Monthly Archives: March 2015

Arroz con Leche (Mexican Rice Pudding)

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Ever since I got back from Portugal I’ve been in an international state of mind. It’s still pretty cold in Philly and I wanted something hot and sweet. I decided to toy with the idea of making a rice pudding and found a Mexican recipe for arroz con leche. Luckily, I had most of the ingredients in my fridge and although it was a lengthy cooking time, it was very easy to make. Also its funny how many cultures eat similar variations of rice pudding – North Indians make a twist on this called Kheer with cardamom. (Had to toss that tip out there since Jess is obsessed with cardamom these days, did you try her cookies?)

  • 1 tsp almond extract (my 1st batch I definitely put too much-yikes!)
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 cup white, long grain rice
  • so the recipe said 7 cups of water I did like 3 cups I don’t get why you need 7 but just letting you guys know.
  • 1 handful of raisins (optional)
  • 1 handful of slivered almonds (optional)
  • 1 14 oz can of sweet condensed milk
  • 1 12 oz can of evaporated milk
  • 1 cup of whole milk
  • 1/2 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Put the water, rice, and cinnamon in a medium-size heavy saucepan set over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, uncovered, and cook until the rice is tender, about 18 minutes. Strain out the excess liquid and reserve the rice. Return the rice to the saucepan. Stir in the evaporated milk, condensed milk, and whole milk (Along with the extracts I added to the original recipe, this is also where you could add the cardamom seeds-remove from pods) . Continue cooking over medium-high heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and cook, uncovered, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick, about 20 minutes. Add the raisins & almonds and stir well. Transfer the pudding to a serving bowl. Dust the top of the pudding with ground cinnamon to look pretty and serve!

FYI: this recipe is GLUTEN-free, Vegetarian, and serves 4-5 people.

Happy Eating, XO.

Tea Time: Lemon Cookies

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In an attempt to drink less coffee I don’t allow myself to have a cup post lunch. Having said that though, sometimes the work day can drag and we all need a little afternoon pick me up. I have been turning to tea at around 2:30pm daily. (Earl Grey has been my jam although I try to mix it up with Green tea every so often for the antioxidants).

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Ok so I digress, with tea time I often crave a little snack. So, I thought of doing something sweet, but nothing too heavy that it will make you lethargic for the remainder of your day. When poking around the world wide web I came upon this easy cookie recipe and when I brought them into work I got mouthfuls of thumbs ups and yays from everyone. Hope you enjoy as well! (Also go out and buy a nice tea cup and matching saucer as it makes tea time more special, pretentious, fun etc…I got 4 recently! Some even monogrammed for the true tea snob factor.)

  • 1 box of store bought lemon cake mix
  • 1 lemon’s zest (if you don’t have a zester, a boxed grater works well also)
  • 1 tub of cool whip
  • 1 egg
  • Powdered sugar

Mix the first 4 ingredients well and the spoon mixture into the powdered sugar. The batter will be very sticky so you will need to coat with the powdered sugar in order to form into balls for baking sheet. I would do a little bowl of powdered sugar in which you can drop the spoonfuls into the bowl, as this can get messy if you don’t have it all set up beforehand. Lay out on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Let them sufficiently cool after you remove from oven as they will still be too soft to handle/will break if touched right after cooking.

Lemon tea cookies

Happy Eating, XO.

Roast Beef

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Although spring is right around the corner, we’re still fighting this damn winter weather. So now’s the time to sneak in one last comfy, hearty meal before we finally move on to some fresh produce. This recipe is perfect for those days you have countless errands and no time to think about cooking. Thanks to Mama Z for giving us this recipe!

  • 1 three pound roast beef (will feed roughly four people)

Gravy (or you can check out our Pantry Gravy recipe. It’s just as easy.)

  • 1 packet of McCormick onion mix
  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 cup flour

Preheat your oven to 500 degrees. Place the roast beef on a roasting pan or a pan with high sides and stick in the oven for 20 minutes. Turn off the oven and keep it closed for another 3 hours. The beef will cook slowly while you’re out doing your thing. When you’re ready to eat, heat the water and onion mix in a medium sauce pan. Stir in the flour to thicken it up. Thinly slice the roast beef and either plate it and pour on the gravy, or make an open faced roast beef sandwich by putting it on a piece of Italian bread. The best part is, you may even have some leftover cold cuts for later in the week.

 

Happy Eating, XO.