Brown Sugar, Garam Masala, and Pistachio Muffins

I'm pretty excited about these brown sugar, garam masala, and pistachio muffins. They had a warm, earthy, and deliciously complex flavor.

Garam masala you ask? It's a blend of spices used in regional Indian cooking. I've read that the phrase in English means "warm spice." Epicurious describes it as the Indian equivalent to the French herbes de Provence, or the Chinese five spice blend.

Rosemary, Cayenne, and Brown Sugar Cashews

These Rosemary, Cayenne, and Brown Sugar Cashews are the perfect appetizer to serve with sparkling wine or cocktails. They have a wonderful savory sweetness, and are easy and elegant. The perfect bar snack.

Stir-Fried Crystal Shrimp and Stir-Fried Garlic Shanghai Bok Choy | Wok Wednesdays

For this Wok Wednesday's post, I'm posting both of February's recipes today. First, the Stir-Fried Crystal Shrimp, and then the Stir-Fried Garlic Shanghai Bok Choy.

Cheese Tortellini Soup with Kielbasa, Kale, and Cannellini

This cheese tortellini soup with kielbasa, kale, and cannellini is so crazy good. It's also incredibly easy to make.

Spicy Crab Bisque

There are a lot of ingredients in this spicy crab bisque, but it is really easy to put together. Plus, you can make the soup base in advance and then add the crab right before serving.

Bisque is a creamy soup of French origin, normally made from shrimp, crab, or lobster. Traditionally, the flavor is extracted from the ground shells of the crustaceans. This short-cut version is so rich tasting, yet it does not contain heavy cream. It gets its creamy texture from lots of sautéed and roasted vegetables, which are blended with the broth and milk.

Caramelized Onion Bread with Buckwheat and White Rye

I am so excited about this Caramelized Onion Bread with Buckwheat and White Rye. Why?

1. I had white rye in my freezer. Who has white rye in their freezer for that moment when they need to make a bread with white rye? Me! The great ingredient hoarder. 
2. Look at those amazing holes in the slices of bread! Aren't they gorgeous?
3. Caramelized onions. This bread is infused with a subtle caramelized onion flavor that adds just the perfect sweetness to the bread. 
4. I ground my own buckwheat flour... in a spice grinder!
5. I was introduced to an incredible new bread book, Bien Cuit. 
6. This bread is soooooo delicious!! Seriously! 
7. Look at those amazing holes with those bits of caramelized onions!!

Macadamia Nut and White Chocolate Chunk Cookies

These Macadamia Nut and White Chocolate Chunk Cookies are the perfect combination of salty and sweet. Imagine 2 cups of macadamia nuts and white chocolate chunks barely held together with just a couple of cups of cookie dough.

Oh. Em. Gee.

How to Make Basic Pepperoni Pizza with Overnight Dough Using the Two Stone Method

I love pepperoni pizza. I pretty much consider it a food group. I could eat if for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Sourdough English Muffins on the Griddle

I love English muffins. They are so good toasted and buttered or spread with jam.

Some of my favorite ways to eat English muffins are as part of a breakfast sandwich, as a base for a quick mini pizza, and for an open faced tuna melt. The tuna melt especially brings back memories of my sister and me hanging out together with our new babies and spending the day together (and maybe watching Days of Our Lives or All My Children while our babies were napping). Creating those tuna melts was about as "fancy" as we could get while juggling babies on our hips. The tuna melts were especially good with potato chips and dill pickles....

Detroit Style "Red Top" Pizza

Detroit Red Top Pizza is an amazing thing, especially if you love burnt cheese as much as I do. This pizza is encrusted with cheese, purposely pressed against the sides of a butter coated pan to achieve that crusty goodness. Ridiculous.