No, I didn't buy a bunch of honey buns and throw them in a baking dish!

Honey Bun Cake is one treat I remember fondly from my teenage years. It was a dessert I only had at church functions, courtesy of our pastor's wife. Until now, since I have the recipe myself!

A few months back, the boyfriend's aunt made him a delicious honey bun cake and shared the recipe with me. Until a week or so ago, the poor little recipe went unused. When a potluck was planned and it was time for me to step up with a great dish, I drew a blank. Someone mentioned a honey bun cake and I decided to take on the endeavor for the first time.

It really was a fairly painless process, easy and straightforward.



The end result was pretty delicious, and a hit among fellow potluckers. See the yummy, swirly inside? It's much better than a store-bought honey bun. Here's the recipe!

Honey Bun Cake

Ingredients
CAKE
1 box yellow Betty Crocker cake mix
3/4 cup Crisco Oil (I was told only Crisco!)
4 eggs
8 oz. sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla (get the good stuff or you can taste the difference)
1 cup brown sugar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
2/3 cup chopped pecans

Mix first 5 ingredients together. Pour half of batter into 9x13 pan sprayed with Pam (I was told to use a glass baking dish but I used one of those disposable aluminum ones for the party). Mix brown sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Sprinkle half of sugar mixture over batter. Swirl with a fork. Pour other half of batter on top. Sprinkle with remaining sugar mixture. Swirl with a fork. Bake at 325 degrees for 40 minutes.

GLAZE
2 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
Mix ingredients together and pour over hot cake.

Here is my review on the baking process:

• First, I did not have quality vanilla and I could taste the difference. Get the good stuff.

• Second, putting half of the sugar and pecans in the middle and half on top caused my top to be uneven and bumpy. Therefore, I needed more glaze to cover and it didn't make a pretty top. I think next time I will put all of the sugary goodness in the middle. But, I think I will pour about 2/3 of the cake in first, then swirl because the swirling is hard when there's not much mix.
  

• Third, my cake took a bit longer than 40 minutes -- the middle would not cook! Don't be alarmed if you need longer as well. But, the longer cook time did not take away the moistness of the cake, probably thanks mostly to the sour cream.

Try it yourself and let me know how it turns out. But, don't blame me when you become addicted!

Saved by the Steamer Basket

Two wonderful things happened when I cooked myself dinner on Friday night -- I made my first batch of ravioli and I used my new vegetable steamer!

First, I've had this recipe from my favorite Food Network chef, Giada De Laurentiis, saved in my e-mail for months, always saying I'm going to make the Roasted Chicken Purses when I have a leftover baked chicken. Friday was my day!

Thursday night I went to one of my favorite Shreveport restaurants, Bistro Byronz, and ordered the Rosemary Chicken. Little did I realize, for lack of reading I am sure, that it was half of a chicken. Needless to say, I brought about 3/4 of it home.

For the Roasted Chicken Purses, Giada used some leftover chicken breasts she had from a rotisserie chicken. The leftover chicken was great because, as she did on the show, I shredded most of it with a fork, which made it great for the ravioli-ish mixture.

This was a very, very easy dinner, just combining the ingredients and then putting them into the wonton wrappers. I had never used wonton wrappers, let alone made my own raviolis, but now I love them!

After putting the mixture on the wrappers, you just add some egg wash and fold them up. You kind of bring all four sides up to the middle and twist to make a "purse" out of them. If you steam or boil them, they don't have to be perfect.
Now, Giada says to boil them but I read the comments from reviewers beforehand who had their wontons fall apart. I decided to take a different approach, using my new vegetable steamer.
This was uncharted territory for me and there were no instructions on how long to cook them in a steamer so I was on my own.

I put half of them in the steamer and started my experiment. First, I tested them at 5 minutes (because that was the boiling time), then at 8 and finally at 10 I took them out. Well, sort of. They stuck! So, as carefully as possible, I removed them and had to unhinge some of their bottoms from my steamer basket for round two.

This time, I put my thinking cap on and sprayed the basket with Pam! Viola!! AND, I searched the Internet, that handy dandy little thing, to see how long to steam wontons or dumplings. Some said as little as 12 minutes and some recommended 20. Since my filling was cooked, I opted for 12.

Oh, the Internet and Pam were the answer. 12 minutes was just about perfect. I sampled them and they were tasty. Even my not-a-big-fan-of-pasta father liked them. They do have a good bit of that lemon flavor so I hope you like citrus with your chicken, or else, omit the lemon zest. I found it refreshing!

I did decide to saute them in a little bit of butter afterward. I only put one tablespoon in a skillet with one sprig of thyme. Once melted, I turned off the fire, put the purses in and put a lid on it, turning them in the butter occasionally.

For a side dish, I used my wonderful steamer basket again. I put in slices of onion, bell pepper, squash and some fresh green beans, with a little Tony Chachere's of course. Those steamed almost 30 minutes because I had a lot of veggies in there.

But, my steamer basket was a ROCK STAR!

I had a great dinner and it was a very healthy option. I'm sure it would have been better without the butter, but for the amount of purses I ate, it wasn't that many ticks on the caloric calculator.
Overall, I highly recommend a steamer basket for all of your healthy vegetable needs as well as wonton wrappers for ravioli!

Now I'm ready for shrimp dumplings and wontons...the possibilities are endless.

Plantains would be perfect!

Most every Saturday night my friend Rachelle hosts a dinner party with a theme, usually taking us to exotic regions of the world for at least an evening. We have been to Greece and Italy, Mexico and beyond. Regardless the dinners are always fun and full of good food!

This past Saturday night was Jamaica, which I took allowances to mean anything in the Caribbean and I'll tell you why: I wanted fried plantains!

If you have ever had these little delights, you know why I crave them, and if you haven't had them, it's high time you tried them. My favorites are at a Lafayette restaurant called Guamas (more on them at a later date). Unfortunately for me, calls around Shreveport yielded no plantains. Our dinner was Cuban-less. No black beans either, which are another of my favorites.

Instead we had fried coconut shrimp that are always delicious, even though I'm not a huge fried food fan. It's a pretty simple recipe for yummy shrimp, even for those of us (ahem, me) who don't like coconut. It's "stolen" from Red Lobster, but you can try it at home and see for yourself.

It has a pineapple, coconutty dipping sauce that I decided to add a little zing to, by way of dijon mustard, soy sauce and horseradish. Yeah, it was pretty good. My other advice: taste the sauce before adding the sugar. It gets sweet IN A HURRY!

Paired with this fried treat we had Jamaican Jerk chicken that Rachelle had marinating and threw on the grill as well as a zucchini casserole, a la Giada, called Verdure al Forno. I made this casserole, which was easy and yummy. Definitely worth a try with all the zucchini available in the grocery stores right now. If you want cheesy goodness, this casserole is for you!

Now, our dinner would not be complete without dessert and Rachelle chose a tres de leche cake with mangoes on top. I regret I do not have this recipe to share but I will say that I think I am now in love with mangoes. I don't eat them often but have had them before. We heated these with sugar and served them on the cake and it was just delish. I'm going to buy some mangoes and pour them on every cake, all summer long.

On the plantain front, do not fear, I found some today and expect to fry one of them and salt some of them and sprinkle some with cinnamon and sugar. With the other plantain, I am going to pan-sautee it to capture the full texture and flavor. I like them both ways. It will be my first plantain endeavor so wish me luck!

If you are a plantain virgin, it is a fruit I like to say is kind of a mix between a banana and a potato as far as taste-texture is concerned. I mean, it is more banana but it is a muted banana flavor, hence my potato reference I guess. Maybe I think potato because I love them fried! Who knows, but come back for updates on the plantain cooking experience. Should be fun!!

*photos courtesy of Google images

Peanut butter and bacon burger ... you know you want to try it!

My friend Adam is going to be a guest blogger for this entry. When he said he had a hamburger with peanut butter AND bacon on it, I insisted he write for my blog. Here's to feeding your curiosity.

Last week I got three reminders of a culinary truth I should never forget: peanut butter is awesome.

The first two instances were obvious and simple: the stuff makes a great snack when mixed with an apple, and it's a great condiment for meat in Southeast Asian cuisine.

My surprise came in a French Quarter bar known for it's tequilla selection. Yo Mama's, on St. Peter's Street in New Orleans, also has got quite a list of burgers. Besides the common bleu cheese and chili varieties, they have ... wait for it ... a peanut butter and bacon burger.

Initially, I was intrigued and grossed out all at once. I didn't really want ground beef stuck in peanut butter on the roof of my mouth. But then again, my tastebuds have never had a bad experience with the stuff.

So I ordered mine cooked medium well, and out it came with shreeded bacon stirred into peanut butter. The half-pounder was massive, so I cut it in half.

Halfway through bite No. 1, I was sold. The peanut butter was smooth, and the bacon was soft. I don't know if it was whipped or heated a little, but it wasn't as thick as I feared. It definitely gave the patty a different flavor. I usually like mine with some ketchup or barbecue sauce - the stuff for meat. But this made it slightly more sweet, even dessert-like. Or maybe that was because it seemed like a novelty. The bun really got soggy. Not sure if that was grease from the meat or the peanut butter.

In the way of sides, the kitchen staff offers side salads and baked potatoes. I got a salad with bleu cheese dressing. It was average.

The burger itself was sort of like the place that sells it: at once funky and hip while altogether accessible and apparent. Yo Mama's is right across the road from Pat O'Brien's, one of Bourbon Street's most popular spots. But considering it's location it's a little hard to notice. But stepping off the street and into this place means you're sure to find something good to eat.

Asian inspiration

I've had an obvious affinity for Asian food lately, having made it for dinner twice in a week's time. Last week it was salmon marinated in my homemade teriyaki sauce with some sauteed vegetables and fried rice.

But Monday night, we saw some great looking yellowfin tuna steaks at the grocery store and decided they would make a tasty dinner.

So we decided Wednesday night was the night for our tuna. I love, love, love tuna but I have never actually cooked tuna steaks myself so I had a little anxiety.

First, I made a teriyaki sauce for the steaks. I started with some soy and added some brown sugar to the mix. I had to heat it a bit in the microwave because my brown sugar was kind of hard. Then, I added a splash of some garlic flavored rice vinegar I had on hand as well as some chili pepper flakes, garlic powder and some pineapple juice. Then, I put in some honey to thicken and sweeten my mixture. No exact measurements here, I just added by taste.

I put the teriyaki in a shallow dish to rest my pretty little tuna steaks in, just letting them sit in it for about 10 minutes on each side. I didn't want the steaks to only taste like teriyaki.

After that, I rolled the steaks in some sesame seeds I had poured on a flat dish.

We heated the grill and sprayed it with some cooking spray after it was pretty hot and placed our steaks on the grill.

As tuna steak cooking virgins, I fear we cooked them too long, about 5 minutes on each side. They were thick and I was unsure if we could really eat them as rare as I like them -- medium rare -- since they were from a grocery store and I was unsure how fresh they were.

The steaks, admittedly, were well done but were still really good. I cooked down the remaining teriyaki from the marinade and added some pineapple chunks to pour over the tuna.

Along with our tuna, we also had some asparagus from the grill.

After washing and trimming the bottoms of the asparagus, I placed them on a sheet of foil and sprinkled some olive oil, lime juice and Tony Chachere's on top. Then I folded them up and put them on the grill to cook for about 8 minutes to help infuse the flavors into my favorite vegetable. After that, I took the aspargus stems out and placed them directly on the grill for about 5 minutes to give them a little char.

For our other side item, I looked to South Beach for an edamame salad. Matt did not like the salad because he is very opposed to radishes. I don't particularly like them but I thought there were enough other flavors to make a good dish with the garlic from my rice vinegar and the fresh cilantro. Plus, I love edamame.

Overall, I was very pleased with the meal. But now, I'll trust that I can cook those tuna steaks a little less time.

Lunch made better with a crumbly cookie

Deciding on a place to eat in Shreveport can sometimes take some imagination, I find. That is, I don't generally want to only venture to those chain restaurants that are so easy to remember, although I'm not saying I never go. But, today, for lunch, I definitely wanted a little local place to have a nice lunch. Since I was headed toward the Highland neighborhood for church, Lila's Cakes and Chocolates came to mind.

Walking in you can sense the charm -- cute cakes and goodies everywhere, an exposed brick back wall and, underneath the table tops, photos of houses and places throughout the Highland area.

It was my first lunch experience there, although I had tasted their sweet treats before. I can assure you, it won't be my last.

After much deliberation over the sizable menu, I decided to go against my normal inclination to order the veggie panini, which I tend to order ANYWHERE it is on a menu. I ordered what caught my eye instead -- the turkey sandwich with raspberry chipotle.

It was a simple looking turkey sandwich on wheat bread that was very fresh and, I assume from the advertisement to buy fresh loaves of bread, made right in the kitchen at Lila's. It had lettuce and tomato but instead of your regular condiment, mustard or mayonnaise, it had raspberry chipotle. It was not an overpowering flavor but a good one nonetheless. I might have used even a touch more of it, but not much. I did not want a soggy sandwich. It complimented the turkey nicely, which made me think of the turkey/cranberry combination, I guess just from a berry standpoint. It wasn't very hot, I found. I thought there would be a bit more punch to it.

Adam had the day's special -- a ham wrap with mango chipotle. Yes, I guess they like chipotle there and so do we. I know he liked it because he ate it all and even made sure to get every last ounce of that mango-chipotle mixture on his wrap and in his mouth. Adam has a thing for sauces, condiments and soups, so he wasn't going to let this one get away.

The sandwiches, wraps and paninis all come with either chips or a cookie as well as a pickle on the side, an obvious deli touch. I must tell you I went for the cookie immediately. I was in a bakery after all. I had a Greek wedding cookie.

I'd seen them but never had one before and the powdered sugar over the top of a buttery colored cookie was all I needed to be enticed. The cookie crumbled very easily and of course the powdered sugar was free to move in any direction while taking a bite. I watched out for flying white stuff to land on my dark shirt and enjoyed the creaminess in my mouth. I have to say the butter flavor was subtle, and I did hope for more of it. But when you had a larger bite in your mouth, the crumbles came together for more creaminess. It was definitely not dry.

Adam had a chocolate chip cookie, which I sampled. I have to say it wasn't my favorite bite. It had a more salty/savory flavor in the cookie portion in contrast to the sweet chocolate. But it was soft and moist, two keys to a good chocolate chip cookie for me.

Overall a very good lunch. I'm glad they have been able to make a successful business at their location on Olive Street. It is a good place for lunch in Shreveport with a variety of options at an affordable price.

The Art of the Grilled Cheese

It could be the ultimate in comfort food, right along with macaroni and cheese that is.

The grilled cheese sandwich has long been one of my favorites, a standby when you can't figure out what else to eat or the perfect accompaniment to a bowl of soup, especially of the tomato variety. Today was just the day to make one and it was yum!

A few months back, I decided to concoct my own grilled cheese, a little different from my American singles days.

I tend to have a bent for Italian food and my "new" grilled cheese showcases that quite openly.

It started out with two slices of fresh Italian bread, but don't worry, it has since been bookended by Sourdough, white and wheat, depending on what's on hand. I'm kind of a stickler for having the edges match up and all so I make sure my two pieces are right next to one another. I open them up and butter the insides, yes the insides first. Then I sprinkle the insides with my favorite Italian spices (this is where the originality can begin) and those vary depending on what's in the pantry.

Those inside, spiced up sides end up in a preheated and lightly buttered skillet first (WARNING, there is quite a bit of butter in this recipe). As those begin to brown wonderfully, I butter the top sides staring back at me, which will eventually be my outsides. Once the insides are browned and the aroma of the spices is drifting nicely through the kitchen, I turn them over and place my selected cheese on one of the insides before placing the other spiced side on top of the cheese to create what now looks more like a regular grilled cheese.

The cheese is not a mere afterthought here. I'm definitively into white cheeses on my grilled cheese these days, having started out with mozzarella and sometimes moving into pepper jack. There are others I'm going to try out soon, but these are my main staples for now.

Of course, then you just brown both sides as you would any grilled cheese.

I serve mine with a nice marinara sauce for dipping to "finish off" my Italian meal but soup is always a great side.

Throughout my ongoing experiment I have added sliced tomatoes, turkey and even baby spinach to the mix for variety.

Many variations still await my tastebuds but I'm enjoying my taste-testing in search of the perfect, grown-up grilled cheese. There are so many possibilities beyond that yellow cheese in the wrapper.

I've had a few "samplers" who love it, too, although of course they have their own preferences on how it should be made. As long as I'm the chef, they'll get it my way and just be excited. Of course, it's not as if they are complaining as they clean their plates!