, so I know it will become reality!

Join me on Facebook as I will be sharing some more photographs there too. I share my own recipes and photographs, as well as beautiful recipes by culinary artists all over the world on Twitter. Follow me!

Say hello to me anytime.

Take care.

 

Lyn

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