Baking With Betty - Brownieliciousness

I am home and overwhelmed at the amazingness that is the Betty Crocker Kitchens.

I'll be writing multiple posts (and sharing multiple recipes!) about the kitchens, the company culture and the fun we had, because there's just so much to share. (Plus, I'm waiting for a few Betty Crocker goodies to arrive so I can do a giveaway. Thanks, General Mills!)

[NOTE: In the interest of full disclosure: General Mills covered all the costs of my trip to Minnesota. Thanks again, General Mills!]

Today, I thought I'd whet your appetite (=D) by telling you about The Brownie Goody Bars. (Did you just hear the angels sing? Yes. Yes, you did.)

 

Of all the fabulousness that we mixed and stirred and cooked and baked, these beauties were my absolute favorites.

Here I am sticking my hand in the chocolate. I kept getting busted for tasting stuff out of turn, but that's not important right now. ;-)

Here's the recipe. Just trust me on the deliciousness of these Chocolaty Gifts from God Himself.

Brownie Goody Bars

• 1 box (1lb. 2.4 oz.) Betty Crocker Original Supreme Premium brownie mix.
• Water, vegetable oil and egg called for on brownie mix box
• 1 cup Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy vanilla frosting (from 16 ox. container)
• 1/2 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
• 2 cups crisp rice cereal
• 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 1/3 cups (8oz.) semisweet chocolate chips

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees (325 for dark non-stick pan). Grease bottom of a 9-inch square pan with cooking spray or shortening (for easier cutting, line pan with foil, then grease foin on bottom only of pan.)
2. Make and bake brownies as directed on box. Cool completely.
3. Frost brownies with frosting. Sprinkle with peanuts; Refrigerate while making cereal mixture.
4. Measure cereal into medium bowl; set aside. In 1-quart saucepan, melt peanut butter and chocolate chips over low heat, stirring constantly. Pour over cereal in bowl, stirring until evenly coated. Spread over frosted brownies. Refrigerate 1 hour or until set before cutting. For bars, cut into 4 rows by 4 rows. Store tightly covered at room temperature or in refrigerator.

Busted again!

(Video by blog-buddy and phenomenal photographer, Nika of Nika's Culinaria. Thanks, Nika, my friend.)

I'm Baking With Betty (don't try to stop me!)

So, I'm in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

I'll be here for a few days.

Where will I be spending my time, you ask?

I'll be in the BETTY CROCKER KITCHENS!!! (<--Yes, that was a noisy burst of nerdy enthusiasm.)

I'll be Baking With Betty. (Along with a group of bloggers also invited by General Mills, but that's not important right now....)

I'm so excited about getting to cook and learn and play (!) in the kitchens. The Kitchens. (*insert angelic chorus here*)

Of course, I'll tell you all about it and take lots of pictures.

Hmm....I wonder if Betty knows about the perfection of Cuban tastiness that is my homemade pastelitos de guayaba?

I'll keep you posted. ;-)

Mrs. Eric Darby

I have had the happy privilege of being Mrs. Eric Darby for the past 18 years now. We got married on August 8th, 1992.

Some of our anniversary celebrations have been simple. I cook, the kids toast us, we kiss. A good time was had by all.

On a few of our anniversaries we've managed to escape for a weekend.

This year, we planned our vacation to coincide with our anniversary. Eric made super-top-secret plans to take me somewhere. "You have to dress up" being the only clue he would give me.

We spent a fabulous day on the beach with Lucy and Jon.

Lucy and I walked all the way down the very flat beach and she scratched this message out in the sand when we were blocks away (just so I could take a photo). Aww.

The current was very strong that day and when Eric got out of the water, he accidentally (serendipitously?) came out on this very spot. (Coincidence? I think not.)

He was at first confused. Then pleased. (Win!)

In the afternoon, I dutifully powdered and primped and put on high heels and makeup. Aside from wearing my red lipstick pretty much every day, I don't usually wear much makeup and certainly not high heels, so this was a bit sacrificial for me, but that's not important right now.

Eric took me to a wonderful (and chi-chi) restaurant at the top of a 12 story building in San Diego called Bertrand at Mr. A's with spectacular views of the city, the airport, and the bay. And we happened to get there on the clearest day they've had this year. (That's Mexico on the horizon.)

Talk about feeling soooo accidentally cool! 

The meal (surf and turf - yeah, baby!) was spectacular.

 

And the dessert (creme brulee!) came with a special greeting. (I know. Shut up.)

We held hands and reviewed the many twists and turns and all the adventures we've shared for the past 18 years.

I often say that I married a good man. Every day I spend with him brings more conviction. 

He likes to say that I've brought color and music to his life. I'd say we've got a pretty winning combination here.

Do we ever fight? Absolutely. Often, and well. He fights much better than I do. I'm a "stuffer." But we always manage to remember that "the issue is never the issue" so our fights are usually productive.

But more often than not, we default back to our original relationship, which is that we were friends first. 

I often hear people say that they married their best friend. In our case I would say that's definitely true.

And yes, it was totally worth dressing up with the high heels and make up. =D

 

Thanks, Honey. The very best years of my life have been the past 18 that I've shared with you.

I love you MORE.

MY Que Rica Vida - or Orange is the New Black

So, Marta, what were you doing in Miami, anyway?

I was visiting family and meeting blog-friends and working the Babalú booth at Cuba Nostalgia and of course, celebrating my birthday. (If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you would know exactly what I was up to moment by moment.) But the real reason I was able to go, was because of the generosity of General Mills.

I was invited, as part of a group of 34 Latina mami-bloggers and tons of newspaper and magazine folks (ie. real journalists) to celebrate the re-launch of  their Que Rica Vida site and this was a promotional junket.

It was a press event like no other, (at least none that I've ever attended. Maybe they're all like this and I just don't know it, because this was my first big one, but that's not important right now) and General Mills along with Hispania Public Relations pulled out all the stops for this two-day party.

There was an amazing all-female mariachi band, Damas de Jalisco, which were delightful to listen to. (Female mariachis....who knew?)

They were just so impressive and had that gorgeously rich mariachi sound. 

They wined us and dined us and showered us with some SWEET gifts (Yeah, Flip Video Camera!)

The Que Rica Vida people treated us to a fabulous dinner the first night at the Rusty Pelican on Key Biscayne (along with lots of mojitos).

Two Cuban blogging girls + a dozen Mexican mariachi girls = A Really Good Time. ;-)

The next night was the Que Rica Vida launch party which was crazy and fun with guest appearances from some of Univision’s top personalities like Javier Romero, and of course, the gorgeous Karla Martinez and the impossibly cute Adamari López.

 

The launch was classy and fun and interactive. I loved the cooking demonstration with all the Univision personalities (read "supermodels).

And I loved their logo. Everything was decorated in these gorgeous, glowing oranges and browns (I was tempted to steal this pillow, but that's not important right now, either.)

 

We got to meet and greet some other familiar characters.

 

And Amy Kikita (dressed here as Miami Barbie) got to poke the Pillsbury Dough Boy (if you're her Facebook friend, you know she takes her poking very seriously.)

But the highlight, by far, of all of this crazy and interactive fun was meeting up with the other invited "Blogeras." (<--is that a word?)

We (Carrie and I) were interviewed by Manny Ruiz of Hispanic PR Blog and a Papi Blogger in his own right. We gave him lots of Tiki Tiki, of course. ;-)

I am proud and privileged to be counted as part of this amazing group of Latina Blogeras. (<--Seriously, is that a word? Because if it isn't, it really should be...) I am in the process of collecting their names and sites to add to my blog roll.

 

So a great big Thank You to General Mills for inviting us to be a part of the Que Rica Vida event. 

I'm delighted I got to go. But honestly, I'm glad to be home.

And in the morning, I'm making waffles!

It just so turns out that Bisquick is a GM product.  Who knew?  ;-)

I've got some stuff to give away, too:

1. An extra Que Rica Vida mug
2. A cool tote bag and
3. A Betty Crocker cookbook that YOU WANT.

Let's do a comment drawing!

Tell me about any General Mills products you regularly use. Like, Green Giant, Bisquick, Cheerios, or maybe Haagen Dasz ice cream? (I'm partial to the Dulce de Leche one...) Leave your comment on this post only.

I'll choose a winner on Friday morning, June 4th, 2010 at 10:00 am.

Talk to me! Tell me about YOUR Que Rica Vida.

Domo Arigato

Hi Everyone!

Happy Kikko de Mayo!

I have been practically losing sleep thinking of all the stuff I can make with my Japanese goodies. (Sadly, I'm completely serious here.) And I'm delighted to have been able to participate in this fabulous giveaway. Thanks, Kikkoman!

I want to thank you all for your comments and tell you how impressed I am with how knowledgeable you are about Asian-inspired food. Way to go, people!

Tonight I'm all about the Ponzu once again. (Yes, they've created a Ponzu Monster.)

I'm making these fabulous Shrimp Fajitas (which I would have totally photographed and posted about if I had already made them, but I haven't, so I had to go Google a representative photo of Shrimp Fajitas but that's not important right now.)

Shrimp Fajitas

Ingredients (Yield: Serves 6)
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled
and deveined
1 clove garlic, minced
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 green bell pepper, sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 cup lightly packed cilantro
1/2 cup Kikkoman Lime Ponzu
1/3 cup lime juice
12 flour tortillas, warmed

Instructions:
1. Stir together shrimp, garlic, Ponzu and lime juice, let stand at room temperature 20 minutes.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.
3. Add onions and green peppers to the skillet saute for 3 minutes, add shrimp and cook until shrimp turn pink, toss in cilantro.
4. Serve with tortillas.

This recipe, along with some coupons for the cool Kikkoman sauces can be found here. 

Oh, yes....the winners! Sorry. I got so distracted with posting the recipe and the ponzu-ing and the coupon sharing and all that....

The plethora of Kikkoman products go to....(drum roll, please)....

Chantel said...

Ooh....Good giveaway! Fun Japanese Fact: When I was in Japan, I was delighted to discover that they'll put a fried egg on anything--pizzas, burgers, you name it! Odd, but delicious.

**********************************************************************************

and....

Theocjosh said...

Sounds delicious!

**********************************************************************************

Congratulations!

Please send me an email with MARTA, I WON STUFF ON YOUR BLOG! in the subject line and include your snail-mail address so I can contact the Ponzu gods at Kikkoman to get your goodies out right away.

Domo arigato! ;-)

Lime & Ponzu Carne Asada Recipe (I think I'm turning Japanese. I really think so.)

So there I was, cooking Cuban food and minding my own business, when I received an email from the lovely folks at Kikkoman. Yes, you know them best as the Japanese soy sauce people.

They were inviting me to try some of their products. Really? You know I'm a Cuban cook, right? (I was intrigued, but not convinced.)

Ponzu, which they explained was a classic Japanese condiment with a zesty lime flavor, could be used beautifully in some Latin dishes. Very interesting, I said, but I still wasn't sure it was going to be a good fit.

In fact, they offered to send me some of this magical Latin-tasting-but-still-Japanese Ponzu for me to try for myself. I considered it, but with some reservations. Japanese sauce? Me?

Finally they said...

If you're interested, we can provide everything you need to stage your very own ¡Kikko de Mayo Fiesta! including:

• $25 AMEX for all of your ingredients!
• Kikkoman Lime Ponzu - the star of the celebration
• Assortment of Kikkoman's special sauces and product

Me: Did you just say, "Kikko de Mayo?" I. LOVE. THAT. Count me in!

So they sent me a giant box full of Kikkoman goodies and I proceeded to make some fabulous carne asada marinaded in lime, garlic and my new best friend, Ponzu. =D

Lime and Ponzu Carne Asada Recipe

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup Kikkoman Lime Ponzu
1/4 cup lime juice (I squeezed 2 fresh limes)
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 lbs. flank or skirt steak

1) In medium bowl, whisk ponzu, lime juice and garlic.
2) Pour over steak and marinate overnight.
3) Remove steak from marinade; pat dry.
4) Grill or broil to desired temperature.

I added sauteed onions & peppers.

And some flour tortillas that I heated straight over the burner on the stove. (The trick is to gingerly hold by the edges and keep flipping until the tortilla just barely starts to get toasty.)

And I served the whole amazing thing with some sliced avocado and Spanish rice.

It was amazingly easy and delicious. You may now refer to me as the Queen of Ponzu (I think it has a nice ring to it) Thanks, Kikkoman!

I am sooo excited to be celebrating "Kikko de Mayo" now. (I still think that's Genius.)

The Kikkoman people (sensing my enthusiasm) have generously offered to send out, not one, but two (!) "Kikko de Mayo Fiesta" (do you not just LOVE saying that?) gift packs which include all the same cool products they sent me, along with a $25 AMEX gift card.

How cool is this?? The cookbook on the left has some inspired recipes that I'm already anxious to try.

If you'd like to be entered in the drawing for this very awesome Box O' Kikkoman Fun Stuff, please just leave a comment on this post. I'll pick a winner on Wednesday, May 5th. (Duh! Cinco de Mayo!) 

Not only am I going to use this Magical Lime Ponzu on pretty much everything I cook now (because I can tend to get a little obsessive, and plus they sent me a boatload of it),  I am sooo going to try making croquetas with those beautiful Japanese breadcrumbs. ;-)

"I'm turning Japanese... I think I'm turning Japanese... I really think so..."   -The Vapors

(cross-posted over at the Tiki Tiki)

I *heart* olive oil.

I don't know what staple of my kitchen I love more than olive oil. Extra virgin olive oil to be exact. (Please don't call it EVOO in my presence, that's just weird. Thank you.)

So I was delighted when the good folks at Crisco contacted me and asked if I'd like to receive a basket of their goodies. (Well, technically, a basket of stuff that I use every day to make goodies, but that's not important right now.)

Umm....YES!

 

This festively adorned basket arrived on my doorstep yesterday. How much fun is this?

I popped over to the Crisco site and found they had some recipes that totally make me happy. Including a video from their chef, Sylvia Melendez-Klinger making a Lime Tortilla Crusted Snapper with Cilantro Sauce that looks out-of-this-world.

(I sort of fantasized for a bit about video-taping myself cooking something and talking at the same time, but then I remembered that I was me, and I am usually in kind of a zen-like zone when I am cooking which makes speaking impossible because I have to stay so focused, but that's not important right now, either.)

Meanwhile, back to my fabulous Crisco basket....

 

4 different kinds of oil. An embroidered Crisco apron. A sweet spatula, coupons, and recipes (in English and Spanish). 

Can it get any better than this?

Umm....Yes!

My friends at Crisco have generously offered to send one of you (MBFCF readers) the same basket of cooking goodies. (I know. Shut up.)

Please just answer this question in the comment section:

 Do you know when to use different varieties of oil when cooking/baking? In what ways do you tend to use different flavors of oils such as olive, canola, vegetable, peanut and corn?

There are no right or wrong answers, they just want to know. Leave a comment and I will pick a winner on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 10 am Pacific.

I have to go now....

I'm going to go put on my new Crisco apron and fry up some tostones. ;-)

Fresh and Easy Does It Every Time!

The following post has been brought to you by the lovely and talented Kikita (who is still practicing her cooking skills).

There are perks to being Mami's "driver/photographer." I get to see and do a lot of cool things.
I'm sure Mami has every intention of sharing with you the fantastic experience that came from being invited to a fresh & easy event at Sur la Table in the Los Angeles Farmer's Market.

 

So I'd just like to tell you about my "after-adventures." I like the sound of it, don't you?

Well, so we had an awesome time during the event and I realized that I have not one, not two, but THREE (YES! THREE!) fresh & easy stores near my house! I had been operating under a common misconception that this fresh & easy market was super "chi chi" and on the expensive side so I had never bothered to go and check it out, but after meeting some of their people I decided to check the place out for myself.

 

What I found when I walked inside was a smallish grocery store that was well-lit and already pleasant to be in. I got the feeling that I was going to enjoy this shopping trip.

I admit, I had it in for them. I was looking for them to fail me. I went in with a list of stuff I needed to make a big Cuban dinner (you know, rice, beans, & maybe boliche). Boy was I in for a surprise!

 

Not only did they have everything I was looking for, they also had . . . *drum roll, please* . . . CAFE BUSTELO!! That was the moment when I decided I would be shopping there from now on!
 As if them having Bustelo was not enough of a reason already, I found the ultimate reason for continuing to shop there . . .

 When I saw that they carried their own brand of Dulce De Leche Ice Cream I swear I heard a choir of angels singing. And then there was one more extra fun thing that this wonderful  fresh & easy place offered me . . . a childhood dream.

WHAT?!?!

Ok, so I have a bit of a confession. As a kid, I totally thought it would be fun to work in a grocery store and scan people's groceries. Once I realized that I was destined to become a golden goddess I put aside my childhood dream, but the fresh & easy people made it happen for me via "Self-Checkout."

Yes, I AM aware that other major chains offer this luxury, but if I am given the option for a bit of social interaction, I'll take it (translation: I'm kind of freaked out about doing the self-check-out when there are perfectly able bodied checkers right there).

The deal with the fresh & easy is that there is no option. You are on your own.

What is even MORE fun is that while you're busy focused on living a childhood dream (oh, come on, admit it, you always wanted to do it too!) a person will magically appear and bag your groceries for you!

 

And these same magic people help you to buy the alcohol that they sell there (sorry kids! no sneaking through!) . . . just beer and wine, so you won't be making mojitos without a stop at the liquor store, but I think it's a small price to pay for the fresh & easy shopping experience.

Go! Find a store near you and just check it out. I promise you'll like it! =D

 

********************************

UPDATE: I realize that many of you East Coasters probably do not have  a local fresh & easy anywhere near you. What's cool is that you can send them a suggestion for where to open a store. Do it. Be the change you want to see!

IMAGINE: A fresh & easy HIALEAH! ;-)
 

Epicuriouser and curiouser...

So, I'm still recovering from the Comelatas that defined the month of December for me. And I'm still struggling to migrate my files from the old Mac G5 to the new (Thank you, God and my sweet husband!) Macbook Pro laptop.

There have been multiple trips to the Apple store to consult Geniuses and of course there's a learning curve, but while my digital photos, music and files are all in disarray, there is one constant in my life: I still have to eat. (Actually, more like, I still have to cook, but that's not important right now.)

I noticed that, not only have I been cooking a lot, (and eating well, I might add) but I also tend to take photos of my meals. Does anyone else do this?

I know. It's weird, right? It's almost like a diary.

I am remembering that in the early days of our Cuban exile, for some reason we took photos of our food "to send back to Cuba."  Thinking about this early practice now with a semi-reasoning mind, I'm wondering "What the heck were we thinking?"

Seriously. Like, "Look at all the food available to us here in America. Neener, neener?" Now, in my current life, this compulsive-food-photography-to-share-abroad seems totally strange, and yet....

I continue to photograph whatever is on my plate. I know. Shut up.

Carryover from Interrupted Cuban Childhood?

Artistic Fascination with Colors, Textures and Aromas?

Or Personal Dysfunctional Obsession? ;-)

Here's the evidence. You be the judge.

The following were all on my iPhone, taken in the last month.

 

 

 

 

Look at all that fabulous food I've been eating.

(Neener, neener!) =D

Whole lotta latte

Kikita here!

Last week, Mami and I stumbled into a weird and wonderful world.
(Ok, we didn't really stumble, we were invited and we took Lucy & Katie with us, but that's not important right now.)

A land of milk and honey. (Ok, mostly milk and I don't think there was any honey at all, but that is not important right now either.)

The fabulous got milk? people did it again! They invited Mami to another event in the oh-so-posh restaurant called La Pain Quotidien on Melrose and since I am Mami's driver, it was obvious I had to go.

 

 The fact that the name of the event was "Toast the Holidays with Lattes" (made by THE Heather Perry) so there was going to be mass amounts of cafe had absolutely nothing to do with me getting to go. ;-)

 

Obviously, it was very important to sample EVERYTHING that Heather made.

From the Pumpkin Spice Latte to the TRES LECHES Latte (which tasted EXACTLY like a good cafe con leche) to the Holiday Frozen Hot Chocolate.

 

I admit, I may have taken a second helping of the Tres Leches Latte. . . and maybe the Eggnog Latte too.

 

When you're doing a latte tasting, you can expect a lotta Latinas to show up for the event. Oye, we know our cafe con leche even if you try to call it a "latte." =D

 

While Mami and I were busy mingling and tasting, Lucy and Katie dove into the fun craft.

Yes, of course they would take breaks to munch on a muffin and do some tasting of their own.

Lucy's favorite latte was the Toffee Mocha. (Hija de su papa, I swear. Totally her father's daughter. Mami doesn't like nuts, so toffee is definitely not her cup of . . . cafe? =D)

Katie, on the other hand, was really digging the Peppermint Mocha Martini, but I think it was just because of the fun peppermint bits on the rim of the cup.

 

After downing so many lattes, I may have gotten a little crazy (I can't imagine why) and I grabbed a few of the temporary tattoos that were sitting on the table and I put it on. I think it looked kind of cool.

 

As if the day was not fun enough, since we WERE on Melrose, it seemed only fitting to see someone famous. Yes, it IS "Jessie" from "Saved by the Bell," (aka Elizabeth Berkley) and yes I WAS out of my skin excited.

 

But one of the very best parts of being at the event (well, outside of all the cafe con leche) was seeing and connecting with so many other amazing Latina bloggers.

From left: Silvia Martinez of Mama Latina Tips, Sandra Gonzalez of Soy Fashionista, Dariela Cruz of Nuestra Vida Con Adrian (she’s pictured with Adrian J), Mami, Ana Flores of Spanglishbaby with baby Camila, Liz Cerezo of Thoughts of a Mommy of Three, and Marcela Beatty of 8 year olds and Babies pictured with baby Audrey.

 

Where is YOUR milk mustache??

 

The got milk? people are always so generous . . . They gave me this super cool (no pun intended) insulated tote bag. PLUS a full-size adjustable apron and a milk-frothing-thingy with the recipes on a cd. Since I got an extra one and I think it would make a rad Christmas gift, I'm excited to announce my very first comment giveaway!!

Here's what you have to do: Just leave me a comment here. On this post.

We will be holding the official drawing on Monday, December 14 at 11 am.

So, do you make your own latte daily? Or are you more of the 4-bucks everyday type?
(Or are you like me and lattes are a comfort drink along the lines of hot chocolate?)