Pan de muerto Revisited

This weekend (el primero y 2 de noviembre), the day after Halloween, a very sacred holiday will take place - El día de los muertos. Although I am not Mexican, I celebrate and respect this holiday even more than Halloween. Why? Because I am comforted by the idea of honoring loved ones who have passed on and "bringing them back" into the present world via a multitude of tangible symbols such as altars showcasing loved ones' photos and momentos, skullface paintings, sugar skulls. I especially enjoy the culinary dishes that are usually present around these two days, such as mole and pan de muerto.

Bucatini alla Carbonara (2 versioni)

Ciao di nuovo! It's been another long while since I've posted. I have not been cooking anything interesting. In fact before making this yummy Carbonara, I made a mushy pot of black beans and brown rice . . . trust me; it wasn't blog-worthy. Also these past few weeks have been stressful because of constant teaching and grading.  So in order to retain the little bit of sanity I have left from my busy schedule, I still think about my blissful months in Reggio Calabria, Italy.

Copycat Recipe: Rudy's BBQ "Sause"

As a native Texan, I've always loved to eat BBQ ribs, chicken, sausage, etc. So while attending graduate school at the University of Texas at Austin, I explored various BBQ joints in search of the all-time best place for BBQ. Most people raved about the famous Salt Lick. However, after having ordered a large sampler plate of all their "best" fixins', my friend and I were quite disappointed with the food and never returned. Then I discovered Rudy's ...

The end. :)

Dessert Braids: Nutella, Strawberry, and Banana/Cinnamon Roll

I'm back in the States.  After living for approximately two and a half wonderful months in Portugal, et al., you can imagine my reluctance to return here.  Still, I'd thought I'd muse about a few homeland items that I had taken for granted and truly missed that are not readily available in Western Europe (at least at the places I've visited):

Palak Paneer, Pulao, and Roti

Indian food. I love Indian food so much. In fact, being a vegetarian would be a lot easier if I were to just eat Indian food every day. However, sometimes I get in the mood for other types of foods, so...yeah. I'll eat more Indian food and just reduce my meat consumption instead ;). I think that's a fair compromise for now...

Resuscitated Dough for Cinnamon Rolls

So you're looking at the title of this post and are thinking "huh? what?" I hear ya. Let me explain...

These past few years I've made a lot of bread and yeast-based desserts on this blog so I am familiar with the usual signs of good/bad yeast growth, dough quality, etc. While living abroad, however, I have to relearn how to cook in a sense and get familiar with different ingredients and tools. I'm in Lisbon this time around, and I decided to make cinnamon rolls for my two friends who have graciously allowed me to stay with them for two months!

Happy, risen dough! You would never know that this dough had no life in it just a few hours ago. . .

OREO Chocolate Chip Pudding Blondies

You would think that with all the Oreo recipes I've been posting lately that I'm quite fond of these cream-filled, chocolate-flavored cookies. Ah, but you would be wrong, because while I do like to use them as crusts for pies, cheesecakes, and in other desserts, I'm not too crazy about them on their own. So why the plethora of Oreo-based desserts, you ask? Because all the well-intentioned recipients of said desserts are enamored with consuming these cookies in everything.