English Muffin Grilled Cheese

Did you grow up eating English muffin pizzas? My mom never made them. I'm really not sure why.

But that doesn't stop me from thinking that they're a fun idea. I was thinking about making one the other day. Or I guess two, since I would have used both halves of a muffin.

As usual, the idea in my head usually changes several times before I even get the ingredients out. I started with pizza flavors, but then I started thinking about the grilled cheese sandwiches my mom used to make, with a slice of fresh, ripe tomato and a sprinkle of oregano.

Of course, I didn't make that, either. I started rooting around to see what kind of cheese I wanted to use and emerged with some Emmentaler and some Gruyere. They're the two most common cheeses to use in fondue, and they both melt really well.

So this is what happened.

English Muffin Grilled Cheese

English muffin
Emmentaler cheese, grated or cut in small, thin pieces
Gruyere cheese, grated or cut in small, thin piece
Tomato, sliced thickly
Dry thyme

Split and toast the English muffin.

Put the Emmentaler on one English muffin half, and the Gruyere on the other half of the muffin - as much as you like. Melt the cheese under a broiler or in the microwave.

Add the tomato slice to the bottom muffin, sprinkle with a bit of dry thyme, and flip the muffin top where it belongs.

Eat. Repeat as desired.

Baileys Caramel Swirl and Poke Cake with Baileys Whipped Cream

I'm a huge fan of Baileys Irish Cream Liqueur. Not just for sipping, although that's a very nice use of it. But I've also used it for recipes. So when the folks at Baileys asked me if I wanted to use some of their salted caramel flavored Baileys in a baking recipe, I knew I had to do it.

I had a couple different ideas, but I kept thinking about a caramel I made for ice cream that I used for a guest post on Cravings of a Lunatic. I decided to make a similar caramel, but make it more sauce, and then incorporate it into a cake.

Or course, caramel sauce wasn't enough Baileys for me. There's also Baileys in the cake batter, and in the whipped cream topping.

The caramel that's "poked" into the cake stays soft and squishy, while any excess caramel on top of the cake turns into a thin, crisp, flaky layer. As for that whipped cream, it's an amazing topping for the cake ... but if you happen to have extra, it adds a lovely note on top of hot chocolate. Particularly if you spike that hot chocolate for a little bit of Baileys.

Baileys Caramel Swirl and Poke Cake
with Baileys Whipped Cream

For the caramel sauce:
1/2 cup Baileys Salted Caramel Irish Cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon butter
Pinch of salt

For the cake:
1 3/4 cups (7 7/8 ounces) all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup Baileys Salted Caramel Irish Cream
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 to 2/3 cups caramel sauce

For the whipped cream:
2 tablespoons Baileys Salted Caramel Irish Cream
7/8 cup heavy whipping cream

To get started:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 9-inch round cake pan with baking spray.

To make the caramel sauce:

Combine the 1/2 cup Baileys, 1/2 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon butter, and pinch salt in a saucepan. Heat to a boil, then lower to a simmer.

Cook until the mixture thickens. It should be thick enough so that when it's at room temperature it will be thick and, but not chewy. It also shouldn't be super-runny. You can test it by putting a small amount on a spoon and putting it in the refrigerator to chill.

You should end up with somewhere between 1/2 cup and 2/3 cup of syrup. Pour 1/4 cup of syrup into a glass measuring cup and refrigerate while you work on the cake. Leave the remainder of the syrup in the pot; you'll be reheating it later.

To make the cake:

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Combine the Bailey's and the yogurt in small bowl or measuring cup. Set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating until they are thoroughly incorporated.

Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in 3 additions, alternating with 2 additions of the yogurt mixture, beating well after each addition and scraping down the bowl when needed. This is a fairly thick batter, so don't be concerned that it's not as loose as many cakes you've probably made.

Take 1/2 cup of the batter out of the bowl and add it to the chilled caramel sauce you set aside in the refrigerator. Stir to combine.

Transfer the rest of the batter to your prepared pan. Dollop the batter mixed with caramel on top of the plain cake batter, and swirl with a knife.

You could also add half of the plain batter to the pan, top with the caramel, then add the rest of the plain batter. Swirl or not, as desired.

Level the top of the batter and bake at 350 degrees until the cake springs back when touched, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 40 minutes.

Remove the cake from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Heat the remaining caramel sauce until it's a pouring consistency.

Holey Baileys Cake!

Use the handle of a wooden spoon to poke holes into the warm cake, then pour the warmed syrup into the holes. You don't need to be neat about it - it's fine to spill over the top of the cake.

When you've used all the syrup, use a spoon or soft spatula to spread the syrup remaining on top of the cake into a thin layer and encourage it to fill any holes that might not be completely full.

Let the cake cool completely, then turn out onto the rack then immediately flip over onto a plate or cake stand, so the side with the holes is on top - the caramel is soft, so if you leave the cake upside-down too long, the caramel will start oozing out.

To finish the cake, you have several options. Because of the holes from poking, you probably want to do more than just sprinkle it with powdered sugar. You could, of course, frost it. You could also cover it with a poured or whipped ganache.

But I thought the perfect partner for this slightly dense cake was a fluffy Baileys-flavored whipped cream. If you know you're going to serve the whole cake for dessert, you can top the entire cake with the whipped cream, but I actually like the idea of topping each individual slice with a pretty little dollop of cream. Or a big dollop.

To make the whipped cream:
The best way to measure this is to use a 1 cup measure, add the 2 tablespoons of Baileys, and then add the cream to measure 1 cup.

The easy way to make the cream is to combine the heavy cream and Baileys and place in a nitrous cream whipper. Charge and dispense according to manufacturer's instruction.

The other way is to start by whipping the cream until it begins getting thick, then add the Baileys and continue whipping until it is as thick as you like.

Because of the Baileys in the whipped cream, it doesn't hold its shape for as long as a plain whipped cream, so it's best to make it right before serving and decorate the cake or slices at the last minute. Of course, if you're using a whipper, you can just leave the cream in the whipper and dispense as you serve.

I received Baileys for my use at no cost to me.

Taco Salad

A long, long time ago, I had a job that required that I spend countless hours driving all over the Chicagoland area.

On some days, I went out to lunch with customers. Most days, I ate lunch alone.

If I was in a hurry to get from one side of town to the other, I sometimes grabbed fast food. But if I was close to my next appointment and it was lunchtime, I had plenty of time to have a decent meal.

I had some criteria for where I dined. For example, I didn't like getting seated at a tiny table, even though I was alone. Sometimes I brought work with me to read over, and sometimes I brought a book. I didn't need a huge table, but I wanted a little bit of elbow room, if the restaurant wasn't crowded. It irked me to be seated at a tiny table if the restaurant was only 1/4 full, so I tended to avoid those sorts of places.

As far as food, I wanted something filling enough to get me through the rest of the day, but not so heavy that I'd want a nap in a couple hours. I also didn't want a super-expensive lunch. This wasn't a special treat, it was just an everyday lunch.

And I didn't want something messy. After all, I was going to be visiting with customers after lunch.

Over time, I found favorite places in many of the areas where I had customers, and I had favorite dishes at many of those restaurants. One of my favorite lunches was served at a Mexican restaurant, but it certainly wasn't a traditional Mexican dish. It was taco salad.

The salad was served in an oversized flour tortilla that was deep-fried in the shape of a bowl. While a giant deep-fried tortilla wasn't exactly the most healthy thing to eat, the rest of the salad was reasonably healthy.

I haven't had one of those salads in years, and I'm not sure why not - it's pretty easy to assemble as long as I have chili on hand.

I don't bother with the giant deep-fried flour-tortilla bowl - I just use a normal shallow bowl.

The appeal of this salad is the contrast between the warm chili and the chilled salad ingredients, as well as the spiciness of chili and jalapenos contrasting with the creaminess of the sour cream.

If you look at it, a taco salad is very similar to nachos, with crisp lettuce instead of crunchy chips. And probably with less cheese - depending on how your make yours.

Just like any salad, you can modify it to suit your tastes. You could even add a handful of tortilla chips, if you like.

Taco Salad

Romaine or iceberg lettuce
Sliced zucchini or cucumbers
Pitted olives (sliced, if you like)
Tomatoes, cut in wedges or bite-sized chunks
Pickled jalapeno peppers, sliced
Sliced or cubed avocado or guacamole
Shredded cheese
Chili (home made preferred, but a good canned brand is fine)
Sour cream or Greek yogurt

Scatter the lettuce in a shallow bowl. I aim for a salad that's at least half lettuce compared to the rest of the toppings, but make it the way you like.

Add the zucchini and/or cucumbers, olives, tomato, and jalapeno over the top of the lettuce. add a few small dollops of guacamole or slices of avocado around the edges.

Add the chili in the center. Sprinkle with cheese, and top with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt.

Serve immediately.

Note: this salad would also work well as a built-it-yourself meal with all of the ingredients available for everyone to add as much or as little of each item as they like.