Lemon Basil Meringues

I was feeling a bit adventurous in the flavor department and decided to make some lemon basil meringues. It was a good excuse to use the fresh basil from our garden that my husband has been so kind to grow for me.

Plus, this recipe was a great way for me to really test my new Kitchen Aid stand mixer. Boy, did it work great! The last time I made meringues I debated ever making them again. With this mixer I think I might go on a meringue binge. I love meringues because you can impart such a variety of flavor combos. They are super low in calories, and basically NO fat. You can eat these bad boys completely guilt free!

While in the oven -

Here's the recipe -

Lemon Basil Meringues
makes about 30-40 cookies

3 large egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon cream of tarter
3/4 cup sugar
zest of one small lemon
4 basil leaves chopped as finely as possible

Place egg whites in large metal bowl of stand mixer with whisk attachment (or use large metal bowl and electric hand mixer).
Add cream of tarter to egg whites.
Beat in mixer on medium high speed until soft peaks form.
Add sugar 1 tablespoon at a time until all has been incorporated and egg whites are stiff and glossy.
Fold lemon zest and basil into whipped egg whites, do not over mix.
Position oven racks in upper and lower third of oven and preheat oven to 200 degrees.
Pipe or spoon into 1 inch cookies on parchment lined cookie sheets.
Bake for 1 1/2-2 hours until crisp in the center.

Per cookie - Approx. 15 cal, 0 grams fat, 3 grams carbs

Goat Cheese and Apricot or Boysenberry Empanadas

Say what? Goat cheese empanadas? Yep, and they were delicious.

So, I had gone to Trader Joe's the other day for one reason, to buy a log of goat cheese (and whatever fun stuff I could find, I never leave that store with just one thing). I was going to use said goat cheese crumbled on some oven roasted fingerling potatoes I was making that same evening. I made the potatoes, put some fresh herbs from the garden on them and was getting ready to crumble the cheese on top. The sneaky person I am, I decided to take a quick bite of the goat cheese, you know, for quality assurance. Good thing I did! It was SO sweet, not regular goat cheese. I looked at the package and I ended up buying HONEY goat cheese. Ugh. I personally would have never bought something like that. Why? You can just drizzle some honey on regular goat cheese if that's what I'm craving. Seems kinda like an odd combo to me though. That would have tasted disgusting on my oven roasted potatoes. So, we went without the goat cheese.

What to do with this weird sweet honey goat cheese? Make empanadas of course! I bought some ready made pie crust at the store, already had the goat cheese, some apricot preserves, and boysenberry jam. It was so easy! The pie crust is already rolled out, I just cut some circles with a large cup. Then, I put about a teaspoon of goat cheese on each circle, then topped that with about a teaspoon of jam (kept the flavors separate though). To close each circle I used an egg wash on the edge and crimped it with a fork. I finally brushed the tops with the remaining egg wash and sprinkled with sugar. Baked at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes. They were yummy and super easy. I hope you end up trying this one at home. Feel free to try any other flavor combos. A good one might be a slice of brie with some fig preserves... mmmmmm.

Breakfast of champions cupcakes.... They're GRRRREAT!

I'll probably get sued for using that slogan....

I was pondering the idea of a breakfast cupcake the other day and came up with this little ditty. How does this sound, a buttermilk pancake batter cupcake with sausage crumbles (yes, actual meat in a cupcake), with maple frosting? Killer, right? Literally knocked my socks off with sweetness.

Oh so simple cupcakes, recipe included!

Hi there folks. When I got home from work today I had a craving for cupcakes. When am I not craving or thinking about new cupcakes though? Never! Having a 6 month old at home doesn't leave me with too much free time when I get home after a long day of paper pushing. I decided to make a very small batch of vanilla bean buttermilk cupcakes, literally made only 8 cupcakes. To me, that is the perfect amount. Two for me, two for the hubby, and some freebies to take to work the next day.

These had to of been the easiest cupcakes I've made so far and some of the tastiest. I had some leftover butterscotch chips from making my oatmeal Scotchie cupcakes last weekend and wanted to use them. That way I'm not tempted to just go grab a handful out of the freezer (come on, you know you do it too).

Here's a pic of the finished goods....

Keep reading for recipe.