Eat The Love - Recipes, Photographs and Stories about Desserts, Baked Goods and Food in general, with a healthy dose of humor and happiness for the food obsessed

Soft Beer Pretzel Twists

These soft beer pretzel twists have beer inside the actual dough, leading to a more complex, deeper flavor. Perfect for parties, game night or just a snack!

Jump To Recipe

Just baked soft beer pretzel twists on a baking pan.

I’m not much of a drinker, though somehow I always have beer in my refrigerator. I do occasionally crack open a bottle to drink, but more often the beer is an ingredient in whatever I’m making. For example, I use it in my beer cheese dip which is probably the best thing ever to accompany my homemade soft pretzels or to smear on my pretzel buns for a third cheese on my double cheeseburger. But then I realized why not just add the beer into my soft pretzel dough? The resulting soft beer pretzel twists have to be my new favorite thing!

…

Carrot Muffins with California Prunes, Pecans and Sunflower Seeds [Sponsored Post]

These carrot muffins are loosely adapted from the classic morning glory muffin and are packed with California Prunes, pecans, and sunflower seeds!

Jump to Recipe

A carrot muffin with prunes, sunflower seeds and pecans on a plate with bowls of ingredients around it.

This post is sponsored by California Prunes. I was compensated for this post and for developing the recipe. However, all opinions below are completely my own.

My love of muffins knows no bounds. I’ve shared recipes for banana and green tea muffins, blueberry muffins with blood orange, whole wheat blackberry muffins and many other muffins. But somehow, I have neglected to share a recipe for carrot muffins like this one, packed with sunflower seeds, chopped pecans, and best of all, California Prunes! Prunes are one of those secret weapon dried fruits that folks don’t reach for nearly enough. I was the same way until I went on a farm tour to learn more about the French plums that are harvested and dried into prunes last year.

…

Easy Baked Ziti

This fast and easy baked ziti is made in one skillet on the stove top, then quickly baked in hot oven, making it taste like you spent all day on it!

Jump to Recipe

Easy baked ziti in a saute pan with a spoon scooping out some.

I’m constantly trying to figure out how to make dinner fast, after working all day. I don’t have a day job in the traditional sense. But my freelancing and working at the ceramic studio means inconsistent hours and often limited time to whip up a meal. My partner and I do carry out a little too often, so my new best friends are stovetop pasta dish recipes like my cheeseburger pasta; my bacon, mushroom, and peas pasta; or my bacon mac and cheese. And now I’ve worked this stovetop easy baked ziti recipe into my weekly rotation!

…

Chorizo Deviled Eggs

These chorizo deviled eggs use Spanish-style chorizo to give a smoky depth of flavor that brings deviled eggs to a sophisticated next level taste!

Jump to Recipe

Chorizo Deviled Eggs on a serving platter.

My love of deviled eggs is well documented. I’ve made pimiento cheese deviled eggs, I’ve made beet pickled deviled eggs with za’atar spice. I’ve even developed recipes for clients of mine like Anolon all fancy pants with lobster or versions like Green Goddess and corn, crab and old bay spiced deviled eggs for Simply Recipes. But I can’t stop making variants of deviled eggs because they are really one of those perfect appetizers that are infinitely adaptable. Like my latest favorite version, these Spanish Chorizo Deviled Eggs!

…

Gingerbread Stout Cake

This gingerbread stout cake uses stout beer for a complex depth of flavor. It’s balanced with a tangy cream cheese frosting and crystallized ginger on top!

Jump to Recipe

Sliced gingerbread stout cake on a plate surrounded by fresh ginger root, candied ginger, and ground ginger.

I’ve been seeing Claudia Flemings’ cookbook The Last Course pop up all over the place lately. It’s an older cookbook by the pastry chef from the famed Gramercy Tavern in NY and it has sadly been out-of-print for awhile. But thankfully the publisher has brought it back and everyone seems to be raving about the new edition! I haven’t gotten a copy of it (it’s on my Christmas list!) but I have seen her gingerbread stout cake show up a lot on my social feed and I couldn’t wait to make a version of it.

I’ve use stout beer in recipes like my Irish Drunken Cake and my pumpkin eclairs as well as beer in my baked goods like my Mexican chocolate pecan pie and my Apple Brown Betty with IPA beer. Heck I even have my beer cheese dip on constant rotation for parties. But the idea of using a stout in a gingerbread sounded genius! The bitter heaviness of stout plays so well with the warm winter spices. Think of slices of this cake like a better, more adult version of the Starbucks gingerbread loaf.

…