Carrot Cake Cookies.... by Bon Appetit may 2010

So I wanted a change of pace from my usual cupcake dessert so I found this carrot cake cookie recipe. I'm a big fan of carrot cake and the cream cheese icing. It's the best of cake/cookie hybrid! The recipe was fairly easy if you dont mind making baked goods from scratch. Don't worry, its not that bad and the outcome is worth the effort!!! You can find the entire recipe on bon appetit's website in the May 2010 issue.



Here are some of the pictures I took.....

Dim Sum.... by Hipcooks

If you're looking for one of those cool Los Angeles activities to partake in- I happily suggest joining a Hipcooks class. Hipcooks is a fun, innovative and hands-on cooking class for the beginner cook, entertainer and international food lover. Cuisines from all over the globe are specialty of the charming chefs at Hipcooks. Not only are the recipes creative and fun to make, but also EASY!! Myself and a dear friend enrolled in the "Dim Sum...and then some" class which offered this wonderful meal:


Steamed shrimp wontons
Chicken cabbage dumplings
Scallion pancakes with shitake mushrooms
Chinese style green beans
Seared sesame beef in rice paper
Lotus flower Pork Puff Pastry
Seared scallop lo mein
Sweet wontons with orange, dates and walnuts

All the recipes were delicious!! I'll mention a few favorites.

Steamed Shrimp Wontons with Red Chili and Scallions

Trust me....this was actually very easy to do. Once you gather your ingredients you let your food processor do all the work!..then, steam! Even wrapping the stuffing in the dumpling skin was simple. Once you get the fanning technique down, your dumplings look cool and taste great! Next time I think I'll try pork.

Scallion Pancakes Stuffed with Shitake Mushrooms

This was my best plating picture-so I had to post it. I really enjoyed the flavor of the pancake, however the sole shitake filling was a little too chewy for my liking. I would add a meat and something crunchy like water chestnuts or shredded carrots. But the pancake was a hoot to make!

Sweet wontons with orange, dates and walnuts

I liked these so much that I made some that night!! The dates really make this dessert outstanding! Its like a sweet paste. And filling the wonton skins was easy as well. The wontons skins are easy to handle and frying was a cinch. I have many ideas of what else to stuff in these wontons, such as peanut butter and chocolate! yum!

Hipcooks is such an awesome place to learn new and fun ways to entertain! I will definitely sign up for another class! Warning: Classes are very popular and fill up months in advance, so sign up early!