Wasabi Salmon Burgers & Sweet Potato Oven Fries

Great. Now I'm hungry!

I was so impressed with this recipe! I didn't think Abby would like the soy-wasabi glaze, so I left it off of hers. She can't seem to make up her mind about salmon - she either loves it or hates it. She didn't care for her plain patty, but with a little of that glaze she gobbled it right up! Greg said they were "really good" and if you know my husband you know what a compliment that is! You can also tell a recipe is really good if I don't get a picture of it before we start eating!

I served these burgers on lightly toasted whole wheat English muffins with shredded carrots, sliced cucumbers, mashed avocado, and wasabi mayo and sweet potato fries on the side.  You could also serve it as a wrap or on a salad with mixed greens, carrots, radishes and sprouts.

Wasabi Salmon Burgers

From Eating Well:  June/July 2005, The Eating Well Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook (2006)

    2 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce (or 1 1/2 Tbsp regular soy sauce and 1/2 Tbsp water)

    1 1/2 teaspoons wasabi powder

    1/2 teaspoon honey

    1 pound salmon fillet, skinne

    2 scallions, finely chopped

    1 egg, lightly beaten

    2 tablespoons minced peeled fresh ginger

    1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

Whisk soy sauce, wasabi powder and honey in a small bowl until smooth. Set aside.

With a large chef's knife, chop salmon using quick, even, straight-up-and-down motions (do not rock the knife through the fish or it will turn mushy). Continue chopping, rotating the knife, until you have a mass of roughly 1/4-inch pieces. (You could also pulse a few times in your food processor if you're lucky enough to have one!) Transfer to a large bowl. Add scallions, egg, ginger and oil; stir to combine. Form the mixture into 4 patties. The mixture will be moist and loose, but holds together nicely once the first side is cooked.

Coat a large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat for 1 minute. Add the patties and cook for 4 minutes. Turn and continue to cook until firm and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Spoon the reserved wasabi glaze evenly over the burgers and cook for 15 seconds more. Serve immediately.

Sweet Potato Oven Fries

I have no idea where this recipe is from. I sent my husband searching for it, so I'd guess AllRecipes or something like that.

    2 medium-sized sweet potatoes, rinsed and dried

    2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

    2 tsp. smoked paprika

    1 tsp. coarse salt

    1 tsp. garlic powder

    1 tsp. freshly-cracked black pepper

    1/2 tsp. cumin

    1/4 tsp. cayenne (optional)

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Carefully cut the potatoes into 1/4″ thin strips, or to your desired thickness and length.  Then place in a large bowl, and toss with the remaining ingredients (oil and spices) until potatoes are evenly coated.

Then spread out the potatoes evenly on a baking sheet prepared with parchment paper or silicone baking sheet. Try not to overcrowd the sheet, or have multiple layers of fries — you want them to be roasted, not steamed. DO NOT attempt to get away with not lining your baking sheet. You will be so, so sorry!

Place in oven and cook for 20-25 minutes, turning the fries once or twice during that time to cook evenly.  (May take more or less time, depending on the size and thickness you cut the fries.)  Remove once the edges slightly begin to brown and fries begin to crisp.

Pumpkin-Maple Sourdough Cake with Carmel Buttercream Frosting

The first helping...

I have been caring for a sourdough started for about six months now and have finally branched out to trying recipes that I would have never associated with sourdough. This was my first dessert sourdough recipe and it killed two birds with one stone. I have a ton of pureed pumpkin in the freezer to use up and was neglecting my sourdough starter in a bad way. I don't remember where I found this recipe, but it's definitely a keeper. If you don't have a sourdough starter at home it's okay. You can come over and I'll give you some of mine or you can visit Sourdough Home for the directions I used to start mine. It's really not as complicated as it sounds. It just takes time, planning and patience. Needless to say, keeping a sourdough starter has been good for me in a number of ways.

This cake is one of those almost healthy desserts - It uses maple syrup, whole wheat flour, and it has vegetables it in! See? I told you it was healthy! Okay, maybe healthy is a bit of a stretch, but it is definitely better for you than lots of other dessert options. It tastes very similar to carrot cake and has a dense and chewy texture that is more like a muffin than cake. There is a very mild sourdough flavor that I found to be very enjoyable. In my limited sourdough experiences, the sourness of the end product continues to develop in the days after baking, but we didn't have a chance to test that. The recipe makes one eight-inch cake, which is just the right amount for a small gathering or for my husband's after dinner snack. I'm not kidding - he ate the entire cake in one evening! Oh ok, I helped. A little. Or maybe a lot. I am almost certain it wouldn't hold up well if you tried to layer them, but prove me wrong if you must.

The frosting recipe can be found in my post for Samoa Cupcakes. I had about a cup of the caramel frosting leftover, so I froze it and used it here. It was a over little sweet for my taste, but the flavors paired well. If I were to make a frosting specifically for this cake, I'd probably opt for a maple glaze or a brown sugar cream cheese frosting.

Pumpkin-Maple Sourdough Cake
1/2 cup pumpkin or squash puree (canned or homemade)
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup “fed” 100% hydration sourdough starter
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
heaping 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and move rack to center position.  Butter an 8-inch round cake pan (or coat with baking spray).

Start with all ingredients at room temperature. In a mixing bowl, whisk together squash puree, maple syrup, egg, and vanilla.  Fold sourdough starter into squash mixture into until well combined. In a separate small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, soda, salt, and pumpkin pie spice. Add dry ingredients to squash mixture and stir just until incorporated. Stir in melted butter. Pour batter into the greased 8-inch round cake pan.

Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes or until cake springs back when lightly touched.

Warning: Husband Cooks Too

Yes, that's right folks. We drink our mimosas from a Mason jar. If that's too country for ya, then ya'll can just go to IHOP!

Happy New Year's everyone! We have never done anything special to ring in the new year at the Baker house, but today we started a new tradition that I am excited to plan and execute in a more fashionable way next year - we had friends over to have New Year's brunch and it was just so much fun!

My husband is not much of a cook, but me oh my can he whip up some crepes! It's his specialty and its always a treat to have him make a meal. We've mastered sweet, fresh fruit fillings for our crepes and decided it was time to venture into the savory category. With the help of Pinterest, we decided to try ham, cheese, and egg crepes. We used our old stand-by recipe for crepes from America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook - you know the big red one that I use every single day. Best wedding present ever. Anyway... on to the point...

We also tried a new sourdough crepe which was so, so good. There are lots of great site with info on how to start and maintain your own sourdough starter, but if you'd rather bring me a mason jar I'd be glad to pass mine along. The sourdough crepes were delicious with the ham, egg and cheese filling, but I have a hard time imagining them being very good with a sweet filling. Maybe if you add a dash of vanilla and a tablespoon or two of honey to it? Give it a try though and let me know what you think! Here is the recipe for the Sourdough Crepes... please note - this is not my recipe, but I have had it for sometime and don't remember where I got it.


Sourdough Crepes
makes about (9) 10-inch crepes

1 cup sourdough starter (mine is 100% hydration, all whole wheat flour)
3 eggs
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3 pinches of salt
1/4 cup milk (more or less may be needed depending on your sourdough starter)

In a medium size bowl, whisk 3 eggs, 3 tablespoons melted butter, and 3 pinches of salt until combined. Add to this mixture 1 cup of sourdough starter. Stir well.

Add milk slowly until you get a thin batter. Preheat skillet over medium heat for two full minutes, then turn down to low before lightly grease the skillet.

For a 10-inch skillet, pour 1/3 cup of crepe batter into the center of your skillet. If you are using a smaller skillet you will need 1/4 cup of batter. Quickly pick up the skillet and roll the batter towards the outer edges. Put the skillet back on burner and cook until edges are a bit dry and small bubbles dot the surface of the crepe. It may take less than a minute to cook each side of the crepe. Cook times depend on the skillet type, burner heat, and crepe thickness. If you try to flip your crepe and it does not seem ready, let it cook a few moments longer. Flip. The second side will take less time to cook than the first.

Place your crepe on a plate. Make your second crepe. Continue stacking finished crepes until you are ready to serve. Stacking keeps the crepes soft and warm.


If you want to make the ham, cheese and egg filling your process is slightly different. You will need to have a cup or so of finely shredded cheddar cheese, a cup with 4-5 eggs scrambled with a little bit of milk or cream, and deli ham sliced into halves or thirds depending on the size of your pan, prepared and near the stove top. As soon as you flip your crepe you will add about 1/4 cup of scrambled egg on top of the cooked side of the crepe. Place a lid on top and cook for about 1 minute. When the egg is nearly set, sprinkle with cheese and top with ham slices. Cover until cheese is melted, then fold in half, then in half again so you're left with a triangle. These would be awesome with some finely chopped scallions in them or on top for garnish.

They are great hot out of the skillet or at room temperature, so making them up a little in advance for a crowd is no problem. Abby and her 3 year old friend Andrew gobbled these "sandwiches" up, which is awesome because I have a hard time getting her to eat much protein! We experimented with freezing them and were very pleased with the results. We will be making a very large batch in the near future for quick and easy meals or snacks.

I am very much looking forward to having these crepes on my birthday... and on Valentine's Day, Mother's Day, our anniversary, and well pretty much any other time I can persuade my husband to make them again!

'Tis the Baking Season

As we were decorating our tree, we explained that it was for Baby Jesus' birthday, so now Abby thinks that Baby Jesus is actually IN our Christmas tree. When we turn on the lights she gasps and says "Look at Him!! Baby Jesus! Aww." (Have I mentioned lately that I love my camera?! Thanks again Love. You're too good to me!)

This year I have way more time than we have money, so all of our Christmas gifts are going to be homemade. Last week it dawned on me that the postal mail cut off for Christmas delivery is fast approaching. No biggie. Except that I have NOTHING done!! Not one single project is completed. I've always said that I work better under pressure and here I am proving it to be true yet again.

If you're expecting a Christmas package from me, I'd stop reading now. Unless of course you need a reason to stalk your mail carrier until it arrives! 

Friday and Saturday were spent working on crafty gifts for grandparents and some other pretty special people. I am so excited to share this project with you (my one faithful follower!), but you're just going to have to wait a few more weeks! The rest of my weekend was spent working up a baking plan and shopping for the coming week's meals and baking mayhem.

Today I was given the rare opportunity to sleep in. (Thanks Husband!) When I woke up I got straight to work - I baked bread for the second time this week, made coffee chocolate cake, Bailey's Irish Cream frosting, Orange-Almond-Cranberry Biscotti and Spritz/Press/Butter/Whatever You Want To Call Them Cookies. Then I made Slow Cooked Ratatuille with Polenta for dinner. After I cleaned up dinner and got Abby off to bed, I formed cake balls, which are now hanging out in the freezer waiting to be coated in chocolate tomorrow. I have also prepped for tomorrow's meals and measured dry ingredients for making Gingerbread Cookies and Peppermint Cocoa Kiss Cookies. Phew.

Oh my goodness I don't even think I can tell you how many times I have washed my mixer today! I am exhausted, but I absolutely must get a workout in tonight to make up for all of the finger-licking and taste testing I did today...and will do again tomorrow! For tonight, I will leave you with a few pictures and a promise for recipes to come!

Slow-Cooked Ratatouille and Polenta from America's Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook. Hands down heartiest meatless meal I have ever made. I will definitely be adding this recipe to our regular rotation!

Orange-Cranberry-Almond Biscotti cooling and waiting for some white chocolate lovin'.

I love just plain ol' vanilla Spritz Cookies. It must be the simplicity and the less is more philosophy.  That and my cookie press was given to me by a very special person and I think of her so fondly every time I use it.

Rejoining the Blogosphere: Samoa Cupcakes

New Camera = Food Pictures!

These two cutie pies are the best darn taste testers I could ever ask for! And the one on the right's Mama "maturing" another year was a great excuse to try a new cupcake recipe - her request: Anything chocolate or Samoa.

Samoa cupcakes it is! The Birthday Girl is quite the cake baker herself and has just about perfected the Samoa cupcake. I, on the other hand, had never attempted it. I decided to make this recipe from Sweet Little Details, with a few very minor variations. The cake is the perfect consistency for a cupcake. It's sturdy without being dense or dry. I found the frosting to be a tad too sweet for my liking, so I ended up with about two cups of leftover frosting. I hate to waste, so I popped them in empty jelly jars to store them in the freezer. I think we may have to veer from tradition this Christmas morning because this frosting would be amazing on cinnamon rolls! Heck, tomorrow is Saturday... that's a good enough reason to make cinnamon rolls, right?

Samoa Cupcakes

2 C. AP flour

3/4 C. cocoa powder

1 1/2 sticks butter, room temperature

1 3/4 C. sugar

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp coconut extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 C. whole milk, at room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffin tin with paper liners.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and cocoa powder. Cream together the butter, sugar, salt, and baking soda until fluffy and light. Combine milk and extracts in a measuring cup. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. With mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients in three batches, alternating with the milk beating just until combined.
3. Fill cupcake liners 1/2 full, making sure that the batter is divided evenly. (I find that an ice-cream scoop works perfectly for this! Not a new trick, I know, but still…) Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean, 20-22 minutes. Allow the cupcakes to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Caramel Buttercream Frosting

2 sticks unsalted butter

½ tsp salt

¾ C packed brown sugar

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 C. prepared caramel

3 Tbsp milk

5 C. powdered sugar

1 C. sweetened shredded coconut

¼ C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

¼ C. prepared caramel

Shortening or coconut oil

1. Using a mixer, cream butter and brown sugar together. Add vanilla, salt, caramel syrup, milk until combined. Begin adding in the sugar slowly and mixing thoroughly after each addition.
2. To toast the coconut, spread the coconut onto a rimmed sheet pan. Toast in a 350°F oven, stirring frequently, until the coconut is an even brown color, about 10 minutes.
3. Frost your cooled cupcakes in whatever way you prefer. For mine I used a small cookie scoop to portion out two scoops and then used the back of it to “swirl” it around.
4. Heat chocolate chips in microwave for about 30 seconds or until drizzle-able. You may need to thin your chocolate with a small amount of shortening or coconut oil to accomplish the desired consistency. Drizzle the frosted cupcakes with slightly cooled melted chocolate and caramel in opposite directions. Top with a generous pinch of cooled toasted coconut.