Funfetti Mug Cake for One

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By Natalie Anne ❤

I’ve tried to make a few Mug Cakes before, mainly just Chocolate Chip Cookie-esque ones, but they never seem to turn out how I want them to. However, last night I was craving something sweet to eat while watching the new season of Bates Motel and realized I had about half a bag of Funfetti Cake Mix sitting in my cabinet. So I thought I would try another mug cake, hoping that this one wouldn’t fail me. Spoiler Alert: I finally found a mug cake I like, and this is it!

Ingredients (Adapted from here):

  1. 8 Tablespoons of Pillsbury’s Funfetti Cake Mix
  2. 1 Beaten Egg
  3. 1 Tablespoon of Vegetable Oil (I used Canola Oil)
  4. 3 Tablespoons of Water
  5. 1-2 Tablespoons of Funfetti Icing

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Whip up the Cake Mix, Egg, Oil, and Water into a good ole Coffee Mug and stick it in the microwave for 1 minute and 30 seconds (I like my cakes/cookies really moist so I only cooked it for 1 minute and 15 seconds!).

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When it’s done, if you want to make it extra tasty, plop a dollop or two of the Funfetti icing on top of the baby cake. Or if you’re feeling really ambitious, while everything is still hot, mix the icing fully in with the mug cake and you’ve got a warm, gooey Funfetti mug of wonderful deliciousness!

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There ya go, in less than five minutes you’ve got a warm mug of Funfetti in your hand and a new trick up your sleeve!

Easy & Delicious Peanut Pad Thai Recipe & Tamarind Margaritas

by Myles Katherine ❤

I’ve been wanting to make pad thai forever but I always found it a bit intimidating. It seemed like I would need so many ingredients and I was worried that it just wouldn’t taste as good as it does at restaurants. I ended up surprising myself though, and it was one of the best meals I’ve made in a while! I prefer my pad thai sauce with a little extra peanut flavor, so I created my own peanut pad thai sauce. The recipe I adapted it from was super easy, especially if you have a Vitamix blender. I threw all of the ingredients in there, and voila! A dual use recipe as a dipping sauce for my fresh vegetable rolls (I’ll be posting these tomorrow!) and a pad thai sauce. I also made vegetable spring rolls & had sticky rice with mango for dessert, but I’ll create a post tomorrow about those. 🙂

Pad Thai Ingredients:

(serves 2-4)

Sauce:

  • ½ cup smooth peanut butter, preferably natural
  • 3 tablespoons unsweetened coconut milk or cream
  • 1 ½ tablespoons lime juice, more as needed
  • 2 teaspoons brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons grated ginger root
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • ½ teaspoon sriracha or other hot sauce
  • 1 tsp rice vinegar
  • ¼ teaspoon plus a pinch kosher salt, more as needed
  • 1/3 cup tamarind concentrate – This is what really gives it the pad thai flavor, so add more as needed for that tangy flavor that pad thai is known for! I purchased it at a local asian food market, along with the pad thai noodles used below.

Dish:

  • 1 package extra firm tofu
  • 1 TBSP sesame oil
  • 2-4 servings of noodles, prepared as needed
  • 1 tsp coconut oil
  • 1 Egg
  • Cilantro, for garnish
  • Lime, for garnish
  • Fresh bean sprouts, about a cup
  • Crushed peanuts, about 2 TBSP
  • 2-3 green onions, chopped
  1. In a food processor or blender, combine peanut butter, coconut milk/cream, 3 tablespoons hot water, lime juice, sugar, soy sauce, ginger, rice vinegar, garlic, sriracha, tamarind concentrate and a pinch of salt. Purée until smooth. Add more lime juice and or salt to taste. Scrape into a bowl.
  2. Sauté the tofu in a pan with the sesame oil until browned on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Prepare the noodles as labeled on the package. I purchased fresh noodles from a local market so they didn’t require pre-cooking.
  3. Add onions and garlic to the pan and sauté with leftover sesame oil and a tsp of coconut oil for about 2 minutes over medium heat, until fragrant.
  4. Add in the tofu, cooked noodles, egg and peanut sauce to the pan and sautee over low heat, just until warmed and egg is cooked thoroughly.
  5. Serve! Garnish with cilantro, bean sprouts, lime wedges, crushed peanuts and chopped green onions.

    Tamarind Margaritas Ingredients:

    (adapted from Flaming Tortillas – 4 servings)

    • 4 ounces tequila
    • 2 ounces Triple Sec- or any orange liqueur
    • 1/3 cup tamarind concentrate
    • Sparkling water (optional)
    •  Ice
    • 1 lime (juiced), plus wedges for garnish

1. Fill glasses with ice.
2. In a cocktail shaker (or blender) with ice add the tequila, triple sec, tamarind juice, and lime juice.
3. Pour into the salt-rimmed glasses (I’m not a salt fan, but most people are!) and top off with sparkling water and lime wedges, if using.

Tip: I like my margaritas pretty sweet, so I added extra Triple Sec and tamarind concentrate!

Thanks for reading! Leave a comment below if you’ve tried the recipe, and let us know what you think!

Asian Fusion Chicken Curry Noodles

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By Natalie Anne ❤

This is probably the tastiest dish I have ever made, and I want to eat it over and over and over again.So you should make it and love it too.

I used the following ingredients from my Japan and Thailand Try the World boxes:

Akagi Soba Noodles, Massaman Red Curry Paste, Umami Ponzu Soy Sauce, Nori Seaweed Sheets

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The recipe was adapted from Table for Two (serves 3-4):

Sauce Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup of water
  • 1-2 tablespoons honey (I like it a little sweet!)
  • 1 tablespoon of (dark) brown sugar
  • 1 teaspoon grated ginger

Dish Ingredients:

  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 1/2 red onion
  • 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast or chicken strips cut into pieces
  • 1 tablespoon coconut oil
  • 1 egg (optional)
  • chopped cilantro
  • 2 Seaweed sheets

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  1. Boil the Soba noodles in lightly salted water for 5-6 minutes (I used the 9.5 OZ package of noodles) and drain.
  2. Mix the following sauce ingredients all together in a bowl and set aside.
  3. In a pan over medium heat add 3 cloves of minced garlic, chopped red onion, and a tablespoon of coconut oil. (Optional additions: carrots and mushrooms)
  4. After simmering for 5 minutes, I scrambled in an egg to the mixture for two minutes and then added the chopped chicken. Cook until the chicken is completely cooked through.
  5. Add the sauce mixture over everything, stir well and simmer for 4-5 minutes.
  6. Toss the Soba noodles and shredded seaweed with everything.
  7. Top with cilantro leaves (maybe even bean sprouts and/or peanuts) and enjoy!

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Japanese Matcha Shortbread Cookies

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By Natalie Anne ❤

I’ve been so obsessed with my Thailand Box from Try the World that I accidentally neglected my Japan Box, which has so much to offer. So yesterday during a lazy Sunday, I decided to get out my Japan Box and make a recipe. I saw one for these Matcha Shortbread Cookies and knew I had found my answer. My mother gave me a Totoro rolling pin for Christmas I had been dying to use so this was the perfect recipe!I cut the recipe in half, since I was low on butter and didn’t need want to tempt myself with 24 cookies in my apartment.

Be sure to use our code CLB20 for 20% off your first order at Try the World and learn more about Try the World here!

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I followed the recipe, with one small twist of using half brown sugar/half white sugar for the sugar portion of the recipe. Other than that, I followed the same ingredients and directions from TTW’s recipe and they turned out so cute and delicious:

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups flour, plus more for rolling
  • 2 Tbsp. matcha green tea powder
  • ½ tsp. salt
  • 2 sticks butter, at room temperature
  • ½ cup sugar

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DIRECTIONS

1. Combine the flour, matcha, and salt in a small bowl. In a medium bowl, beat the butter until creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the sugar and continue to beat until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes more. Gently stir in the flour mixture until just incorporated.

2. Place a piece of parchment paper on a work surface and dust with flour. Roll the cookie dough to ¼-inch thick. Chill until firm, about 30 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 325°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Cut out cookie rounds using a cookie-cutter and transfer to the baking sheets. Gather, roll, and cut out the scraps once more. Chill until firm, about 10 minutes.

4. Bake until a knife inserted into the middle of a cookie comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Cool on a wire rack and serve. Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

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Review: Blue Apron Food Subscription Box

By Natalie Anne ❤

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I love to cook. I am inspired by discovering new recipes and flavors. But, sometimes, it can be daunting to have to go to the grocery store and collect a bunch of different ingredients. Sometimes you’re not sure which is the freshest or the most delicious or the easiest on your wallet. This is where a subscription to Blue Apron can come in handy. They send you a box of fresh, local ingredients once a week for three meals that feeds two people (with plenty of leftovers). They are prearranged menus that focus on  balanced and healthful recipes.

Every box comes with a step-by-step instruction packet with pictures for preparing and cooking your food. Plus, you can always change up the recipes to make it your own if you choose. Blue Apron sends you the exact amount of items and ingredients you need: spices, proteins, milk, eggs, the list goes on and on. The only things not included are salt, pepper, and olive oil (pretty easy to handle those on your own).

My favorite part about Blue Apron is that you can sign up for whatever weeks you desire. You can have a subscription and receive a box every week or whenever you feel ready for one. You can browse through the menus online and click which weeks you wanna cook with Blue Apron and it’s that easy.

The recipes have broadened my cooking abilities with new flavors and it has been fun using ingredients I would have felt too intimidated to pick up in a grocery store.

The menu for my first week with Blue Apron was:

Trinidadian Chicken Curry and Coconut Grits with a side of Collard Greens

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My Favorite 🙂

 

Pretzel Burgers with a Hoppy Cheddar Sauce and Sweet Potato Rounds:

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and Acorn Squash Risotto with Crispy Sage and Radicchio Salad

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