Browned Butter Espresso Brownies

This is my favorite brownie recipe ever. For me, the perfect brownie should be super indulgent. None of that dry cakey-ness that passes for brownies at the super market. The perfect brownie should have an ever so slightly crunchy 'skin' on the exterior that leads way to chewy melt-in-your-mouth chocolate goodness inside. It's ok if there are chocolate chips in there, but the base of the brownie should really be able to stand on its own.

Before I became a baker my favorite brownie mix was Ghiardelli's- those brownies embodied what a real brownie should be. Then I set foot in the kitchen and for years I absolutely loved the brownie recipe in Tartine- the use of chocolate in them instead of cocoa powder made for intensely rich brownies. But then these fell into my lap mouth and it's been a love-affair ever since. The brown butter adds a touch of nuttiness and the espresso just strengthens that chocolate flavor ten-fold. These are everything a brownie should be. The only terrible thing about them is that they fill your home with amazing chocolate aroma and then you have to wait for them to cool down before you can indulge!

Browned Butter Espresso Brownies

(Slightly adapted from Bon Appetit)

- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 3/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons espresso or strong coffee
- 2 large eggs
- 1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare an 8x8" square pan by lining it with foil.

- Melt the butter in a small saucepan; use a wooden spoon or spatula to stir the butter around occasionally. The butter will begin to boil, once this happens keep an eye on it and stir more frequently. The bubbles will get very big and then start to shrink back down and you'll start to see brown specks making their way up to the top. Once the brown specks appear start to scrape the bottom of the pan. When the butter is a light golden brown color, (this shouldn't take more than a minute or two) take the saucepan off the heat.

- In a large mixing bowl combine the sugar, cocoa powder, and salt with a whisk. Stir in the browned butter, making sure to scrape all the brown speckled goodness out from the bottom of the pan as well. Stir everything well with your wooden spoon or spatula and add the vanilla extract and espresso (or strong coffee), stirring well to incorporate. Add in the eggs and stir well to combine. Add the flour and stir just until incorporated.

- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula. Bake for 25 minutes, or until the top starts to crack slightly. Let cool completely before cutting.

- Enjoy! Brownies will keep for a few days in an airtight container; they'll keep even longer in the refrigerator.

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Orzo with Brussels Sprouts & Bacon

I never thought I would say this, but I love brussels sprouts. I didn't grow up eating them, so I never knew much about them, other than the perceived notion that they were every single kid's least favorite food. (Am I imagining this? I sincerely recall brussels sprouts always being the response to the question "What food do you really hate?") Well, let me tell you... go to your local farm and pick up a stalk - you will not regret it! They're like mini-cabbage, but with a mild flavor. They're an interesting cross between a leafy green and a hearty vegetable; they have enough texture to stand on their own but they don't have an overpowering flavor so they pair very well with other things.

We bought a giant stalk of brussels sprouts from a farm nearby; they had just been picked that morning. There were so many of them! I didn't know what to do. I made a potato and brussels sprouts hash with half of them, but I wanted to make something a little heartier with the rest. After scouring some recipes online, here's what I came up with.

Orzo with Brussels Sprouts & Bacon

Adapted from this recipe.

- 8 slices of bacon (or more!)
- 1-lb orzo pasta
- olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1-lb brussels sprouts
- 3/4 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup creme fraiche
- 1/4 cup grated asiago cheese
- zest of 1 lemon
- salt and pepper

- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven is preheating, thinly slice the garlic cloves and set them aside. Trim the brussels sprouts, then shred the them with a food processor if you have one, or thinly slice them with a knife if you don't. Set those aside as well. Cut the bacon into 1-inch strips and lay them out on a parchment lined sheet pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes, until bacon is crispy and completely cooked.

- Bring a pot of salted water to a boil and add the orzo, cook according to the time specified on the bag. Once cooked, strain the pasta and set aside. In the same pot, heat enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pot, and once the oil is warm toss in the sliced garlic. When the garlic starts to turn slightly brown (it doesn't take long at all), toss in the brussels sprouts. Stirring occasionally, cook the brussels sprouts until they soften and start to turn brown in areas, then add the chicken broth. Let the chicken broth cook down and be absorbed for a minute or two, then turn the heat off.

- Add the cooked orzo to the brussels sprouts and mix well. Add the creme fraiche, asiago cheese, lemon zest, and salt and pepper to taste, then mix everything thoroughly. Toss the bacon in last, right before serving.

- Enjoy! This recipe made enough for two people, with enough left overs to feed us both again at least once! So ideally this could serve four people as a main course.

The bacon adds a nice crunch to the creaminess of the pasta. Shawn and I call orzo the 'rice' pasta. It's small like rice but with all the conveniences of pasta! I'm sure you could use different pasta here, but why would you want to?! For the love of brussels sprouts and bacon... make this recipe. You will not regret it.

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Chewy Granola Bars

Granola bars are an awesome snack - they're portable, filling, and they kick that mid-day sweets craving right in the mouth! But store-bought granola bars often come with unnecessary added sugars and preservatives; things I really try to avoid. So when my sister made these oh-so-simple and actually-good-for-you granola bars, I just had to follow suit. She didn't use a recipe, so I made it up as I went along and made sure to write down the process so that I would be able to share it here. The only thing you need (aside from the ingredients) is a food processor. I used my mother's ancient Cuisinart one; it still works like a pro even after all these years. If you enjoy things like granola bars, sauces, nut butters, and dressings, food processors are an investment well worth making. I will be undeniably sad to part with this one when I move next week.

Chewy Granola Bars

- 3/4 lbs pitted dates
- 2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter (preferably with no added sugar)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
- 1/2 cup cranberries
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Put the dates in your food processor and pulse them until they are completely pulverized and form one big mass. Add the peanut butter and honey and pulse to incorporate. Add the coconut and oats and pulse until one big ball of granola 'dough' forms (see photo below). At this point I transferred the dough to another bowl and worked in the cranberries and chocolate chips using a spatula, but you could also pulse them in with the food processor if you prefer (I wanted to keep the chocolate chips intact). Line an 8x8 pan with parchment paper and press the dough into it until uniformly flattened. Cover with plastic wrap or parchment paper and refrigerate until firm, about 20-30 minutes. Once firm, cut into 8 bars and store in an air tight container in the refrigerator; enjoy at your leisure!

The perfect granola bar consistency!

The beautiful thing about these granola bars is that you can add whatever fruit and nuts you desire. I used cranberries and chocolate chips because that's what I had around, but things like almonds, hazelnuts, and dried cherries would work just as well! Or you could take a tropical spin on it and add dried pineapple, mango, and big coconut flakes. And if you don't like peanut butter, almond or sunflower butter will work just as well! I really love versatile recipes like this.



A naked but delicious granola bar.

This recipe is so easy, you'll find yourself making it at least once a week if you happen to have the ingredients on hand. It's also perfect for summertime because it's no-bake! No one wants to turn the oven on when it's 80+ degrees outside... not even this baker! Let me know what flavor combinations you decide to try!



The finished product, all dressed up.

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Strawberry Rhubarb Refrigerator Jam

After a long and damp winter, nothing excites me more than seeing spring produce sprout up at the farmer's market. Especially things that aren't usually around for very long, like rhubarb. Now, rhubarb pies and tarts are absolutely wonderful in their own right, but I really wanted to try something different this time around, so last week I made the rhubarb hamantaschen cookies from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook... and I fell completely in love with the rhubarb filling. So this week I went back to farmer's market to get more rhubarb, and some strawberries, to make my own version of the filling which I am calling refrigerator jam, since that's pretty much what it is.

Note: This recipe does not include any measurements, because I didn't use any. You can use as little or as much fruit as you'd like, and as long as you coat it completely with sugar it will turn out well! For reference though, I used three medium-sized rhubarb stalks, about a cup worth of strawberries, and approximately 3/4 cups of sugar. (I'm really guessing with the sugar... I just poured it right on in!)

Strawberry Rhubarb Refrigerator Jam

- rhubarb
- strawberries
- sugar

Trim the ends of the rhubarb and remove the stems of the strawberries, then chop both into half-inch sized chunks and place them in a saucepan large enough that they're not too crowded. Pour sugar over them, just enough to completely coat all the fruit. Cook for fifteen minutes over medium-low heat, covered with a lid; no need to stir. After fifteen minutes, take the lid off and cook for another fifteen to twenty minutes, stirring occasionally. To tell whether or not they're 'done', you're looking for a thick consistency that coats the back of a spoon; all of the fruit should be soft and integrated by this point as well. Pour the jam into a clean bowl to cool down completely. Once cool, store in an airtight container in the refrigerator and eat at your leisure! The jam should keep for about three weeks, if you have more self control than I do.

The rhubarb was so fresh that I didn't even peel it; be a rebel, like me.

There's nothing better than farm fresh strawberries! Except maybe chocolate.

Let's get this party started!

Looks like this after fifteen minutes...

Just about done!

Done! But please be patient, no one likes a burned tongue.
Of course this jam is great on toast (what isn't?) but I've been using it to add a little sweetness to my plain ol' greek yogurt in the mornings. I am super tempted to try some on a big bowl of vanilla ice cream... or better yet, in a milkshake! Let me know what your favorite way to enjoy it is!

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Between Three Kitchens has a new member!

Please give a warm welcome to Ciara!

(I realize that this means we are now between FOUR kitchens, but just ignore that little oversight...)

Ciara originally hails from our hometown in New Jersey but is currently baking up a storm in her kitchen in Portland Oregon. After her first guest post she had inquired about posting on a more regular basis, so I decided to make her a part of the team. You've probably noticed that we've all been slacking on posting since the humble beginnings of this blog... hopefully a new member will kick us back into gear and you'll be seeing more posts from us on a regular basis!

- Marine

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Homemade Waffles

When my boyfriend and I moved into our first apartment together a couple of years ago, we got a few house-warming gifts. Amy brought us a case of her father's delicious homemade wine, which we slowly worked our way through during our first year there. Then when Alina came to visit, she brought us a waffle maker. Of course, I had to put it to use as soon as possible, so over the course of a few weeks, I experimented with lots of different recipes before finding one that makes perfect waffles every single time. They're light and crispy on the outside, yet fluffy and hearty inside. They can be topped with anything your belly desires but I prefer them most with Nutella or with strawberry jam, since we rarely have maple syrup in the house. And if you don't happen to have the luxury of owning a waffle maker, this recipe also makes great pancakes!

Waffles

Ingredients:

- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 3/4 cups water
- 1/2 cup oil (canola, vegetable, etc; anything goes, really!)
- 2 egg whites

Preparation:

In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a larger bowl using a whisk, beat the egg yolks enough to break them up, then add the water and oil. Add the flour mixture to the egg yolk mixture and whisk until thoroughly combined. In yet another bowl, use a stand mixer or a handheld mixer (or whisk by hand if you have neither) to beat the egg whites to stiff peaks. Gently fold the egg whites into the rest of the batter. At this point, you can either refrigerate the batter until you're ready to use it (it should last for about a day covered in the refrigerator), or immediately make waffles according to your waffle iron's instructions.

Enjoy!

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Stinging Nettle Soup, Ukrainian Style!

I have recently made an unusual soup - an old gem from the motherland via my great-grandmother. Stinging nettle soup. Yes. In case you have not heard of stinging nettle, it's a leafy plant, and it will sting your skin with nettles (containing formic acid, histamine, acetylcholine, serotonin) which will leave little itchy blisters that go away after 30 minutes or so. To my knowledge, this soup is popular in villages and countrysides in Ukraine and Russia. Probably because nettle grows wild where there is more greenery.

Since I was not able to find this plant on the East Coast, I ordered seeds a couple of years ago and planted them in my yard. Now, it grows pretty wild and requires a bit of "weed" control.

A bit more on the plant: The nettles loose their effect once put into boiling water so don't worry about stinging your tongue (but I do recommend using latext or garden gloves when handling them fresh)! Nettle also has medicinal value and contains lots of vitamins and minerals. This leafy plant has been used for cooking and medicine for many ages. Native Americans are among many cultures who use/used this plant for culinary and medicinal purposes.

For additional information, you can visit this page I found: More on Stinging Nettle

Stinging Nettle Soup

Ingredients

- A hefty bunch of young stinging nettle leaves & stalks
- Chicken/ Pork/ Beef - the meat choice is up to you! I used pork this time, but I prefer chicken
- About 5 hard boiled eggs
- About 3 large potatoes
- 2 large carrots
- 1 large onion
- Sunflower seed oil (if you do not have this, you can always use olive oil)
- Salt & pepper to taste
- A dollop of sour cream

After filling the cooking pot with water, add the meat of your choice, and start cooking it while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. Adding salt at the
beginning will also bring out the flavor. The longer you cook the meat, the nicer broth you will have!
Next you can start boiling your eggs, of if you already have them done, dice them into cubes. Set aside.
Cut off the ends of the nettle plant and mince. Set aside.
Next, dice the potatoes into small cubes and add them to the broth, which should be coming close to a boil.


While you wait for the meat and the potatoes to fully cook, take 2 large carrots and grate them.
Next, dice a large onion into small cubes.
Take the carrots and the onion, and saute them in a large flying pan until golden brown (using sunflower seed oil)
Next, add the carrots and onion to the soup.
Making sure that the potatoes are tender, you can then add the eggs, and lastly, the nettle.
Taste for flavor and salt. If you feel like there is not enough salt, add a bit more, stir, and taste. (I rarely use measurements).
Finally, pour the soup into a soup bowl, and add a dollop of sour cream!
Enjoy!

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Our First Guest Post: Brunch Quiche

This weekend seems like the perfect time to introduce our very first guest post on Between Three Kitchens! The following recipe is for brunch quiche, which would be perfect to serve on Mother's Day, if your mother enjoys a hearty breakfast. Our contributor is Ciara Melançon; we all know her because the four of us actually grew up in the same hometown and went to school together! Now she lives in Portland, Oregon and in October of last year she started her homemade desserts and quiche company, Sprinkles and Spice. If you live in the Portland area, order some cheesecakes, cupcakes, or quiche from her for your next event! Now, without further ado, here is Ciara's take on brunch quiche.
- Marine
So I've been thinking about what I wanted to make for my first blog post and it's been bugging me until I woke up this morning after being out at the bar and started pulling out breakfast stuff. Eureka! Breakfast quiche! Mothers day is coming up too so this is the perfect easy dish to make for mom if you're having her over or it has everything you need to recover from a night out. It takes about an hour total from start to finish.

Brunch Quiche

Ingredients:

- 4 eggs
- 1⁄2 cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup cheddar cheese
- 1⁄2 lb ham
- 1 9-inch pie pan

First things first, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. So let's take a look back at this recipe. This is really a variation on my quiche recipe so it's pretty easy to make variations to it depending on what you like.

If you want something that's all veggies, you can do that too but for our purposes I'm using regular medium cheddar that you can get in any grocery store along with thin sliced honey ham you can get from your deli counter. If I have it, I prefer ham steak but sliced deli ham is just as good!


Our first step is to crack open some eggs. You'll need to use the whole egg not just the whites along with the milk. Whisk well then add flour...


Whisk in your flour. You'll see that we have quite a few lumps and that's okay, just make sure that you whisk well enough that they are as small as possible.


Let's go over to the ham now. We need to cut it up small so it's in easy bite size pieces. I actually rolled up all the slices of ham and cut through them length wise then again perpendicular to my original cuts. It makes for little pieces with a heck of a lot less work.


Then throw those pieces into the pie pan. Try and separate the pieces through the pie pan so that we have an even distribution, we want to make sure each slice has ham in it.


Then throw in the cheese! I love cheese so I might have used a little extra...


Once we have the cheese and ham in the pie pan pour in the egg milk and flour mixture. It should be enough to cover all the meat and cheese, if not just shake the pie pan a little so that things settle and even out. Then put your pie in the oven for about 30 mins and crack open the bubbles. I personally prefer some Cava because it goes really well with orange juice for mimosas!


The really nice thing about this dish is that you can walk away from the kitchen while it's cooking and clean up before your guests come over. I would keep the light in the oven on towards the end of cooking time around 20 mins or so because you'll want to keep an eye on the pie. It will rise in the oven which is perfectly normal! Don't panic and pull it out of the oven, just let it rise and get nice and golden brown. You'll know the quiche is done when you see the top of the pie getting golden and a little crispy on top.


So yummy! There shouldn't be any liquid in the pie, no jiggly parts either. Let it sit for about 15 mins so that it settles and then dig in!


With this recipe the pie is going to be a little denser than quiche, but is still light enough to have for brunch. My fiance likes to eat it late at night when he gets home from work and I've taken a slice with me on my way to work and eaten it while walking. Another variation would be to add some veggies like onion or peppers, or even swap out the ham for bacon or sausage. Give it a shot and make it your own!

- Ciara

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With the end of flu season and the beginning of allergy season upon us, nothing sounds sweeter to my ears than a steaming hot bowl of chicken noodle soup. Now, I realize that a steaming bowl of soup doesn't actually make any noise, but for the sake of this post lets just pretend that this bowl of soup sounds like the smoothest of smooth jazz music. And heck, if you don't like jazz, then I really don't know what to tell you other than just make some damn soup already and forget I ever even brought sound into this tasty equation!

Before I share the recipe I should mention that the ingredient list for chicken noodle soup is very flexible. The key things are (of course): chicken, noodles, and some sort of liquid base. A quick google search for "chicken noodle soup" will yield all sorts of different recipes. In my initial search I found that most recipes use chicken stock but I only had chicken broth on hand and decided to use that instead. After some research I learned that the only difference between the two is that stock is made from bones steeped in water, and broth is made from meat/veggies steeped in water. I just winged the rest and tossed in whatever else we had on hand, so if you want to follow a strict recipe, the one that follows will work but keep in mind that you can add and omit ingredients to your liking.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Ingredients:

- 1 pound chicken breasts
- 3 medium carrots
- 1 stalk celery
- 1 small white onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 sprigs thyme
- olive oil to coat pan
- 2 quarts chicken broth
- 8 ounces pasta (I used orzo)
- salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Chop all the vegetables to whatever size you desire and set aside. Season the chicken to your liking and cook completely, then chop into bite-sized pieces and set aside. Coat the bottom of a large stockpot with olive oil and add the vegetables and thyme. Cook and stir until the vegetables are softened but not browned. Pour in the chicken broth and bring the liquid to a boil. Add your choice of pasta and simmer until tender. Toss in the chicken and continue to simmer until heated through; season to your liking. Ladle into bowls and enjoy!

When I'm cooking I've found it's easiest to prepare all of my ingredients ahead of time, so that I'm not caught off guard with my timing when it comes to actually putting it all together on the stove. So start by chopping all your vegetables. I'm not going to tell you how, because I don't know how big/small you like your vegetable chunks, but this is what everything looked like once I chopped it all up and tossed it into a bowl, for photo-taking sake.

If you must know, I always aim for bite-size chunks when it comes to carrots and celery, but I like my onion chopped slightly finer. The garlic was smashed with a knife and then minced.



Next, I cooked my chicken breasts. I seasoned them with salt, pepper, paprika, and garlic powder, but you can season yours however you'd like. Just make sure they're cooked all the way through, then move them to a cutting board and cut into bite-size chunks. Alternatively, you could shred your chicken, if you're into that sort of thing. Personally, I like big chunky pieces of chicken in my soup.



Remember all those vegetables you chopped up? Heat some olive oil in a big pot and toss them all in there. Toss a few sprigs of thyme in with them too, then give everything a nice stir and let the heat slowly soften the vegetables. Depending on how thick you cut your vegetables this could take anywhere from 5 - 10 minutes. You'll know they're soft enough when they have a slight give upon being pressed with a wooden spoon. You don't want to cook them so long that they start to brown.



Add both quarts of chicken broth and let the whole pot come to a boil. If you're anything like me, patience is key at this point. That broth takes f-o-r-e-v-e-r to boil... once it finally comes to a boil, add your pasta of choice and let it absorb that delicious chicken flavor.



Remember to give it a nice big stir every once in a while!



After 8 minutes or so (depending on your pasta cook-time) add the chicken and season the soup to your liking. If you want to keep it traditional, salt and pepper are all you really need. If you want to get a little fancy though, you can toss a pinch or two of cinnamon and nutmeg in there, along with the juice from half a lemon. Anne Burrell says these things give the soup a homey, comforting feel. Out of curiosity, I added a small amount of each, but to be honest, I don't know if it really made much of a difference in my soup. There are plenty of other things you could toss in there at this point too; garlic powder and paprika amongst them. It's entirely up to you.



I made my soup an hour ahead of time and the pasta soaked up a good amount of the broth. Personally, I love a chunky soup that's more substance than liquid, but if you want a brothier soup, I'd recommend eating it immediately. The longer it sits the more the pasta will soak up the liquid. Whatever your desired consistency is, this is the end of the recipe, so go enjoy your steaming hot bowl of soup!


Happy eating!

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A 20-Minute Meal

A quick and healthy Tuesday evening meal!

Tilapia with Spinach and Tomatoes

Ingredients

- 1.5 lbs (or 4 filet) of Tilapia
- 2 Tablespoons Capers
- Salt
- Pepper
- Handful of Grape Tomatoes
- Spinach, however much you like
- Red Pepper Flakes
- 4 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- Lemon Juice

First, season your tilapia with some salt and pepper. Drizzle approximately 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil and some Lemon Juice on top of them.


Put 2 Tablespoons of Olive Oil in your skillet. Let sit for a minute or two on Medium Heat. Then add your tilapia. You will want to cook it until it is flaky, approximately 5-7 minutes per side.


Once both sides are cooked and flaky, bring the heat down to Low. Add 2 Tablespoons of capers, drizzle some more lemon juice on top, and add some red pepper flakes to your tilapia. Let sit on Low heat for 2-3 minutes.


Now, this is where I 'cheated' and I put a steam-able bag of spinach in the microwave for 6-7 minutes. However, if you want to use fresh spinach, this is what you should do. While your tilapia is on low heat for a few minutes, transfer the leftover oil from your tilapia to a new pan. Add the spinach to this oil & wilt it over Medium heat for 2-4 minutes. Once wilted to your liking, add the grape tomatoes (cut in halves) to the skillet for 1 minute.


Serve your meal by laying the tilapia on top your bed of spinach and tomatoes. I paired this meal with a nice plum wine, however a light Chardonnay would be delicious!

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