Microwave Chocolate Chip Cookie

So there is a recent internet craze going on in which everyone has become obsessed with microwave desserts. Essentially, they are the single-serve, minimal-ingredient, 5-minute answer to the age old problem of wanting a warm, homemade dessert without having to put in the elbow grease to make it. It may seem like baking blasphemy to stick any kind of batter in a microwave and call it by its original name, but roll with me here. I have tested a few of these recipes, and only two have come up to par with my needs and expectations for what a microwavable dessert should be. I want whatever I am making to be thoroughly cooked without being spongey or dried out, have a flavor that is extremely similar to if not the same as a regular full-recipe dessert, and I want it to be easy enough to make that I will make it again and again. 

A recipe that genuinely meets these expectations is the microwave chocolate chip cookie. I have tried several recipes for various cakes and cookies and such, which have all had an unpleasant, sponge-like texture (sometimes to the point of hockey puck consistency) and a strange aftertaste. The chocolate chip cookie recipe, however, has the perfect ratio of doneness to gooeyness, has great flavor, and is super quick and easy to make. 

My body also thanks me because I make just one, eat it, and go on with my life, as opposed to making a huge batch cookies and somehow eating them all by myself. Incidentally, making a microwave version means you don't have to share with anyone, and sometimes you just need to have your own dessert. 

If you simply can't fathom the idea of not making a big batch of cookies, I completely understand! There is a method behind baking and a calmness that it brings, but sometimes you just need a cookie... right now... like, right now. In that case, use this recipe as an emergency sugar fix. You won't be sorry. Happy eating!

Microwave Chocolate Chip Cookie

1 tablespoon butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg yolk (no whites!)
1/4 cup flour 
pinch of salt
handful of chocolate chips

Melt the butter in a mug in the microwave. To the mug, add the brown sugar, vanilla, and the egg yolk and stir very well to combine. Add the flour, salt, and chocolate chips and stir to combine (the batter will stick to the sides of the mug, so make sure to scrape it down). Microwave on high for 30 seconds. Let stand 1 minute before eating. 

Turkey Bacon & Goat Cheese Frittata

I have recently gotten into the habit of not scrambling my eggs. Instead, I have begun making frittatas, which means I cook the bottom of the eggs until set in the pan, top them with whatever yummy stuff I have on-hand, and stick the whole thing under the broiler until puffy and golden. Perhaps it is a sign that I am getting more and more lazy by the day and can't even be bothered to stir my eggs in a hot pan, but I prefer to think that I've made my egg-making routine even easier. I have got nothing against scrambled eggs, and I definitely love a good over-easy egg, but when I started making frittatas a few weeks ago I realized that I may have a new favorite egg-cooking method. 

Basically, as any egg recipe will tell you, eggs will go with just about any flavor. This frittata has crispy turkey bacon and goat cheese in it. I also really like the combination of cooked chorizo, cheddar cheese, and green onion if I want something spicy. Basil pesto, grape tomatoes, and parmesan cheese are also awesome in place of the other ingredients! 

I could easily call this frittata a whatever-you've-got-in-the-fridge frittata. Add whatever flavors you like. 

One thing I quickly realized is that you have to have all of your ingredients lined up and ready to go and the broiler already preheated when you start cooking the eggs. So as you're crisping the bacon in the pan, have your whisked eggs and crumbled goat cheese on hand. The point is that this recipe is quick and simple, so making it more streamlined means you get to eat sooner! This recipe serves one person, but it can be doubled as long as the pan allows the eggs to puff up without boiling over the edges. 

Finally, don't be afraid to serve your frittatas for lunch or dinner! I have made this for dinner on many occasions because it is so quick and filling. Happy eating! 

Turkey Bacon & Goat Cheese Frittata

serves 1 hungry person

*make sure your frying pan does NOT have a plastic handle, as it could melt in the oven :( 

2 strips turkey bacon, chopped 

1 teaspoon butter

2 eggs, whisked & seasoned with salt and pepper

2 tablespoons crumbled goat cheese

Preheat the broiler. In a small frying pan (I use a small cast-iron skillet), cook the chopped bacon over medium heat until crispy. Add the butter and stir the bacon until the butter coats the pan. Pour the whisked eggs into the skillet, making sure the bacon is evenly distributed, and top with the crumbled goat cheese. Place the pan at least 5 inches away from the broiler and cook the eggs are puffy and golden and no longer jiggly in the middle. Remove the pan from the oven, and with the help of a spatula, slide the frittata onto a plate. Serve immediately. 

Baked Cajun Shrimp & Rice

Stress is starting to build up in my life as the semester progresses, and it is so nice to be able to throw a dinner together that is fast and easy. Especially when I have homework to finish, I don't necessarily want to be standing over the stove stirring a pot all night. Here is where one of the easiest meals I have ever made comes into the picture, this spicy, creamy, comforting baked shrimp and rice. There is hardly any measuring, you only dirty up a few dishes, and your kitchen will smell amazing. 

I adore shrimp, so I could try and rationalize eating this every week for the rest of forever, but shrimp can be kind of expensive. But the other ingredients more than make up for that because they are so cheap! Condensed soup, white rice, onion, green pepper, butter (lots of butter!) and Creole seasoning all add tons of flavor without breaking my wallet. I also have to mention that this recipe makes a TON of food and keeps in the fridge really well! 

I have seen similar recipes made with condensed French onion soup instead of cream of celery, but the celery flavor makes it taste more Cajun to me. Red bell pepper can also be swapped for the green bell pepper, but again, green is cheaper and just as tasty. I also put a crazy amount of Creole seasoning in the rice, but some don't like it hot, so feel free to use as much or as little seasoning as desired. I will be making this dish over and over this semester to feed my hungry belly and give me peace of mind in the midst of a hectic (but fun!) Senior year. Happy eating! 

Baked Cajun Shrimp & Rice
*make sure to use raw shrimp and rice, they will cook in the oven 

1 1/2 pounds RAW shrimp, shells/tails removed & deveined (the seafood counter @ the grocery store usually deveins them for you)
2 cups RAW white rice
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of chicken soup
1 (10.75 oz) can cream of celery soup (I used Campbell's Healthy Choice version)
1 (10 oz) can Rotel diced tomatoes & green chiles 
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 1/2 teaspoons Creole seasoning (such as Tony Chachere's)
4 tablespoons butter

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the peeled shrimp, rice, chicken soup, celery soup, Rotel, green bell pepper, onion, and 1 teaspoon of the Creole seasoning together in a large bowl. Put the butter in a 13- x 9-inch pan and melt the butter in the oven. Remove pan from oven and swirl the butter around to coat. Pour in the shrimp mixture, spreading evenly. Sprinkle the top with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning. 

Cover the pan tightly with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove pan from oven, stir the rice, recover tightly with the tinfoil, and bake about 40 minutes more. The rice should be fluffy and have absorbed the liquid in the pan. Serve immediately.   

Caramelized Onions & BBQ Chicken Pizza

I am convinced that caramelized onions are one of the greatest foods ever invented, and I also love how science makes food awesome. In this case, the Maillard reaction, or the process in which heat breaks down the sugars in foods and causes browning, is what makes the onions taste so amazing (the reaction also applies to baked bread, dulce de leche, french fries...). I would be perfectly happy making a meal out of a bowl full of caramelized onions, but I came up with an even better plan the other night. Chicken + caramelized onions + barbecue sauce on a pizza. My roommates and I barely spoke to each other we were shoveling the pizza into our faces so fast. 

Basically, caramelized onions are fool-proof. You slice up a bunch of onions, put them in a pan with olive oil, salt, and pepper over medium-low heat, and you cook them for a long, long time. That is where patience becomes a virtue. This stuff doesn't instantly become golden, fragrant, and sweet in half an hour. No, it takes more like two hours to get the full effect. But the end product is delicious. 

Don't believe me? Check these out:

Now, before you run off to the store to buy a pound of onions, let me explain what you can do with these when they're done cooking. You can make french onion soup (the real stuff, not the dried packety stuff), mix them into mashed potatoes, put them on pizza (as I did here), toss them with sauteed green beans or asparagus, devour them by themselves while catching up on Netflix... you get the idea. Go crazy. The pizza was a homemade whole-wheat pizza crust that my roommates threw together, topped with a good amount of barbecue sauce, mozzarella cheese, chopped rotisserie chicken, the caramelized onions, and a bit of goat cheese. You can vary the toppings however you like, but BBQ chicken pizza was pretty scrumptious. 

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some episodes of Downtown Abbey and a bowl full of on... I mean a well-balanced meal to attend to. Happy eating! 

Caramelized Onions 
makes about 2 cups of cooked onions

2 large white onions
2 tablespoons olive oil 
1 teaspoon kosher salt
lots of black pepper

Cut the ends off of each onion, then cut each onion down the middle (cut end to cut end). Peel the papery layer off of the onion halves and discard. Slice the onion halves into 1/4-inch slices and place in a large skillet with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat. Heat the skillet over medium-low heat and begin cooking the onions, stirring about every 10 minutes, until the onions are very soft and a deep brown all over, about 2 hours. They should NOT be burnt or charred, but instead have an even brown coating all over. If they do start to get too dark, cut the heat back and continue stirring or add a bit more oil to the pan. 

I used the entire 2 cups on my pizza, but it all depends on personal preference. Add as much or as little as you like. Yum!