Spiced Honey & Corn Cupcakes with Coconut Buttercream (Gluten free, Paleo)

I wanted to make a fabulous end-of-summer, beginning-of-fall cupcake, and here it is!  These have corn kernels baked right in, and a batter laced with fall spices.  The frosting is my favorite part: butter and coconut cream are delicious together, with a little honey and maple sugar for sweetness.  I tested the frosting with and without butter, and it's great both ways.

Some people don't include corn in their paleo diet, so feel free to leave it out.  If you wanted to substitute something else, I bet these would also be delicious with little chunks of apple instead.  Let me know if you try it!

Oh, and do you love these parchment cupcake cups as much as I do?  I got the idea from this post on Alexandra's Kitchen.  They take a few minutes to make, but I love their rustic look.  The BEST part is that NONE of the cake crumbs stick to the paper!  And, the cup unfolds into a nice little placemat to put your cupcake on between bites.  You can also use parchment to line a loaf pan if you are making banana bread or something like that, and you don't even need to grease it.

Cowboy Carbonara

Have you heard of cowboy caviar?  It's a thing.  I've never really tried it, but it's a lot like this salsa, which is fabulous.  What's Gaby Cooking has several versions, including vegetarian cowboy caviar, cowboy caviar quinoa, and cowboy caviar chopped salad.  They all look delicious, but it's the catchy name that really stuck with me.

So today I had bacon, pasta, and three pattypan squashes that my mom gave me (aren't they the prettiest squashes ever?).  I wanted to make some sort of pasta carbonara, but I didn't have any parmesan.  I came up with this version using cheddar cheese and called it cowboy carbonara.  My boyfriend laughed at me, but he ate seconds.  No cowboy can resist.

I think it might even be fun to add some black beans, tomatoes, and avocado here.  Everything goes with pasta, bacon, and cheese, right?  Go crazy.  I was also going to add cilantro but I froze it in my fridge AGAIN.  Fail.

Ingredients (serves 4):

4 slices bacon

1 pound pasta (I used orecchiette)

2-3 pattypan squash, zucchini, or summer squash, chopped

1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels

2-3 scallions, sliced, plus extra for garnish

1 egg

4 ounces freshly grated sharp white cheddar cheese, plus extra for serving

Salt and pepper to taste

Cook the bacon in a large dry skillet over medium heat until crisp.  Set aside to drain on paper towels.  Once the bacon cools, roughly chop it.

Cook the pasta until al dente according to the package directions.  Drain, reserving one cup of the cooking water.

In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and the grated cheese.

Pour off all but one teaspoon or so of the bacon grease, and return the pan to the heat.  Add the squash and cook for about ten minutes, until tender.  Add the corn and saute for another 2-3 minutes until heated through.  Stir in the scallions and chopped bacon and reduce the heat to low.

When the pasta is done, add it to the skillet with the vegetables.  Add the egg and cheese and cook, tossing with pasta water to thin out the sauce as needed, for 2-3 minutes.  This is to make sure the egg gets cooked.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serve hot, with additional cheese and/or scallions on top.

You might also like:

Mushroom & Fontina Pasta

Pasta with Shrimp & Garlic Tomato Cream Sauce

Linguine Rustico with Whole Cloves of Garlic

Brie Omelette with Roasted Red Pepper, Corn, and Fresh Basil

We grow a few herbs on the porch, including basil.  It's so much fun to go out there and grab a few leaves of something for whatever I'm cooking.  Today, I was inspired by the leftover brie and roasted red pepper and decided to make them into an omelette with a little corn.  How could I make this omelette even better? I wondered.

Fresh basil!  I was right.  I think the fresh basil is what takes this from good to great.

A note about omelettes (mine, at least): they are not photogenic.  First of all, I broke my favorite square white plate while getting ready to photograph this.  All the rest of my big plates are yellow, which isn't the best background for eggs.  But also, I struggle to make my omelettes fold right and look pretty.  Any tips?

I think part of the problem is the fact that I'm too lazy to make one omelette for me and one for my boyfriend, so I insist on making one gargantuan omelette for us to share.  It's just too BIG to be pretty.

At least it's not too big to be delicious!

Ingredients (serves 2):

2 tablespoons butter, divided
1/3 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1 roasted red pepper*, peeled, trimmed, deseeded, and chopped
4 eggs
Splash of milk
Salt and pepper to taste
3 ounces brie, cut into thick slices
Handful of fresh basil leaves, julienned**

Heat one tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Saute the corn with a little salt and pepper until heated through.  Add the red pepper and cook for another minute or so.  Put the vegetables in a bowl and set aside.

Wipe out the skillet and heat the rest of the butter over medium heat.  In a small bowl, whisk together the eggs and milk with some salt and pepper.  When the skillet is hot, pour in the egg mixture.

Let the omelette set for a couple of minutes, then add the vegetables (reserving some for the garnish if desired), brie, and basil.  When the eggs are almost set, fold the two sides of the omelette into the middle (I have no tips on doing this elegantly.  Don't worry, it will taste good even if it turns into a scramble).  Cook for another minute or so, then flip onto a plate, garnish with reserved vegetables and more basil, and enjoy hot.

Share this omelette with someone special!  Or, decide you need the lumberjack special and eat it all yourself :).

*If you have a gas stove, you can roast peppers stovetop!  Place the pepper directly on the burner with the flame on high.  Turn frequently with tongs until it's collapsed and charred on all sides.  If you don't have a gas stove, preheat your oven to 500 or your broiler, put a little oil on the pepper, and roast on a cookie sheet, turning frequently, until it's deflated and well-charred.  Place the pepper in a bowl and cover.  Steaming the pepper like this makes it easier to peel.  When it's cool enough to handle, peel the pepper under cold running water.  Use in this omelette, or for pasta, pizza, or a topping for cheese and crackers.

**To julienne basil, stack the leaves on top of each other.  Roll them up, and slice into thin strips on the diagonal using a sharp knife.

Lentil & Corn Fritters (plus Lentils & Couscous)

I made lentils the other day, and was really surprised at how good they were.  They were easy to make and flavorful.  We served ours on top of pearl couscous, my new favorite grain product.  It made a great  healthy dinner, and we had tons of lentils left over.

I got the idea to make lentil fritters, and invented the fritter recipe using masarepa (my other favorite grain product).  If you have leftover lentils, these are very easy and quick to make.  If not, you should make this first recipe and have it for dinner with rice or couscous.  The next day, you can make the fritters with the leftovers.

Ingredients for lentils:

1 pound red lentils, picked over and well washed

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon cumin

4 cups water

1 cube chicken or vegetable bouillon

Salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons red or white wine

2 wedges Laughing Cow creamy Swiss cheese (optional)

Chopped scallions and cilantro for garnish

Cooked rice or couscous for serving

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat.  Add the onion, garlic and cumin and saute until softened, about five minutes.  

Raise the heat the medium high.  Add the lentils, water, and bouillon.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about twenty minutes.  The lentils should be tender and lightened in color, with almost all the liquid absorbed.

Add the wine and salt and pepper to taste.  Raise the heat and cook for another 2-3 minutes.  Stir in the cheese, if using, and stir until smooth.

Serve over rice or couscous with scallions and cilantro on top.

Ingredients for the fritters:

1 1/2 cups leftover lentils (from above recipe, or any well-cooked red lentils)
1 cups frozen corn kernels (no need to defrost)
3 scallions, sliced
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 cup masarepa
Sea salt
1 cup hot water
Canola oil or olive oil for cooking
Lime wedges for serving

In a large bowl, mix the leftover lentils, corn, scallions, cilantro, masarepa, and a pinch or two of salt.  Add the hot water and stir to combine.  Let sit for five minutes.

Meanwhile, heat about 1/8 inch of oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  When the oil is hot enough, a droplet of water should bounce and skitter across the skillet.

Using your hands, make balls of dough a little larger than golf balls and flatten them slightly to form patties.  Fry until golden brown on both sides, about 3 minutes per side.  Be gentle when you flip them--you'll lose a few pieces of corn, but that's okay.

Drain on paper towels.  Serve hot, with sea salt sprinkled on top and lime wedges for squeezing over.

Extra uncooked fritter mixture can be kept for up to three days in the refrigerator.

Black Bean & Corn Bisque

This is a delicious pantry soup, meaning you can make it with ingredients that might already be in your pantry.  It's healthy and filling, and topped with lots of good stuff.  Also, it comes together in less than half an hour and packs a little mini punch.  Yum!

P.S.  I am calling this a bisque, because it sounds so much fancier than soup.  However, according to Wikipedia, bisques have to be made with seafood stock.  Oh well!  No seafood here, but still delicious.

Ingredients (serves 3-4):

1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
1/2 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon garlic paste
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 15 ounce cans of black beans
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon cumin
1 packet Sazón Adobo seasoning
A few pinches cayenne pepper, to taste
1 cup water
Splash of silver tequila (optional)
3 tablespoons cream or coconut milk
Chopped fresh cilantro and scallions, for serving

Heat the butter or olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and corn, and raise the heat to medium high.  Stir in the garlic paste and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about ten minutes.  Remove from heat and set aside.

In a saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Add the beans along with their liquid.  Add the oregano, cumin, Adobo seasoning, cayenne, and water.  Stir to combine.  Simmer for ten minutes.  Towards the end of the cooking time, stir in the tequila and let it bubble away for another minute or so.

Remove soup from the heat.  Using a slotted spoon, remove about half of the beans and puree them in a food processor until smooth.  Return the puree to the saucepan, add the cream, and stir to combine.

Serve the soup with a generous scoop of corn and onions, and a sprinkling of scallions and cilantro.

Arepas with Black Beans and Corn & Avocado Salsa

I have been dying to make something with avocado ever since I got Gaby Dalkin's amazing cookbook, Absolutely Avocados, in the mail.  Tons of bloggers have been posting recipes from her book in honor of its release, and after I saw Recipe Girl's photos of Gaby's Bacon, Avocado, and Corn Salad, I was determined to make that.

However, due to a bout of laziness, I was only able to make it to the small Vietnamese store down the street.  No bacon, no cheese, no fresh corn.  I was forced to re-imagine my dinner plans.

In my opinion, anything with avocado and corn is pretty fabulous, even if the corn is frozen.  But, the two together don't really quite make up a meal.  I picked up a can of black beans, imagining tacos with a corn and avocado salsa.  Alas, no tortillas.  However, I did stumble across a section chock full of tortilla ingredients.  A bag of creamy yellow masarepa caught my eye, and guess what?  It had a super easy recipe for arepas right on the back.

If you've never had arepas, you need to try them!  They are a lot like pupusas, and super easy to make.  If you live in Boston, you can choose from all kinds of delicious, cheese-stuffed arepas at Orinoco.  Either way, you should definitely try this recipe.

Serves 3-4 as a main course or 8 as a first course.

Ingredients for the corn and avocado salsa:

1 tablespoon butter or olive oil

1 1/2 cups frozen corn

4 scallions, sliced

1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Juice of one lime

1 ripe avocado, peeled and small diced

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat the butter or olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add the corn and season with salt and pepper.  Cook for about five minutes, until the corn is tender.  Remove from heat.

After the corn cools a bit, combine with the rest of the ingredients and add more salt, pepper, and lime juice as needed.

Ingredients for the black beans (adapted from the back of the Goya can I used):

2 tablespoons olive oil

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 15 ounce can low-sodium black beans 

3/4 cup water

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 packet Sazón Adobo seasoning

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

Pinch of sugar (optional)

Salt to taste

Heat the olive oil over medium heat, and saute the garlic until fragrant and lightly browned.  Add the beans, water, seasoning, and vinegar.  Bring to a boil, and then simmer for ten minutes.  Taste for seasoning, adding sugar and/or salt as desired (I used a bit of both).

Ingredients for the arepas (from the back of the Goya bag):

2 cups precooked masarepa (fine yellow cornmeal)

1 teaspoon salt

3 cups warm water

Butter or olive oil for cooking

Mix together the masarepa, water, and salt, and let it sit for five minutes.  Heat the butter or olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium high heat.  Use your hands to form patties that are about 4 inches wide and half an inch thick.  Make sure the skillet is very hot before you add the arepas.  Cook until browned and crisped on both sides, 10-15 minutes total.  I recommend letting the arepas sit for the first five minutes without moving them, because at first they are vulnerable to falling apart.

The recipe said you can mix in some shredded cheese right before forming the patties, so I might have to try that next time.  Let me know if you give that version a whirl!

Serve the arepas topped with beans and salsa, with a wedge of lime for squeezing on top.

This is a perfect recipe for Cinco de Mayo!  Do you have plans to cook anything else fabulous for the big day?