Son of Magazine Challenge: Creme-FIlled Chocolate Cupcakes

So.
I have a confession to make.  I have been eating breakfast every morning.  While it's been a whole lot of peanut butter toast in the past few weeks, I do sit down and make sure that my body has something to run on for a good portion of the day.  Time to eat, a principal does not always have.
I will tell you that I didn't eat these for breakfast.  I'm not above it, but I was taking them for a lunch dessert, or eating one in the evening as a treat with J.  But I didn't make a complete confession on Facebook when I posted a picture of these beauties.  More on that later.
I had to get a jumbo muffin tin to make these.  I wouldn't always recommend doing this, but this makes a dozen jumbo cupcakes.  We were off to a picnic and I was to bring a dessert.  These totally fit the bill.  I made them the day of, after reading reviews that said the cake was dense and dry.  It is dense, and I would recommend cake flour to lighten them up a bit.  But the filling suited the cake.  It is also dense and sweet.  J said that they reminded him of Hostess snack cakes, and I think that's the point.  But these are probably better just because we know what's in them and they go stale faster.
Everyday Food had a feature in the April 2007 on Nostalgic Desserts.  These were just too cute not to consider.  And they're filled with a marshmallow mixture.  How could that possibly be bad?
I present to you now from the April 2007 issue of Everyday Food, I present to you now Creme-Filled Chocolate Cupcakes:

So Delicious: Hot Wings

So.
J and I both like going for wings, but we're getting old.  By that, I really mean that he is turning 50 this year and while he wants to eat super spicy food, it's not always the best idea.  Likewise, I am becoming more fabulous as time passes.
This year for the festival of Bowl games that is January 1, we decided to have wings at home.  Customizably spicy, ready when you're ready.  I went looking (as I am wont to do when I don't have a recipe) on Pinterest for something that would work for a lovely little Buffalo wing we could eat.  What I found was this.  It's amazing.
This does take some prep work, but the wings need to rest for at least an hour after their original coating, so they're the kind of thing you can leave in the fridge until an hour before you're ready to eat and then pop in the oven until they smell done. The messiest part of this for me is cleaning the rack after baking.
That's right.  I said baking.  This is about as healthy a wing as you can pretend to get.  Ignore the butter in the sauce and the skin that's still on chicken and it might be considered healthy.  But that's not the point.  Have I said how great we think these are?  I've made them 3 times.  That's a lot around here when you're not Chicken Fajita Salad or Mexican Bake Thing.
I present to you now from Gold Medal Flour Hot Buffalo Wings:

#HotSummerEats: Grilled Ginger-Marinated Pork Tenderloin

So.

It's the end of #HotSummerEats.  Huge thanks to Camilla of Culinary Adventures with Camilla for putting together another spectacular event!  I have been so happy to participate, even though this time around I haven't been as active as I'd like (thank you very much, school that doesn't end until the end of June).  It's been great to think about summer foods and try out new-to-me products.  If you'd like to try them too, make sure you've entered the Giveaway!!
As a parting shot, I decided to grill again.  J isn't big on pork, but will tolerate pork tenderloin.  His favourite grilling method for it is the garlic-balsamic marinade I've made in the past, so he was a little disappointed when I informed him that I would be making a new and different marinade for the tenderloin that I was defrosting.
I continued in this recipe with the tubes of herb paste from Gourmet Gardens.  I've already finished the garlic and the ginger.  They're fantastic for cooking in general.  I'm now spoiled. But back to this marinade.
This is different than what I've made in the past, but the leftovers make spectacular pork fried rice, which is my go to with leftover pork tenderloin.  The ginger is a nice addition, and garlic never hurts.  I don't think J was disappointed with the finished product, even if it wasn't what he was expecting.
I present to you now an adaptation from the November 2003 issue of Gourmet, Grilled Ginger-Marinated Pork Tenderloin:

#HotSummerEats: Lemon Cream Pie (Son of Magazine Challenge)

So.

Apparently I think of summer and pastry, which is weird, seeing as I will tell you that pastry is my nemesis.  I bought a pound of lard earlier this spring for something that has since eluded me.  When I found it in the top of the cupboard a few weeks ago, I decided that I might as well try once again to make pastry and made up the box, divided it into balls, wrapped them in plastic and froze them.  Did you know you can freeze pastry dough?  My mom has done this for years.  It's easier to make up the whole box (and the recipe on the box is for the whole thing) and then plan to, at some point either make 3 double-crusted or 6 pies.  This could be one of the 6.
I love lemon.  I know I've said in the past that lemon reminds me of spring, but it's also amazing for summer.  Icy lemonade, lemon sorbet, lemon cake or lemon cookies, I will eat them all.  I'm a huge fan of lemon meringue pie as well, but it's not J's favourite.  When I found this recipe in the May 2007 issue of Everyday Food, I knew I wanted to try it.  With stabilized whipped cream, this won't even melt at your next potluck.  But don't let it sit out too long.  It is whipped cream after all.
I loved this.  J didn't complain when I served it 4 nights running for dessert.  I'd call that a win.
From the May 2007 issue of Everyday Food, I present to you now Lemon Cream Pie:

#HotSummerEats: Panko-Crusted Tilapia Sticks with Dipping Sauce

So.

I don't think fish sticks are something that we often think of when it comes to summer food.  But here's where I'm coming from:  on the Victoria Day weekend, J and I went to visit Toledo and see friends.  On the Sunday night of said weekend, we had no plans; and so were left to our own devices. It was a gorgeous afternoon, and we went and played mini golf.  Then J asked what I wanted for dinner.
It was hot, and I was tired, and I told him that I would love to go somewhere and sit on a patio for dinner with a couple of nice drinks and scenery.  He suggested Webber's, a restaurant that his parents had loved, that was on the banks of the Maumee River, not far from the shores of Lake Erie.  So that is where we ended up.
The patio was lovely - we looked out over the water, I had some delicious berry sangria, and J was thrilled that the Lake Erie yellow perch was as good as he remembered.  He just wished that he'd ordered the shrimp cocktail as well - we could smell the cocktail sauce as they went by.
Fast forward to opening my box from the Sauceology Group:  one of the items included was Caribeque's Island Thyme spice mix.  One smell, and I knew what I wanted to make - fish sticks!
So, for those of us who can't sit on a deck overlooking the Maumee and eat perch, might I suggest these little beauties?
I present to you now from the May 2007 issue of Everyday Food, I present to you now Panko-Crusted Tilapia sticks with Dipping Sauce:

#HotSummerEats: Honey-Lime Chili Grilled Chicken

So.

If you follow me on Twitter, you know that the lovely folks at Gourmet Garden sent me a fantastic box of goodies for participating in #HotSummerEats.  Little Bowls of lightly dried herbs and tubes of herbs currently grace my fridge and my food. I have to admit, Gourmet Garden may have somewhat spoiled me for preparing my own herbs.  It's so quick to squeeze and stir for a marinade or sprinkle over a pizza.
When I opened my April newsletter from the Looneyspoons gals, I found this recipe for grilled chicken.  With my brand new bag of tricks from Gourmet Garden, I was inspired to adapt the recipe for two and for the herbs that I had.  Grilled chicken.  It's perfect for summer.  And this marinade was delicious and fresh.  It's even Looneyspoons, so it's healthy!  What else can I say?
From the Looneyspoons April 2015 newsletter, I present to you now Honey-Lime Chili Grilled Chicken:

#HotSummerEats: Butter Tarts

So.

Welcome to the first day of #HotSummerEats!  A week of foods to get you in the summer mood.  I've been having so much fun getting ready for this event, and I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone else is bringing to the party.
For the kickoff, I decided that I needed to make something typically Canadian:  Butter Tarts.  With only a month until the end of school and the celebration of Canada Day, what better thing to make than a quintessentially Canadian dessert?
According to Wikipedia, Butter Tarts are a Canadian dessert that is often made in English-speaking Canada, making it different from the Tarte au Sucre in Quebec.  It also lists a variety of ingredients that can be added to the filling including raisins, walnuts, coconut or chocolate chips.  Everyone has an opinion, including myself:  anything other than raisins are sacrilege.  Trust me.
I wasn't really thinking about making Butter Tarts (I haven't made them in years), but then I was cruising Sid's Sea Palm Cooking and saw them.  Seeing as it's Secret Recipe Club Day, and I needed something that was for summer, these fit the bill.  I even made them to take to the first BBQ potluck of the summer!
I present to you now from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking Butter Tarts:

Secret Recipe Club: Chicken Fried Chicken Salad with Semi-Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing

So.
It's time for another episode of the Secret Recipe Club!  When last we left our heroine, she was in a carb coma from amazing scones in May.  Will she solider on?  Or will she fall asleep?
Thankfully, I didn't fall asleep.  Otherwise, I would have missed out on the deliciousness that was this month's assignment!  My monthly email sent me to Sid's Sea Palm Cooking.
Sid is a Dane who loves things spicy.  I spent a long time poking around to find something that looked delicious and that we would enjoy around here.  There were cookies, and Danish specialties which all sounded delicious.  I finally settled on 2 recipes that sounded lovely.  The second is my kick-off post for #HotSummerEats, so you'll have to come back after 9AM EST to see that sweet treat, but I found this yummy looking salad that I wanted to make.
I love fried chicken.  J likes his chicken boneless.  This was the best of both worlds, plus I hadn't tried frying like this before.  I don't recommend it regularly.  There's a smell that hangs around afterwards - even if you use your hood.  Also, there's the whole pesky calorie thing.  But that's why we put it on top of vegetables.  Right?
I present to you now Sid's Sea Palm Cooking's Chicken Fried Chicken Salad with Semi-Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing: