All kinds of chocolatey Guinnessy goodness!!!

Rumor has it that Guinness is so chock full of fab nutrients and dietary goodness that it is served in Ireland in hospital. True? Or an Irish Urban Legend? And once you add dark chocolate to the mix these cupcakes are a virtual fountain of youth.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Serves 24. (Seriously, you’re not going to only eat one cupcake. Sharing is nice and all, but these are really good!)

for the cupcakes:

• 1/2 cup Guinness Stout
• 1/2 cup espresso, or strong black coffee
• 3/4 cups cocoa powder
• 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar (press out any lumps)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda (press out any lumps)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 cups sour cream

for the mocha glaze:

• 1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder
• 2 1/2 tablespoons hot water
• 24 perfect berries, washed and air dried, or 24 perfect whole coffee beans (perfection is way overrated. and I don’t have the patience to put perfect beans or berries on anything. Although I’m sure it was very pretty!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set oven rack to middle. Lightly grease cupcake pan(s) with cooking spray. Line cupcake pan(s) with 24 paper liners. (I of course didn’t have the requisite liners. Everything came out just fine).

Warm the stout and coffee. I do this in the microwave for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat, then add butter and stir until melted. Add cocoa powder and vanilla, and stir till combined.

In large bowl, combine flour, sugars, baking soda and salt.

In mixer fitted with paddle attachment, mix together the eggs and sour cream. Pour in chocolate mixture and mix slowly. Gradually add flour mixture and gently mix until it is all combined. Fill each liner ¾ full.

Bake for 18 – 20 minutes, turning pan(s) from back to front and top to bottom half-way through cooking time. Check with a cake tester to be sure – it should come out clean. Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes, then remove cakes from pan(s) and set on cooling rack to cool completely.

Glaze

For glaze, mix together dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. Add hot water by tablespoon-ful. Mix with a spoon until a loose icing is achieved. Alternatively, you can use fresh-brewed espresso in place of the water and espresso powder. Dip tops of cakes into glaze and set on wax or parchment-lined pans to catch drips. Top with berries or coffee beans and let cakes dry for about 20 minutes.

Serve with a lovely espresso, caffe latte, glass of milk, or the remaining stout if you haven’t guzzled it down already. (I highly recommend the cupcakes with the stout)

Recipe courtesy of www.Food52.com

Last night for dinner….

Curried Carrot Soup

Ingredients

Servings: Makes 6-8 servings

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 rib celery chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 2 pounds carrots, scrubbed but unpeeled, cut into 1/2-inch thick rounds
• 1 tablespoon Madras-style curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 5 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
• 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt or light coconut milk, optional
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and garlic and cover. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is golden, about 5 minutes.

Add the carrots and stir well. Stir in the curry powder and ginger and cook, stirring almost constantly, for 30 seconds.

Add the broth and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and partially cover the pot. Simmer until the carrots are very tender, about 30 minutes.

In batches, transfer the soup to a blender, process until smooth and pour the puréed soup into a large bowl. (If you have an immersible hand blender, you can purée the soup right in the pot.) If you’re me you will step away from the immersible hand blender as you remember the last time you used said item you and the kitchen were covered in curry.

Return the puréed soup to the pot. If desired, stir in the yogurt or coconut milk and stir over low heat just until the soup is very hot; do not simmer. Season the soup with salt and pepper. Serve hot.

Recipe created by Art Smith

So Now I’m an Expert???

As I write the heading for this post in my mind I’ve become someone’s lovely, little Jewish bubbe or Barbara Streisand. I’m convinced I was Jewish in a previous life. But I’ll leave that for another post.

For those of you who don’t know me personally, a few years ago there was a period of time, which lasted much longer than I would have liked when I was unemployed. Convinced that I would never work again in advertising and that I would be shunned forever. I took one of those ‘what the hell’ career change kind of leaps. I enrolled in the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in NYC and a Culinary Arts program in Rochester.

I spent 7 months studying holistic nutrition online and in NYC while also spending 6 hours a day, 5 days a week in a working kitchen learning everything from knife skills to how to make meatloaf for 500 people. I loved every minute and I want to share everything I learned with you.

So…maybe not an expert…but I know more than my fair share. I graduated from IIN as a Certified Holistic Nutrition Coach and I graduated from the Culinary Arts at REOC Program at SUNY Brockport with special honors.

The Institute for Integrative Nutrition is the only nutrition school integrating all the different dietary theories – combining the knowledge of traditional philosophies with modern concepts like the USDA food pyramid, the glycemic index, the Zone and raw foods.

For more information about my education, please go to www.integrativenutrition.com