Mothers Day Macarons from the Macaron Cafe

I received a lovely box of macarons for mothers day from the Macaron Cafe a few days ago and boy did it make my day. I have had quite the sweet tooth but unfortunately didn't have anything to suffice my craving, which is surprising since you can almost always guarantee that there will be some sort of baked good in my house but alas there was none to be found.

The arrival of the package also reminded me that mother's day is just a few short days away (May 10th in case you forgot to grab a gift for your mom, wife or friend) and it got me thinking about motherhood and all that it entails. I absolutely love being a mom to my two boys, they do drive me crazy a lot of the time but all of snuggles and hugs over powers that...most of the time. To me mothers should be celebrated year round for everything moms do. Motherhood can be tough sometimes we often get a lot of unsolicited advice from others on how to raise our children which can sometimes make us question our own abilities as moms. We can be hard on ourselves for the choices we make, for the loss of patience or the inability to juggle everything as gracefully as we would like. Its nice to know that the things we do are appreciated, that our children love us no matter how hard we can be on them because in our hearts we know that the love we have for our children knows no bounds. I know that when I was younger a lot of the times I would get so mad at my mom for not letting me do something or go somewhere, in my mind I thought she was just sabotaging my life but little did I know that everything she did, she did out of love, to protect me, to teach me. Now being a mom myself I make sure to mention how much I appreciate her and all that she did, because if it was not for her and my father I would not be the person I am today. We should all take a little time and let our mothers know how much we love and appreciated them, not just on mothers day. We should also support one another because we know just how hard it can be, I say this all the time, no matter the choices you make when raising your kids as long as you love them unconditionally and take time to spend with them you are a great mom.

Well now back to the deliciousness that was sent to me, the box had 6 different flavors that I was super excited to try. A card with the different flavors of macarons was included, which was nice because I was 100% sure which flavor was which. Of course being a mom I had to share my goodies with my little ones, they were super excited to have a nice treat to help them forget that they had a terrible cold. They both followed me around the house and Jowell kept telling me "Mom those look delicious and I cleaned up all the toys so can you please share!" and he didn't forget to mention that he is such a big boy and he cleaned it "Allll by myself!" complete with a very proud smile. So when I finally sat down to enjoy these sweet treats the boys made sure to make themselves comfortable on the couch.

Don't you just love how toddlers always manage to find the tiniest toy to stuff in their mouth and give you a heart attack.

Peanut butter & Jelly

The peanut butter & jelly macarons were Jowell's absolute favorite and told me that they were especially made for him since PB&J's are his favorite (he eats one almost every morning). This is your childhood PB&J but grown up, so you feel fancy eating it *pinkies up*

Milk Chocolate  Marshmallow

 Anything that has Chocolate and Marshmallow fluff is a win in my book, add in the sprinkles and its like a little party in your mouth. It also vaguely reminds me of a smore which is now making me want to roast some marshmallows, fire pit time!

Wedding Almond

 These were extremely soft and the almond flavor from the macaron cookie and the filling was heaven in my mouth.

Vanilla

 Every time I take a bite out of this I always say its just like eating vanilla ice cream with out the discomfort making my teeth hurt from the cold.

Coconut

 My husband wasn't home when me and the boys were snacking on the macarons but I had to make sure I saved him a coconut macaron and boy did it make him happy when he got home from work. 

Rose Lychee

When I first opened the box and smelled the lychee scent I was so excited to try it, being half Filipino there was always lychee in my house from the little jellies we got in one of those big jars to eating them straight out of the can when my mom would buy them. When I took a bite out of it the rose and lychee aroma instantly filled my nostrils and I seriously think they need to make a perfume with that scent because it is absolutely AMAZING!

Half way through eating the macarons Lennox decided to snatch it from Jowells hand right before he put it in his mouth and then just smiled as he ate it himself.

It was seriously such a treat to try the macarons from the Macaron Cafe, if you are interested in purchasing a box for mothers day or just as a treat you can visit their site at MacaronCafe.com, they ship nationwide or stop by one of their 4 shops in Manhattan. A big thanks to the Macaron Cafe for the much appreciated treat and my making Jowell and Lennox feel a little better.

A happy early mothers day to all the moms out there, whether you have children, have lost a child or are trying for a baby I wish all of you a happy mothers day. Lots of hugs and well wishes to you all!

Macarons from the Macaron Cafe

 This past weekend I not surprisingly caught my youngest son's cold. I completely jinxed myself by telling my husband how awesome it was that none of us have gotten sick since before Halloween, then BAM! it was like a chain reaction, Lennox started first with the sniffles, then me and now Jowell, the only one who thankfully hasn't caught this nasty cold is Louis {knock on wood}. We however were pleasantly surprised with a knock on our door from the FedEx guy while this cold wreaked havoc on us. Jowell was so excited, he kept asking me if Santa had sent him a gift, I explained to him that Santa was on vacation so he'd have to wait till December to get gifts from Santa again. When I opened the package there was the cutest little box with a mint colored ribbon and a note from my friend Naomi (Catherine) who works for the Macaron Cafe in New York. The little gift helped us get our minds off of feeling so...under the weather.

Macaron Cafe: 625 Madison Ave. Entrance on 34th street NYC

I loved all of the drawings on the box, I thought to myself {if the box is this pretty I cant wait to see the macarons on the inside} and boy were they pretty. I felt like I should be wearing a pretty dress, wearing white gloves and sipping on tea but I settled for sweat pants, a decent looking tee shirt and a mug of hot chocolate.
One thing that I do want to point out is that the French macaron should not be confused with the American macaroon, I admit that I had been spelling macaron wrong {I kept adding the extra O. I know, I should be ashamed of myself for spelling it wrong,} for the past few days until my sister pointed out my error. A macaron (pronounced mack-ah-rohn)  like the one in the pictures are made with almond meal, egg whites, sugar and come in a variety of colors/flavors, they are also pretty difficult to perfect. A macaroon (pronounced mack-ah-roon) are made with shredded coconut, egg whites and sugar. Now that we have that cleared up we can move forward.

Louis and Jowell were a little too eager to try the macarons with me, Jowell couldn't sit still and I saw Louis eying the coconut macaron. I was lucky that Lennox was napping or he might have devoured all of them, I can't lie I was pretty excited to try them as well.

Pistachio macaron, decorated with shamrocks for St Patrick's day

The pistachio macaron was adorned with a shamrock design for St Patrick's day, Jowell was so delighted with it, he said it was made for a leprechaun. The outside was so nice and crunchy but the inside was nice and chewy just like a macaron should be. The filling had a nice subtle pistachio taste with bits of actual pistachio in it, and the slight almond flavor of the macaron cookie complimented the pistachio filling well. We all agreed it was one of our top favorites.

Vanilla Macaron

The vanilla macaron was hand down amazing, it was like you took a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream, melted it a bit and sandwiched it between two crunchy but soft almond cookies. I was in love with this flavor, the little specks of vanilla bean in the filling made it feel more like a cone of vanilla ice cream.

Dark Chocolate Macaron

"Yum it taste like chocolate milk" was the first thing Jowell said after taking a bite of the dark chocolate macaron. He was all smiles after this one, and it was so delicious. With it having a dark chocolate filling you would think it might have the slight bitterness that dark chocolate usually has but it was actually quite delicate on the tongue. It was nice and smooth, and just like Jowell said, it reminds me of a glass of chocolate milk.

Coconut Macaron

The coconut macaron was so soft it literally just melts in your mouth. This one was Louis's absolute favorite because it reminded him of Puerto Rico. The coconut flakes surrounding the coconut filling gave it a nice texture. It was sweet but not overly sweet, I cant say enough good things about this one.

Nutella Macaron

We all enjoyed this nutella macaron a lot, nutella anything is a win to me but the little caramel bits sent it over the edge. I wish I had ten more of this flavor, its like a creamy ferrero rocher. Louis said it's actually better than regular nutella because the chocolate flavor isn't overly strong so you can taste the hazelnut and caramel in the filling better.

Matcha Green Tea

I have never actually tried matcha green tea so I wasn't sure what to expect from the matcha green tea macaron. I always drink regular green tea but matcha green tea is a very concentrated form of green tea which means its backed full of vitamins and minerals. I was the first one to take a bite since Louis got nervous when he heard the word "tea" {he's weird about tea and refuses to drink any type}. To my surprise it was not very sweet which is a nice break from the normal type of macaron. You could definitely taste the green tea, and Louis said "it tastes minty with out the mint". Jowell really enjoyed it and kept asking to take more bites.

Jowell was sad when they were all done

If you want to purchase some of these delicious macarons you can visit one of their four locations in New York or if you aren't in the area you can order online and they will be shipped right to your door. They also offer non pastry items at their restaurant if you are in the mood for something savory you can check out their menu here. I don't often travel down to New York but I think I might venture down to the city just to get my macaron fix and I'm excited to try more of their different flavors.

We really enjoyed the macarons and want to thank Catherine Ford for sending us a box, and we also want to thank the Macron Cafe for making such delicious macarons!

Arroz con Leche *recipe edited*

I couple of months back I posted up a recipe for arroz con leche that I found online, I do love that recipe but it didn't turn out as creamy as I liked so I instead came up with another way to make it and it's a much more simple recipe. 

Arroz con leche

1 1/2 cups rice 

6 cups of milk (I used whole milk)

2 cinnamon sticks

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 cup condensed milk

*orange peel or orange zest

*1-2 cups of milk

In a pot add the milk, cinnamon sticks, ground cinnamon and rice. Turn the stove onto medium high heat and bring the mix to a low boil, make sure to watch the pot because it will boil over quickly if you aren't paying attention. While you are bringing it to a boil make sure to mix it so the rice doesn't get stuck to the bottom.

After about 7-8 minutes the mix should start to boil, mix again and then turn the heat low (on my stove I turned it down to a 2). Cover the pot and let cook for about 10 minutes (again make sure you stick around to make sure it doesn't boil over) there will start to be more rice than liquid, stir again making sure to scrape the bottom of the pot. Let cook for another 10 minutes, by this time the liquid will be almost gone and you can take it off the heat. Add in the condensed milk and vanilla, mix and serve while warm, you can sprinkle a little more ground cinnamon ontop. 

*I usually add in an orange peel or orange zest to my rice pudding to give it a subtle zing to the pudding but I didn't have oranges so I omitted them this time, but if you do add in the orange peel place it in the pot at the same time you place in the cinnamon sticks to let the Orange flavor develop in the rice pudding and remove when you are ready to serve. 

*Also if you like your rice pudding a little creamier just add 1-2 more cups of milk when most of the liquid is evaporated, mix in the milk and let it cook for another 5 minutes before removing from heat and adding the rest of the ingredients. 

Guava Cheesecake

I found this absolutely delicious recipe for a New York cheese cake a while back and it has been my go to recipe ever since. Around thanksgiving with my younger sister pregnant with her first baby and my husband acting like a pregnant woman with his cravings, both begged me to make them a cheesecake but to incorporate guava into it and of course I couldn't say no to a pregnant woman...or my husband. I made a few alterations to the original recipe like adding a crust and not using multiple bowls {I mean who really wants extra dishes to wash}. The site for the original recipe also gave me a great idea on how to prevent leaks into the springform pan using a crockpot liner. If you are planning on making this for a dinner or party make it a day or two ahead of time so you give it enough time to chill in the fridge {cheesecake is always best the next day}.

Guava Cheesecake 

3 cups of vanilla wafers 

8tbsp + 2tbsp unsalted butter room temp 

4 8oz packs of cream cheese room temp

5 large eggs room temp

1 pint sour cream room temp

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 tbsp corn starch 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

2 tsp lemon juice 

2 tsp lemon zest

1/2 package of a 14oz guava paste

1/4 cup water 

Preheat the over to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. 

In a food processor add in the vanilla wafers and 2 tbsp of butter. Blend the two together until the cookies are fully crushes and start to clump together. Press the crumble into the bottom of a springform pan and let chill in the fridge while you make the cheesecake mix.

In a bowl mix the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Mix in the sour cream and eggs one at a time until smooth. Next add in the sugar, cornstarch, vanilla extract, lemon juice and lemon zest. Set aside the mix and start on the guava mix.

In a small pot add the water and chop up the guava paste into small squares. Cook on medium heat, stir until the guava  paste has dissolved and the mix no longer has any lumps. Now you can either mix the guava mix with the cheese cake mix so you get a nice taste of guava in each bite or you can spoon pieces of the guava mixture into the cheesecake mix once the cheesecake mix is in the springform pan and use a tooth pick to lightly swirl the guava and create a nice marbled patten.

Place the cheesecake and place it into the crockpot liner then roll down the sides so that it doesn't touch the cheesecake. Grab a large casserole dish or pan that will be able to fit the springform pan inside to create a water bath for the cheesecake. Now fill the casserole dish with cold water so that it reaches about halfway up the pan. 

Place it into the preheated oven and bake for 2 hours and 15 minutes or until you can place a knife in the middle and it comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool for about 2 hours on the counter. Once cooled, cover and place in the fridge to set overnight. 

Recipe adaptation from http://foodforahungrysoul.blogspot.com/2010/12/new-york-cheesecake.html?m=1

Hot fudge lava cake

It been a while since I've posted anything on here, my apologies for that. I'll admit I've just been to lazy to take pictures but I promise I'll try and post more. 

Well let's talk about the amazingness that is called a lava cake. The first time I tried one was from dominos and although it wasn't from a five star resturant it was pretty damn good. Yesterday was the second time I had one from red robins while I was out with my family, my little sister and her boyfriend. Louis asked if I could try and make one at home, plus I found out my little sister (who is also growing a tiny baby in her belly!) loves them as well, so I was up for the challenge.

I came across this recipe while I was skimming through the awesomeness that is pinterest. I have to admit I was quite intimidated by the thought of pulling off baking a chocolate lava cake but this recipe made it very easy. A very big thankyou to Letsdishrecipes.com for blogging this great recipe. 

Here is the link to the blog: http://www.letsdishrecipes.com/2015/01/hot-fudge-lava-cake.html

Enjoy all of the chocolaty-goodness!