Caramel Filled Chocolate Cookies pt. 2

So I already made these cookies before, but the first time they were not as successful as I had hoped. I tried the recipe again, and this time the cookies came out a lot better.

This time I used Rollos instead of Dove caramels.

Mexican Hot Chocolate Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream Icing

Once again, I was inspired by a classmate to bake this recipe. I am really glad I tried them out because they were delicious, especially the icing. 

What made these cupcakes "Mexican Hot Chocolate" was the cinnamon in the recipe. The ingredient gives it a subtle spice.

Once you have completed the batter, you slowly add 1 cup of boiling water to it. This made the cupcake really moist.

I found the recipe online here.

Italia 2010

So I haven't really updated all summer, but there's a good reason behind that. This summer, I went to Italia with eleven other people, all whom I had never met before. My group began with a three-day orientation in Roma (Rome). Then we all stayed with a different Italian family for two weeks in Napoli (Napels). After my group and I went to a culinary school to work with a chef in small northern towns (Canelli and Asti). And finally we spent three days in Venezia (Venice). It was a life changing experience, I made and ate some incredibly delicious food and I made some friends for life. Below are some pictures.

A beautiful view of all the vineyards in Italia on the way to our culinary school.

My first gelato (in Roma)! Lemon and mango flavored.

My group and I made our own pizzas from scratch in Napoli!

In Napoli, we visted a buffalo mozzarella factory, where we ate fresh mozzarella.

My group and I made a dessert very special to Asti, bonet. It is like a hazelnut chocolate flan.

This is one of the many plates of pasta we had while in Italia. This is goat cheese gnocchi with lavender.

My group, the chef and some of his assistants in the kitchen.

The view from a gondola in Venezia. Absolutely gorgeous.

On our trip, we focused on a special program, the Slow Food Movement. Their mission is to "counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how our food choices affect the rest of the world." As a result of partnering with this program, we really learned to appreciate the ingredients and process that goes into making our food.

Happy Father's Day!

For Father's Day I made penne with garlic-lemon scallops and asparagus. The scallops were pan-seared, while the asparagus was roasted.

This was my first time cooking scallops and asparagus, although I've had them before. To learn how to pan-sear the scallops, I used this article: How To Make Pan-Seared Sea Scallops.

To learn how to roast the asparagus I used this article: How to Cook Asparagus

I used an easy recipe for the scallops, which can be found here.

The family loved it.

Moist Cake

I was recently given a tip by my teacher at school on how to get the most moist cake. 

Immediately after you take the cake (or cupcakes) out of the oven, you just pop them into the freezer for a few minutes. My teacher explained that while the outside cools, it will seal the heat and steam on the inside, leaving the cupcake more moist! I have tried this tip, and have to say it really works. 

Special thanks to that teacher!

Caramel Filled Chocolate Cookies

I baked cookies today, which I haven't in a while. I made caramel filled chocolate cookies. Although they weren't as pretty as the picture in the recipe that gave me the idea (from the blog obsessed with baking), they still tasted yummy.

I put the chocolate cookie batter on the cookie sheet and placed a piece of caramel filled chocolate in the middle. Afterward I completely covered the chocolate with more batter and put it in the oven.

In the baking process, the chocolate melted and the cookie got flat, so the caramel center was not very visible, although I could taste it. The actual chocolate cookie recipe was good as well.

Tiramisu Layer Cake

Today I made a Tiramisu Layer Cake. I was inspired again by my favorite Italian restaurant as well as by a cupcake recipe I tasted, made by my classmate.

I found the recipe online. It called for a white box cake mix, which saved a lot of time. I made three layers, but in the layer that I was going to put in the middle, I added a teaspoon of instant coffee.The filling and frosting were also very easy to make, using simple ingredients such as heavy cream, confectioners sugar and coffee liqueur.

This recipe was more complicated than I am used to, but it wasn't too hard. When it was finished, it didn't taste too sweet, which was a refreshing change for the summer weather. I sprinkled cocoa powder over the top and garnished the edges with raspberries, although the recipe called for chocolate shavings. I definitely recommend this recipe!

You'll find it here.