Lemon-Blueberry Muffins

Okay, let's keep it real. 

I'm a person that strives to be the best.  I sometimes even claim to actually be the best.  But in all reality, in most situations - I'm just mediocre. 

But I'm still a competitive beast by nature.  And when things go wrong - I'm not a happy camper.

Take these muffins, for instance.  Yes, they look like normal blueberry muffins on the outside, but you know what?  I really made a big boo-boo on this one.  I forgot the sugar.

I mean... who the heck forgets the sugar?!  Maybe a novice baker.  Maybe a 10 year old.  But me?  This isn't my first baking rodeo.  I've made muffins a million times, and could probably make them with my eyes closed... or not.

It's times like these that I just have to laugh at myself.  One... for being an idiot and forgetting the sugar.  But two, because there are other things in life a little more important than some sugar in some muffins.  And because I was stubborn as all get out - I continued to eat these sugar-less muffins because I didn't want to waste them and admit defeat.  So really... maybe I did come out on top. 

So here's the recipe (as it was supposed to be, sugar-included).

Do you ever have one of those "DOH!" moments in the kitchen?  Feel free to make me feel better by saying I'm not the only one =) 

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar (don't forget it now!)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
juice from 1 lemon
1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 500 F.

Fill muffin tin with liners. 

Whisk flour, SUGAR, salt, and baking powder in a medium bowl.  Fold in blueberries.

In another medium bowl, beat buttermilk, eggs, oil, vanilla, and lemon juice until combined.

Mix liquid ingredients with dry ingredients until incorporated.

Fill muffin liners about 2/3 full.  Place in oven and immediately drop temperature to 400 F.

Bake for about 15 minutes, or until cake tester or toothpick comes out clean.

I even tried to salvage the muffins by making a quick glaze with some water and powdered sugar.  While it helped give a bit of a sweet note, it just wasn't the sweet note that permeated the entire muffin like that 1/2 cup of missing sugar would have given!  Oh well... There will be other muffin baking experiences to be had (hopefully including sugar next time)! 

I'm off to bed - See you guys tomorrow!

Blueberry & Avocado Spinach Salad

Happy Monday guys!  Anybody do anything exciting?

Again, we were pretty lazy.  Andy had to go into work yesterday night for some end of the month reports, so I sat around the house catching up on some Netflix action.

It's also August!  Boy has this year flown by!

I thought I'd start the week with something light.  I usually take my lunch to work 99.9% of the time, and this is just a glimpse of the sort of thing I take with me!

Ingredients:

1 Avocado, cubed
1/4 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
a few slices of ham, chopped
1/4 cup blueberries
1 cup spinach
juice from 1 lime

I'm one of those weird people that prefers their salad undressed most of the time.  And plus, the avocado is creamy enough that it adds a faux dressing feel.

Combine avocado, tomatoes, ham, blueberries, and spinach in a large bowl.  Toss until mixed well. 

Squeeze lime juice over salad and toss again. 

Dig in!

Quick and easy lunch any day of the week!

Do you bring your lunch to work?  What sort of things do you take with you?



Well, I'm off to get some cleaning done around the house - since I let myself be lazy all day yesterday!  Have a great start to the week guys!

Blueberry Bourbon Cocktail

Happy Friday guys! 

Anybody planning anything fun for the weekend?

We have a meeting with a potential caterer tomorrow, so we're really excited about that!  Just another thing to check off the list you know?

And after the somewhat crazy week we've both had, I think one of these cocktails will definitely be in order as well!

But first, don't forget to vote in this week's bi-monthly poll...




Ingredients:

1 to 2 shots bourbon (we used Maker's)
1 cup blueberries
juice from 1 lemon
zest from 1 lemon
1 tablespoon maple syrup, divided
2 tablespoons sugar

We had gotten a bunch of blueberries from our CSA in the past couple of weeks, so I needed to make use of them - and what better way than to make a cocktail?

Start with about 3/4 cup of blueberries.  Muddle them down in a cocktail shaker (or bowl if you don't want to dirty two cocktail shakers) - you could strain them if you'd like, but I was kind of lazy so I went for a "rustic" cocktail.

Add in bourbon, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of maple syrup, and a dash of sugar.  Shake for a good minute or two.

Mix the lemon zest with about a tablespoon of sugar (more if needed) on a flat plate.

Brush the rim of a mason jar with maple syrup and dip in lemon zest/sugar mixture.

Fill the mason jar with ice and some leftover blueberries.  Pour the bourbon cocktail into the jar and garnish with a lemon slice.  Enjoy!

What a way to celebrate the weekend right?

What's your favorite Friday night cocktail?

Pork Chops w/ Balsamic Blueberry Reduction

Happy Monday everybody!

How was everyone's weekend?  Ours was pretty busy!  Spent the day Saturday doing tons of errands.  Haircut and color (much-needed - and it looks hot!) was a major highlight.  Hehe, no pun intended.  But we also managed to snag lunch at the first ever Louisville Food Truckus Ruckus.  In a matter of just a few short months, Louisville's food truck scene has exploded.  There's at least 8 or so regulars around town now.  Pretty awesome right?  We got a chance to sample works from Busta Grill (one of the best Chicken Sausages ever - topped with a chimichurri coleslaw and tomato/basil pesto was seriously delicious!).  And then MozzaPi's Thai Pi was awesome too.  Curry, bean sprouts, cilantro, and peanuts made for one delicious pie.  And the truck itself was nothing short of amazing - they had a crazy cool wood-fire grill on the end of the truck to cook all of their pizzas to order!

Anyway... I never got around to posting any of those Red, White, & Blue Party recipes last week, did I?  Well, have no fear, I've got a mighty delicious one planned for today!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Rock Recipes' Recipe

8 bone-in pork chops
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 teaspoon thyme
pinch of nutmeg
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1 cup blueberries
2 tablespoons brown sugar
juice from 1 lemon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preheat oven to lowest temperature (mine was 170F).  Heat a large non-stick skillet (a cast iron works well here) under medium high heat and add olive oil. 

Season pork chops with salt and pepper on both sides.  Add 2 pork chops at a time to the skillet and cook for about 4-5 minutes per side.  Let pork chops keep warm in the preheated oven on a baking sheet.

To make reduction, combine garlic, white wine, thyme, nutmeg, balsamic vinegar, blueberries, and brown sugar under high heat in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for about 10 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened.  Stir in lemon juice and butter and simmer for a couple more minutes.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Top pork chops with blueberry reduction and dig in!

This is definitely one of those meals that is simple, but sure to impress!  I loved the combo of blueberries and pork, and if you haven't tried it... you need to!

Hope you all have a great Monday!  But for now... I'm off to start Day 1 of my half-marathon training.  Good thing it's only a Stretch & Strengthen Day.  Should be easy =)

Food Science Friday and Shrimp & Asparagus Pasta

This week for Food Science Friday, I read the article:

'Consumer Acceptance of Fresh Blueberries in Bio-Based Packages' by Eva Almenar et al. Journal of the Science of Food & Agriculture 2010 Vol 90: 1121-1128

So how many times have you gone into a supermarket or grocery store and wanted fresh berries or fruits? Then you get to the counter and realize that there's mushy, and somewhat fungus infected fruit in the container. Do you really want to waste your money on a product that's obviously past due? No! Of course not.

Well, this article presents a study on non-vented PLA (Poly-lactic Acid) containers vs. the normal commercial vented petroleum-based (PET) clamshell containers. Now if you looked at both of those pictures, you wouldn't really be able to tell much of a difference right? Well, the material the container is made from, actually makes a TON of difference, and this study presents why.

If you're like we, quality is usually more important than price for a certain ingredients. I can dish out a few more dollars for something that will last longer, taste better, and just be better for me. Am I right? Right.

The study is conducted on blueberries, so we'll stick to just referring to blueberries from here on out.

Right now, blueberries are only packaged in vented clamshell containers. These containers help with rapid cooling and protects them from mechanical damage during shipping. PLA containers, however, have been shown to increase the shelf life of blueberries as compared to the clamshell containers. But they've never been used in a commercial setting. Blueberry consumption is steadily increasing from year to year and a switch to PLA containers would essentially reduce environmental impact (because most PLA containers are biodegradable) as well as reducing fruit deterioration, allowing for less economic losses (because essentially we, as consumers, would buy more blueberries because they look a hell of a lot better, for a longer period of time).
Alright, so how did they conduct this study? Well, the researches obtained about 100 g (roughly 75-100 blueberries) of high bush (cultivated) blueberries from Michigan Blueberry Growers and divided them between non-vented PLA containers. The same amount was divided up between vented PET clamshell containers (these were the controls).

Half of the PLA and half of the PET containers were stored at 10 C (50 F) to simulate commercial transportation conditions, and the other half of both types of containers were stored at 3 C (37.4 F) to simulate display conditions.

the samples were analyzed on day 0, 7, and 14 of the study. What exactly did they analyze the berries for?

• Weight Loss - this indicated degradation of fruit
• Soluble Solid Content - to test for firmness of the fruit
• Titratable Acidity - did the blueberries retain their acidity?
• Off-flavors & Aroma - do they still smell and taste fresh/appealing?

The samples were also visually examined for fungal development.

The sample also underwent and consumer testing at days 7 and 14 of the study. The "consumers" in the study were all recruited from Michigan State University (students, faculty, staff). They were to grade the unidentified sample blueberries based on flavor, appearance, and overall quality and texture.

Results:

In the consumer testing phase, panelists were asked to describe the appearance of their blueberry samples. An overwhelming amount of panelists described some of the samples as "shriveled" or "wrinkled". Would you want to eat a blueberry described like that? What container do you think those blueberries came from? You guessed it, PET. Shriveling and wrinkling are usually caused by transpiration rates and RH (Relative Humidity) levels. Vented containers don't allow for high RH levels, causing less moisture to keep the blueberries in a "plump" state. However, non-vented PLA containers keep RH levels high due to the very absence of vents and the hydrophobic nature (water molecules basically don't escape "through" the material) of the PLA polymer itself.

Out of the 33 panelists subjected to the consumer study, the following shows how many picked the non-vented PLA containers over vented-PET containers in each aspect of study:

Flavor - 24 @ 3 C, 24 @ 10 C
Texture - 30 @ 3 C, 29 @ 10 C
Appearance - 30 @ 3 C, 30 @ 10 C
Overall Quality - 28 @ 3 C, 30 @ 10 C

In each category, at least 80% picked PLA containers each time. That should show right there how we should package our blueberries. And if that didn't convince you, here's the results of the analysis tests:
Weight Loss - 14-16 % was observed in vented PET containers and less than 2 % was observed in PLA containers. Shriveling in the PET containers attributed a massive weight loss over the 2 week study.
Soluble Solid Content - Now this was a tricky one for me, vented PET containers were shown to have a high sugar content, therefore being "sweeter". But you necessarily want a "sweet" blueberry? Or do you want a "tart" blueberry. Non-vented PLA containers were not observed to be sweet, and definitely picked moreover than the PET blueberries, so maybe sweet is not so good in this aspect? I'm indifferent on this bit of analysis.
Titratable Acidity - was not noticeably different in either container so it was deemed not to be affected by packaging.

Aroma - The panelist study confirmed that PLA container blueberries were preferable to vented PET containers.

So basically, what does this all mean? Well, in my opinion, I think PLA containers should be implemented for the packaging of blueberries. The study really didn't say whether other fruits were packaged using the PLA containers as well, but I know I've seen them around. PLA containers can be bought online from Eco Products and I know that I'm definitely going to look for the non-vented PLA containers from now on. After all, how many times have you gone to the grocery store, picked up some fresh fruit, not used it within a couple of days, go to use it, and it's already mushy and gross? TOO many times this has happened to me, and it's good to know that there's something out there that prevents this. * And just a little disclaimer here, no, I wasn't paid by Eco Products or any PLA company to post this, I just feel really strongly about quality and freshness of products that we use, and plus... these things help the environment, so it's always a good thing then!

Alright... what a doozy, let's get to a quick and spring-time recipe!

Ingredients:

1 lb. spaghetti noodles
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
1 lb. shrimp, deveined, shells and tails removed
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the spaghetti noodles according to package directions. I always like a good al dente boiling.

While you're waiting for the noodles to cook, heat the olive oil in a large skillet under medium high heat. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about a minute or so. Add the asparagus and cook until it softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add in the shrimp and make sure you spread them out pretty good for even cooking. Cook until the shrimp are a nice pink, about 5-6 minutes (make sure you flip them once, in between).

Drain the pasta, reserving about 1 cup of liquid. Add in pasta to asparagus and shrimp mixture and pasta liquid, if needed. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve right away!

I figured you guys would need a quick and easy recipe after reading that long spiel about blueberries! I really liked this dish, and considering it's simplicity, the salt and pepper are really key here. Enjoy!