Staying home when you're feeling under the weather can be FUN if you create f00d p0rn

I was stung by a bee at about 2:30 EST on Tuesday. For those of you who don't know me, I am severally allergic. My dominant left hand looked like a red football and it hurt like no one's business. I was able to last for about 30 hours without taking any medication, but eventually I folded and took half a Benadryl. I've been doing this since Wednesday and while it's giving me relief, it also makes me incredibly groggy. I'm recovering slowly but surely, my hand looks a lot better today.

This morning, I worked out and came right home. As I am still not feeling 100%, I decided to lie low today and try out a new take on a brownie recipe I have used several times with great results.

Instead of making this moist fudgy creation in a 9-inch pan, I baked it in muffin tins and swirled on a delicious chocolate buttercream icing. I couldn't resist trying one and it's delicious!

Fresh out of the oven......

Iced with chocolate buttercream, setting on a baking rack

Nom, nom, nom......

Giving corn muffins that delicious, crunchy crust

Corn muffins are so versatile and complement chili, stews, roasts and soups. The thing that makes them truly delicious is getting that delicious, crunchy crust and there is a very simple way to do this.

As the oven pre-heats, use a pastry brush to spread vegetable oil in each muffin cup. Then, once the oven is ready, put the pan in and allow to heat for five minutes. Carefully remove from the oven, distribute batter in pan and bake as instructed. You'll love the results!

You can also get this result by baking in a well seasoned cast iron skillet.

Mini corn muffins cooling....look at that beautiful brown crust....

On a tray waiting to be enjoyed

There's just something about food created in a CrockPot

I receive a lot of questions about my creations and I would say the one I get asked the most is, "What is the BEST thing to have in my kitchen?" My answer is always, "A CrockPot! In fact, get two! A round one and an oval one."

CrockPots are amazing for several reasons. Firstly, you can set it, forget it and come home to a delicious meal that fills your home with an amazing aroma. Secondly, there is very little prep and mess. Finally, it allows even the most inexperienced cook to create a delicious meal. I'm a very experienced cook and I am known to use mine when entertaining; that's how much I love it.

Even though we aren't having fall weather just yet, I couldn't resist trying out a new recipe for white chicken chili. This is the perfect chili for those of you who are wary of spicy foods as this is savory, flavorful and delicious without being spicy.

I served this over rice with a homemade corn muffin on the side, garnished with a little low fat sour cream and cheddar cheese. All I can say is YUM! I cannot wait for cooler weather to come so I can officially make the first chili of the season.

A feast for a Zumba babe. White chicken chili served with a homemade corn muffin.....

A new take on a classic combination

Everyone loves chocolate and peanut butter. Armed with a recipe for chocolate cookies stuffed with peanut butter, I decided to try a new take on the recipe and create mini chocolate peanut butter brownie cups. These were created in mini muffins tins and very labor intensive, as each little cup has to be shaped just so, then filled. These looked beautiful before they went into the oven, but the real proof would come after they came out of of oven and I passed them onto my loyal taste testers. Everyone loved these and I cannot wait to bring this out again. You'll never want a Reeses again after you eat these yummy bite-sized treats.

All ready for the oven.....

Cooling on baking rack.....

Who cares if it wasn't my prettiest creation?

I love pizza and wanted to make it at home. Armed with my new pizza pan and an easy recipe for crust, I set to work. At first I was skeptical and convinced I was going to have to do an emergency run to Trader Joe's for ready-made pizza crust. However, I was so excited when I took the crust out of the oven and discovered that even though it was funky looking, the recipe worked.

I topped this honey-whole wheat crust with a little pizza sauce, , fresh tomatoes, wilted spinach, a little mozerella cheese and sweet Italian turkey sausage.

I enjoyed it and gave a slice to one of my friends. She loved it.

I cannot wait to try this again. Who needs the local pizza place when you can make it yourself?

Yes, I realize this is strange looking...

Heading into the oven......

All done....!

Slices on my new pizza pan....

Slice on a plate.....

An earthquake hit Maryland while I was creating these

I do not like to waste anything and was combing the Internet looking for recipes for using about a cup of coconut milk. After a lot of searching, I found a recipe for brownies made with coconut milk AND coconut milk icing.

I has just taken these out of the oven on a Tuesday afternoon when I heard banging and felt my home start to shake. As I have lived in Japan and Turkey and have been through about 15 earthquakes in my lifetime, I simply said, Oh, earthquake, set the brownies on a cooling rack and began tapping them to test for doneness.

I do not buy coconut milk often, but now I am considering keeping it around so I can always create these delicious brownies. They were delicious very moist with a taste like a Mounds bar but in brownie form.

Coconut brownies in a 9-inch pan

On a plate....

My contribution to the Hurricane Irene Facebook Cooking Throwdown

Two weeks ago, the weather channel scared the daylights out of us and made it sounds like Hurricane Irene was going to be a crisis. We Marylanders were stuck at home for what basically amounted to heavy rains and high winds. However, it became a fun event I have since dubbed the Hurricane Irene Facebook Kitchen Throwdown. A lot of us took advantage of being stuck at home to create. One of my friends made a pineapple upside cake. Another did chicken marsala. Cookies, brownies and cupcakes oh my.

Via Facebook, we kept a running commentary and posted pictures of our creations. I decided to go labor intensive and retro and created Black and White cookies, a delicious treat usually found in New York style delis.

These are buttery, cakey and go GREAT with milk. The dough is hard to handle as is the frosting and they need to set for at least an hour before you  enjoy them but one bite makes it worth every minute.

The best part of this was the day after when I wrapped these treats up and went around handing them out. Thank you to everyone who tasted and loved this creation. Your feedback means a lot to me.

Four black and white cookies (they're HUGE)

Half dozen black and whites setting at room temperature

My friend got her own batch of these yummy treats

A few weeks ago, I went to a friend's house for lunch, took over their kitchen and made a delicious meal. A few days before, I came across a recipe for raspberry blondies and I knew I had to try it for our lunch date. This is delicious,  with a wonderful contrast between the sweet crust and the tart berries.

My friends loved it.  However, one of my other friends was bummed she didn't get any. However, she was in for a surprise because this recipe is so easy that I was able to come home from from my lunch date, fire up the oven, make a new batch and show up at my friends that evening with her very own tray of treats. The look on her face: priceless!

When I try this recipe again, I would like to experiment and try it with different fruits and maybe add some chocolate chips to the crust. Anyway you create it, these are YUMMY!

Raspberry blondies fresh out of the oven, cooling on foil

My reaction to my favorite Indian place closing

I have been patronizing the Bethesda, MD location of  Delhi Dhaba since I was a senior in college. Imagine my devastation when I walked by sometime over the summer and discovered they had gone out of business. Even though I saw that one coming, I still miss it. After licking my wounds for a bit, I decided to teach myself how to make Indian food at home. It's amazing what you can do with tumeric, curry, cardamon, Patak's curry paste and a big bag of basmati rice from Trader Joe's.

It's not quite the same as my favorite restaurant and nothing ever will be, but it's pretty damn close and I get the satisfaction of knowing I created these dishes myself.

Chicken biryani

Chicken curry with spinach

Chicken tikka masala