S'mores Indoors

For those who are lucky and have fire pits or grills in their backyard, you can easily make s'mores outdoors.  But for someone like me living in the city and in an apartment building, I have to make do with s'mores indoors!  It is so easy if you have a toaster oven.  I am pretty sure you can make it in the microwave too but I haven't tried yet.  I recently bought chocolate mint marshmallows that I saw at Target because I couldn't resist.  (Note:  The chocolate mint marshmallows were actually smaller than the regular marshmallows for some reason.)  There are all these new flavors for marshmallows lately and this is my first time venturing on a flavored marshmallow.  It turned out so good for s'mores.  I made both the regular s'more and a chocolate minty s'more.  This is the perfect summer dessert if you want to have s'mores indoors!

S’mores Indoors

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

graham crackers

marshmallows

milk chocolate bars

Directions

*Using a toaster oven.

Line a baking pan with foil.

 

Place graham cracker on foil lined pan. 

 

Place a few bars of chocolate (about 3 bars) on top of the graham cracker.

Place a marshmallow (or 2) on top of the chocolate.

Toast for about 3 to 5 minutes until marshmallows are puffed and golden brown.

 

Top each marshmallow with a graham cracker.  Press together and take a bite!

 

Enjoy!

Indoor Garden

This is not a recipe posting but I wanted to share my indoor garden.  Since I live in an apartment in DC, I have no outdoor space.  I wish I had a little balcony or something but a sunny windowsill works for now.  I only have 3 plants and only 2 are edible.  As you can see below, Ellie loves to look out the window since its right next to the couch.  She likes to people/dog watch and sometimes she might catch a deer crossing the street!  Yes, that is right, deer in DC!  We saw 3 deers coming out of the woods across the street and running down the sidewalk.  Ellie only went a little crazy after that :)

My first plant was a gift from my friend Heather back in February and its still alive!  It is a peace lily and they require relatively little upkeep.  I water it every few days.   I did replant it in a larger pot since I received it.

My second plant is a basil plant that I bought at the local farmers’ market in May.   It is now July and still alive!  I snip off the tops to keep it from getting too tall.  I do need to water this plant daily since it is so sunny during the day.  I just take some basil leaves whenever I need it and lately I have been making plenty of caprese salads.   I love the smell of the basil plant too.

My third plant is from re-growing green onions.  I have seen it on several blogs and I also saw it on theKitchn’s Re-Growing Green Onions:  Grow Your Scallions on your Windowsill.  I am so happy I tried this because it works!  All you have to do is put the green onion roots in a glass of water.  I put it in front of a windowsill and they re-grew quickly.  I only need a little bit of green onion at a time usually  and so far they have been growing for about 3 weeks now.

I wanted to test another theory and replanted a couple green onion roots in a smaller planter with soil.  Its crazy to me but its been re-growing too!   

Here are the green onions growing after a few weeks.  See how tall they are getting!

Also, I use an organic soil mix for my potted indoor plants.  The colorful planters are from Target.  I am hoping to try to grow a few more herbs indoors soon, maybe some mint, parsley, oregano, or chives.  Happy Summer!

Simple Yeast Bread

Homemade bread can be simple to make!  I adapted this recipe from Elizabeth Yetter's super easy bread for beginners.  This simple yeast bread recipe has few ingredients and only needs about an hour and half proofing time and 45 minutes of baking time.  It also smelled so good while baking!  I think the smell was driving my dogs,  Buddy and Ellie, crazy!  They were waiting for me to slice it when it was ready.  I had a piece with some butter and it was delicious!

Simple Yeast Bread 

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

¾ cup warm water (about 110 degrees F)

2 ¼ teaspoon active dry yeast

1 teaspoon salt

1 ½ tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon vegetable shortening

½ cup milk (I used 2%, also best at room temperature.)

3 cups all-purpose flour

 

Directions

In a bowl, add warm water and stir in yeast to dissolve in the water.  Stir in salt, sugar, shortening, and milk to the yeast mixture.

 

Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer.  (You could also mix yeast mixture in stand mixer with paddle attachment.)

 

Add in flour ½ cup at a time while using the dough hook.  Mix until dough comes together and comes off the sides of the mixing bowl.

Turn dough onto a floured surface.  Knead until the dough is soft and smooth, and no longer sticky to the touch.

 

Place dough in a greased bowl (I used olive oil but you can use butter too).  Cover and let rise for 1 hour.

 

Punch down dough and turn onto a floured surface.  Knead dough.

 

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Lightly grease a bread pan.

Form dough into a loaf and place into pan.  Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

 

Score dough by cutting 3 slashes across the top.   Bake for 45 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes.  Turn bread out onto a cooling rack.

 

Cool completely before slicing.

 

Note:  Freeze by slicing and placing in a freezer bag.  Take slices out and defrost as needed.

Ellie was watching me from the dining room while I was baking.  I am sure Buddy was sleeping on the couch instead :)

Peanut Sesame Noodles

I have made peanut noodles and sesame noodles, so now I have finally made peanut sesame noodles!  I adapted this peanut sesame noodles recipe from Rachel Ray's sesame noodle recipe.  This is another great summer time recipe since you could serve this warm, at room temperature, or cold.  It tastes great either way and I know because I have tried it all.  Also if you don't have agave, you could substitute 2 - 3 teaspoons white sugar instead or leave it completely out if you prefer a more salty taste.  I love the simplicity of this dish and it is great as a side dish or for a quick meal.  Enjoy!

Peanut Sesame Noodles

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

1 tablespoon peanut butter

2 tablespoons soy sauce

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

1 – 2 teaspoons agave nectar

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

½ pound thin spaghetti

1 tablespoon sesame seeds (roasted)

1 scallion, chopped

Directions

Cook spaghetti according to package directions.  Drain well.

In a small bowl, whisk together peanut butter, soy sauce, vegetable oil, sesame oil, agave and cayenne pepper. 

Add noodles and toss to coat.  Sprinkle with sesame seeds and chopped scallion.

Great served at room temperature, cold or warmed.

Serves 4.