Food In Many Forms

Happy Chrismahannakwanzakah! Cookies are a great holiday present for those on a budget - they require time and effort and most of the ingredients are cheap if you don't already have them at home.  These cookies taste like the real deal, but have 75% less sugar because of the Stevia blend I used. I also chose a cookie icing from Betty Crocker that was really easy to use and had 0 g of fat. Ingredients:  1 cup unsalted butter, softened 1/2 cup baking Stevia 2 large eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 4 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt Optional Garnishes: decorative candies and colored sugars Directions: Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer in a medium mixing bowl until creamy. Gradually add baking Stevia, beating well. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in vanilla. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate mixing bowl. Gradually add flour mixture to baking Stevia blend...

This recipe made AMAZING royal icing that went perfect on Christmas cookies. Of course, me being who I am, I was have freaking out the whole time that I was eating raw egg whites. Well, I did some research, and although it is not recommended to eat raw eggs, if you are going to it helps if they are from cage-free hens or from an organic market, since they live in healthier conditions. It is supposedly also safer to eat raw egg whites than raw egg yolks. Or if you can plan ahead, just buy pasteurized egg whites - then you are completely in the clear :)  Royal Icing 2 large egg whites or 5 tablespoons meringue powder 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted Food coloring, if desired For Royal Icing: With a hand mixer, beat the egg whites with the lemon juice or extract until frothy. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat on low speed until combined, smooth, and shiny. Turn to high and beat approximately 5 minutes till stiff and g...

It's been a while since I posted. Two big food holidays have passed and much food has been made. There were carrot cake cupcakes ... There was a cake for Thanksgiving... And some mini holiday fruit pies... As well as a "College" Thanksgiving... ...and two pre-Christmas dinners with friends... One of my roommates gave me a HUGE Martha Stewart Cookbook for Christmas, and Christmas Eve Dinner consisted of her glazed carrots and striped sea bass...I still have to upload those... At first I was unsure how much I could really use Martha's book because a lot of recipes seemed unapproachable, but now that I have tried two of them...Glazed Carrots with Whole Spices and Rosemary: and Roasted Sea Bass: The carrots are definitely going to be repeated, and the Sea Bass was pretty good too - although the fennel and white wine did little to add to the flavor. I think the cookbook is just right of amount of challenge to help me learn new things. I have said before how I am a fan of ...