I'm not dead :-)

Nope, I was in Mexico on vacation! Cabo, specifically, and it was sunny, clear, and tasty. That's right... guacamole every day, tacos, the best ceviche of my life. Wanna see pictures? Here they are :-)

Seriously best ceviche ever! I think it was probably the chunks of avocado and definitely the little bits of mango. And right under here... Loaded steak nachos. Had this at least twice, lol.Last but not least are the fish tacos. These are particularly special because Mike and my brother actually caught the fish that morning. Tiger fish, a blondie, and I think a yellow snapper maybe. Sooo good.

margarita time!

Margarita cupcakes, that is, because it's cinco de mayo tomorrow! Be honest - you have no idea what the significance of cinco de mayo is. Wait, maybe that's just me. So... I'm going to skip right over the holiday and go right to the cupcake. A couple recipes I saw called for margarita mix plus tequila. While at the liquor store during my lunch break the other day, though, I happend upon a 4 pack of Jose Cuervo margaritas and just went with that. I thought that maybe it'd make a really boozy cupcake. Nope, after it baked, the margarita flavor wasn't very pronounced. (Or maybe my taste buds were dulled from downing the 2nd half of one bottle while prepping this...) Instead the flavor is more subtle. The icing, though, is not. *happy face* I made mine pretty limey, so it's both sweet and tart. Perfect for me, and perfect for a cinco de mayo treat. Or an anytime treat!

Margarita Cupcakes

adapted from Confections of a Foodie Bride

1 box white cake mix

3 egg whites

2 Tbsp canola oil

10 oz margarita (mix, if you don't want alcohol in this)

1 oz Grand Marnier (non-alcoholic version: oj)

zest of one lime

Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 cupcake pans (this makes 24).

Combine the margarita and grand marnier in a liquid measuring cup - you should get about 1 1/3 C total. In a large bowl, mix the cake mix, egg whites, oil, and margarita mix until well blended - about 2 minutes (basically you're following the instructions on the box, but instead of water, you're using booze.)

Divide the batter evenly - fill each cup about 3/4 of the way. (I used my large cookie scoop for even, fast dishing.) Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes, then remove to the cooling rack.

Lime Cream Cheese Icing

adapted from Homemade by Holman

1 bar cream cheese, room temp

1 stick unsalted butter, room temp

juice of one lime ~ about 3-4 tbsp
4 1/2 C powdered sugar

green food coloring (optional)

green sanding sugar (optional)

Beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Beat in 3 tbsp lime juice. Mix in 1 C of powdered sugar at a time, until it reaches your desired sweetness and consistency. Check the lime flavor, and beat in more juice if you like it more tart. Add a bit of food coloring if using, and beat in until even. Frost the cupcakes, and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Alternative decorations: a slice of lime, a bendy straw, or a little umbrella just cuz I feel like I should be sitting on a beach under an umbrella sipping on a margarita!

vanilla: a primer

Who's got 2 thumbs and is super giddy that she received her order of vanilla today? This girl! I've mentioned before that vanilla is by far my favorite ingredient. Chocolate? Bah. In fact, most chocolate goodies taste better with vanilla in it, so there! Vanilla is king... and I may or may not have done a happy dance when I opened my box of extracts. Three vanilla extracts, to be exact. I'm guessing the average bear doesn't even know there are 3 types. Well there are: Bourbon-Madagascar, Mexican, and Tahitian.Where does vanilla come from? The short answer is: a flower. It starts with the vanilla orchid vanilla planifolia. Of the thousands of varieties of orchids out there, it is the only one that produces something edible. It's native to Mexico, but thanks to some world traveling Frenchmen, sometime in the 19th century, it made its way to the Isle of Bourbon in Madagascar. Those French folks found a way to hand pollinate the orchids, and now Madagascar is one of the biggest producers of vanilla in the world, which is why the vast majority of the vanilla you'll find in your standard grocery is Bourbon Madagscar vanilla.

Bourbon-Madagascar vanilla comes from the original Mexican vanilla v. planifolia, but since it's pollinated differently, it doesn't taste quite the same as the Mexican type. Bourbon Madagascar vanilla is Old Reliable. It has a sweet, creamy and strong flavor. It's the generic vanilla that never lets you down.

Mexican vanilla is the original V. planafolia. It grows naturally there, and is naturally pollinated by the native bees. It's produced in smaller amounts and goes by the name Mexican vanilla. This is a more mellow sweetness, smooth and strong, and then has this slight woody note to it. It's complex, more interesting than the Bourbon-Madagascar type, and thus, in my opinion, is the best (thus the extra big bottle I ordered!)

One side note about Mexican vanilla - if you do see it in Mexico, make sure it says "Pure Mexican Vanilla" and try to get it from a reputable source. I've read that some of the vanillas they sell in Mexico are mixed with the extract of the tonka bean, which can cause liver or kidney damage. The specific offender is coumarin, and it's banned by the FDA.

So that third kind... Tahitian vanilla. To be honest, I've never smelled it until today. I've read about it, which is how I know it's not the same plant as the Mexican or Bourbon vanillas. Tahitian vanilla comes from v. tahitiensis, a different strain of vanilla. It may have been a mutation, or a hybrid. Either way, it's different. Tahitian vanilla is a favorite of pastry chefs and perfume makers because, while it's not as strong in flavor as the others, it's more aromatic and floral.

So now that I've got my new extracts, guess who's going to be doing more baking! I'm so excited to experiment with the flavors and to develop my nose for them. Next time I'm going to have to get all 3 types of beans to compare!

Oh, and to be fair, there are actually more than 3 types of vanilla. These are just the 3 most popular. :-)

baked garlic croutons

Remember how I said I'd post all my Easter recipes, and how I was working backwards, and yet somehow I stopped with the main course? I didn't forget the rest of my meal! Our salad course was a caesar topped with these big, crunchy, garlicy croutons. They are so good I'm featuring them by themselves.

Croutons are my favorite part of any salad, and I can happily eat a salad sans dresssing as long as there are good croutons involved. Snacks(salty+crunchy)=happy Caroline. (This is also why I love popcorn, potato chips, shoestring fries, pretzel crisps, etc.) I can eat croutons by themselves, which is exactly why I made an entire loaf's worth instead of enough for one meal. Good thing is that they keep well in a zip top bag for many days of future munching.

Garlic Croutons

1 loaf day old italian bread, cubed into big 1+" chunks (the loaf I got was so big, it made almost 100 huge cubes , thus the amount of oil listed next)
1/4 cup olive oil
4 cloves garlic
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
freshly ground pepper

Preheat oven to 375.

Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-low to low heat. Smash the garlic cloves with your knife and discard the skin. Put the cloves into the oil and heat until the oil is infused with the garlicy goodness -- I let it simmer while I cut the bread - took about 10 minutes. Don't let the garlic brown.

Dump the bread cubes into a really big bowl. Drizzle the garlic infused oil over the bread, tossing regularly to ensure even coating. Season with salt, garlic powder, and a few grinds of pepper. Taste one and adjust seasoning to your liking. Spread out evenly in a single on a sheet pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Toss the croutons. Bake for 8 more minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool.

You an also season it however you like, too - get crazy with herbs, cheeses, ranch powder, etc. Eat with your favorite salad, or on soup, or as a snack :)

asparagus soup

Asparagus is one of the foods I didn't like growing up, but totally love now. I remember the first time I tasted it and went, mmmmm. I was in Austria with my mom and her cousin out at some rest stop restaurant (random, right). It was cold and rainy, and my Tito got cream of asparagus soup. He asked if I wanted some, and I peered at that green stuff and wrinkled my nose. He insisted, and I didn't want to be rude(r), so I had a sip. And it was delicious! It was creamy, surprisingly sweet, and very fresh tasting. I wanted to eat the whole thing. And that was it: I was turned on to asparagus.
Joy of joys, it's in season (thus those other posts with asparagus recently.) I couldn't find my old recipe for this, so I Googled and mashed together a bunch of different recipes to come up with this. This is a light soup, reminscent of the one I had way back when. A heavy cream would make it richer and slightly sweeter, but the evap milk has fewer calories. You can also substitute vegetable broth for the chicken broth if you want a full out vegetarian soup.

Asparagus Soup

1 lb asparagus
3 tbsp butter
1/2 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 can reduced sodium chicken broth (or 2 cups)
3/4 C evaporated milk (or heavy cream)
salt and pepper to taste
Special equipment: immersion blender or food processor

Snap the tough ends from the asparagus. Cut them into 2" pieces. If you want to decorate with the tips, save 4 tips.

In a medium sized pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Sautee the onions about 3-4 minutes until it's getting soft. Add the asparagus and garlic and sautee another 5 minutes. Add the stock. Bring to a simmer, turn down the heat to med-low, cover and cook for about 20 minutes or until the asparagus is very tender. Take off the heat.

Use the immersion blender to puree the soup, or food process until pureed. Stir in the evaporated milk. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Heat back up to temperature you like. Serve with croutons. Or if you want to use the reserved tips, sautee them for a minute until tender and top the soup.