From the moment I started drinking coffee, I thought it needed to be loaded with sugar or milk or just downright bitter, and that simply isn’t the case.

Coffee can be fruity, juicy, chocolatey, rich, creamy, and most importantly balanced! And when you have a cup of coffee like that? Wow. Nothing better.

For being a morning (and afternoon… and maybe even evening) staple, coffee is a very nuanced drink. There are a lot of elements that impact the flavor you extract from the beans themselves, and that’s what we’re chatting about today!

If your coffee doesn’t taste quite “right,” it probably tastes either sour or bitter.

Those are the two extremes of the coffee-flavor scale. So if you’re reading this while sipping on a freshly-brewed cup of joe, take a big ol’ sip and ask yourself if:

• It tastes weak, chemically, or acidic (aka sour)
• It tastes burnt, acrid, or way too dark (aka bitter)

If you said, “Yep, my coffee tastes like that” for either category, chances are there are some changes you may need to make to your brewing game.

We’re going to talk about three different pieces of the coffee-brewing equation that impact the flavor of the coffee you drink (or gulp) every day:

• Water
• Beans
• Time

By understanding how these three elements affect a cup of coffee, you should be able to brew better, more consistent coffee.

We’ll evaluate each of these variables, starting with sour coffee.

And before we start: I’m not an expert so we’re going simple today –– I’m excited to share what I’ve learned over the past few years about brewing coffee with ya!

Sour Coffee

If your coffee is sour, you’re probably either:

• Under-extracting your beans
• Using low-quality beans

Water

When you strip it back to absolute basics, coffee is made up of two ingredients: water and ground coffee. And when you’re dealing with so few ingredients, getting them right is of the utmost importance when you’re aiming for a drink that tastes as delicious and balanced as it possibly can.

Water is one of those ingredients that is easy to underestimate because it’s an everyday thing. But water quality and temperature are two elements that can make a huge impact on what your final cup tastes like.

Without getting too nerdy, water pH, mineral content, and “hardness” are all potential culprits of off-tasting coffee, so if you’re looking for an easy way to level-up your coffee, use filtered (or soft!) water. I get all of my “coffee water” out of my Brita filter versus simply getting it from the tap.

An important note if you’re using a coffee pot or machine (especially if you have hard, minerally water): be sure you’re descaling or cleaning the pot/machine regularly to take care of any mineral build-up.

Water temperature also plays a huge role in the final flavor of your coffee. If your water is too cool, you’re going to under-extract the flavor from your beans, resulting in a weak, unpleasant flavor.

You have more control over your brewing temperature with brewing styles where you’re pouring your water directly from a kettle (fitted with temperature controls or a gauge) onto your coffee grounds (think: pour over, French press, or AeroPress). That said, a lot of coffee pots (like the one I have) allow you to control the brew temperature as well!

The ideal brewing temperature to perfectly extract the flavor from your grounds is in the 195 to 205 degree F range.

Beans

The second of our two necessary ingredients for coffee!

Of course, if you’re using old beans, they may have lost some of that *spark* and punchy flavor that they once had. And that’s because… of air!

In general, roasted coffee beans will start to lose their peak flavor about a month after they’ve been roasted. Depending on where you buy your beans from, it may say the roast date somewhere on the bag like this:

Roast date is one of those things I’ve started paying attention to more and more because the flavor really is so much more pronounced if you’re drinking the coffee shortly after roasting.

Pre-ground coffee can also lose its flavor more quickly since there’s more surface area for the air to reach.

When I can (which is, admittedly, not all of the time), I like to buy my beans from a local shop (like La Prima) to ensure they’re as fresh as possible. Then I grind my beans when I’m ready to make a pot of coffee, not before.

Last, coffee beans that are ground too large for your chosen brewing method can also lead to under-extraction. There are different “ideal grind sizes” for each brewing method –– smaller for things like espresso machines and larger for things like cold brew and French presses.

Brew Time

Similar to how water that’s too cold can cause you to under-extract the flavor from your grounds, if you brew your coffee too quickly, you run the risk of under-extracting as well.

If the amount of time that your water is in contact with your grounds is too short, you’re not going to get as much flavor out of your beans as possible And that can cause your final cup to taste weak, sour, and unpleasant.

Bitter Coffee

On the other hand, if your coffee is tasting too strong and/or bitter, it’s possible you’re:

• Over-extracting your beans
• Using over-roasted beans

And the three elements we already talked about –– water, beans, and brew time –– can all be the culprits of this “off” flavor!

Water

As you can probably guess, water that’s too hot can lead to over-extracting flavor from your beans. Water is a finicky thing, especially if you’re not used to paying attention to the temperature before you brew.

Again, you’ll want to aim for that 195 to 205 degree F range and make sure you’re using filtered water if you want to eliminate this variable in your brewing process!

Beans

If you buy beans regularly, you probably know that there are a bunch of different types of “roasts” available like light roast, medium roast, dark roast, Italian roast, and French roast. They all allude to the length of time your beans have been roasted.

If you’re finding that your coffee is tasting too dark, bitter, and/or burned, see if selecting a light or medium roast fixes the issue.

Most of the time, roast comes down to personal preference –– for example, I love a lighter roast, and my parents always buy dark roast –– so this is a fun element to experiment with!

If your coffee is bitter, you could also be using a grind size that’s too small for your brewing method. Small grind size = more surface area = over-extraction.

Brew Time

If you’ve been tracking with everything so far, you can probably guess where this one is going! Brewing your coffee for too long can result in over-extraction that can make your end cup taste too strong or dark.

This is easier to control with some brewing types over others. For example, you can easily adjust the brew time when making a pour over or AeroPress, but it might be more difficult to control if you brew with a coffee pot where the brewing process is already set within the machine.

And that’s a wrap! I hope you learned something from this post if you’ve been struggling with brewing coffee at home.

Keep in mind that your coffee’s flavor can be affected by a few of these different elements! Maybe your water is too cold and your grind size is too big. Or perhaps your brewing time is too long and your beans are over-roasted.

I’d suggest changing one element at a time and noting how it affects your final cup. Not only will it teach you how to brew better, more consistent coffee, it’ll be easier to pin-point the cause of its lackluster flavor!

I love my coffee brewing ritual every morning, and it’s a great way to save money if you tend to get your coffee at coffee shops. And once you really nail down the brewing process, it’s possible your home-brewed coffee will taste even better than what you can get elsewhere!

Here’s an at-a-glance cheat sheet for ya if your coffee doesn’t taste quite right in the future. It covers everything we chatted about in this post:

I’d love to hear more about your at-home coffee preparation in the comments below! How does your coffee typically taste? What brewing method do you use? Have you ever tried experimenting with your technique?

Let’s nerd-out about coffee! 🤓

The post How to Brew Better Coffee at Home (If It’s Tasting Sour or Bitter) appeared first on Fooduzzi.

Coffee has been such an exciting, awesome, fascinating part of my life lately, I couldn’t not talk about it with you! My Fooduzzi fam!

Unrelated: do people still use the word “newb”? Because I feel like a total newb with this stuff.

But it’s been really really fun. And while I still have loads and loads to learn, I’ve already learned a ton and made some truly epic cups of coffee right at home.

Because I’m a beginner / newb, I decided to write this post about how I got into it and some tips I learned along the way. Coffee has been such a fun hobby for me the past few months, and I’m excited to share a bit of what I’ve learned along the way with ya!

If you want to know how to get into coffee but you’re not really sure how, I hope this guide can point you in the right, delicious direction! Let’s jump in:

I. Get a Subscription & Talk to Local Roasters

When I finally decided that I wanted to learn more about coffee, I committed to buying a coffee subscription. I think it was a good move because:

a. I don’t need to think about it; the coffees come every two weeks

b. There’s no planning involved; I get a different coffee (chosen by them) with every shipment

c. Usually companies with coffee subscription services know their stuff, I’m learning a lot along the way

It’s been wonderful. Like so wonderful. I got the welcome kit subscription from Blue Bottle Coffee (here’s $10 off if you want to try it for yourself!), and it’s great. It came with a lot of the gear I needed to brew (more on that below), plus a cute tote and six different whole bean coffees delivered to my door every two weeks. Plus, the coffee is roasted 2-3 days before it gets to me. I live across the country (they’re in CA, I’m in PA). It’s amazing I can get coffee that fresh.

It’s fantastic, and I highly suggest it if you’re curious. There are so many other coffee subscriptions out there, so do some research and find one that’s good for you!

And if you can’t, there’s always local. Pittsburgh isn’t necessarily the place you think you’ll find good coffee, but La Prima Espresso Company is pretty much the best. In fact, every time I travel for blog stuff or for work, I always make sure to tuck a bag or two into my luggage to give away to out-of-towners. It’s that good.

Plus, the blogger in me is totally geeking out over their new branding. It’s so pretty!!!

They invited me to their roasting facility a few weeks ago, and it was the greatest thing ever. The air smelled like coffee and chocolate (a very common flavor note in coffee), and I learned so much about the process. Chuck, Mike, Sam, Anthony, and the entire La Prima team are amazing people, and they have so much passion for and understanding of the process.

Hit up your local roasters, and see if they’d be willing to give you a tour or explain their process. I have so much more of an appreciation for my morning cup of coffee now that I know what goes into making it. It’s truly a beautiful hands-on process!

II. Buy Some Gear

You’ll need a few necessities. Not a ton, just a few cheap (!) tools that help you make a dang-good cuppa joe like a boss.

a. A kitchen scale

It’s good to have a kitchen scale for other kitchen-y things (baking, portioning, etc.), but it’s especially good to have to make epic coffee. Regardless of the brewing vessel you choose (more on that in a jiffy), you’ll need to measure out your beans. The amount of beans differs from brewing method to brewing method, as well as bean type to bean type, so a kitchen scale is a necessity.

And…a cheap necessity! This is the one I have (affiliate link), and it’s ~$10. Score.

You’ll get a bowl or jar or whatever (I use a mortar from my mortar and pestle set because it has a convenient little spout for pouring), place it on your scale, tare or zero out the weight so that it doesn’t take the weight of your bowl / jar into account, and then measure out your beans. Simple!

b. A grinder

One of the most important lessons I learned when I toured the La Prima roasting facility is that grinding your beans right before brewing is one of the best ways to ensure that your cup of coffee is as fresh as possible.

I like to compare it to buying pre-chopped vegetables at the store. Sure, they’re good. But are they as good as getting full-sized, whole vegetables from a local farmers market? Nada. Whole veggies retain so much more flavor, and coffee is no different.

There are so many different grinders out there, from electric to manual. I have this cute little hand grinder (affiliate link), and it’s working great. It definitely takes some arm strength to grind the beans, so if you’re worried about it, I’d go with an electric grinder (something like this! [affiliate link]).

In all honesty, I’ll probably upgrade to an electric one where I have more control on grind size. So important (but more on that later).

c. A kettle

Not the most important piece of gear (you can just boil water in a pot), but a kettle gives you a lot of control over your pour speed. We’ve used something like this for years (affiliate link), and it’s been great!

d. A brewing vessel (or two…or three)

There are so many brewing vessels for coffee. Omg. I’m still learning about the differences between them honestly. Stumptown Coffee and Blue Bottle have a bunch of really great brew guides that helped me narrow down a few different techniques that I wanted to try.

Right now, we have a French Press (CANNOT beat IKEA’s $10 price!), a pour over dripper (more on this in a sec), and an Aeropress (affiliate link).

All three produce wildly different cups of coffee, and I kind of love it. I’m slowly learning. The French Press produces a bold, oily, thick coffee, while the dripper is more refined and clean, and the Aeropress does a great job at removing the bitterness from your beans.

We’ve had the French Press and Aeropress for years, but the dripper actually came for free with my Blue Bottle Coffee subscription (I got the welcome kit). If you’re interested in checking out Blue Bottle’s coffee or gear, here’s a $10 link for ya!

e. Filters, if necessary

Depending on your vessel-o-choice, you might need filters. Every vessel we have came with specific filters, so I didn’t really worry about it. Just wanted to give you a heads up that you might need to purchase them too!

III. Practice and Adjust

Okay, so you have your gear, you have your coffee. Now’s the time to practice. And this is where things get a bit…scary if you’re a freak perfectionist like yours truly.

Your first cup probably isn’t going to be the best. It might be too weak. It might be way too strong or bitter. Or maybe it’s sour.

But it gets easier! And you just learn along the way.

I find articles like this and this and videos like this are really helpful in understanding what might have gone wrong in my coffee extraction process. There’s also a course from Blue Bottle on how to brew (it’s free!). I mean, it really should be easy. It’s just coffee + water, right?

But there are so many elements that go into creating a truly exceptional cup. Consider questions like:

• Is your water filtered or from a tap?
• Was your water too hot or too cold?
• Was your grind size too big or too small?
• Did you add too much or too little coffee?
• Did you add too much or too little water?
• Did you use the best brewing vessel for your type of roast and bean?

It’s all an experiment. A learning experience. A delicious experimental learning experience. Be patient, keep practicing, and you’ll refine your process. Pinky promise.

This also leads me to…

IV. Take Notes

I’m a nerd at heart. I have the glasses. I have a million notebooks. I read like a fiend. So the fact that I get to geek out over coffee and take notes on flavors and origins and brewing styles has been super fun.

Because honestly, any excuse for a new notebook is always always always a good thing.

But seriously, taking notes has been the best way to help me refine those skills and learn which coffees to look for in the future. Here’s a very real picture of my dorktastic tasting notebook:

I take note of a few different things:

• Roast Date / Brew Date
• Name / Roaster
• Technique / Bean Weight
• Type
• Flavors I’m supposed to taste
• Origin
• My thoughts / flavors I actually taste

I typically add unsweetened almond milk to my coffee, but I make sure to taste each one black when it’s going in the notebook. I don’t want any flavors / textures to be affected by the milk.

So I brew, sip, take notes, and then add my almond milk. And if I brew the same coffee in a different way (more or less beans, bigger or smaller grind size, different technique or vessel, etc.), then it goes on another page.

Kinda cool, right? This way, I have all of my coffees and my initial thoughts of each in one place. So convenient!

And if you’re way more techy than me, this app is pretty cool for helping you track your tastings!

V. Learn What You Like

The whole taking notes thing has really helped me understand the types of brews / origins I really enjoy. While I like chocolatey notes, I’ve been a huge fan of the berry, citrusy notes from Africa. I know that sounds weird, especially the citrus. But I’ve recently tasted coffee that literally tastes like raisins and lemon zest.

I’ve learned that I like natural coffees, meaning that the fruit surrounding the coffee bean(s) actually dries off the beans in the sun, rather than being washed with water (more on that here). Because I’m a fan of the berry / fruity flavors, I’ve found that I’m drawn to naturally-washed coffee flavors.

I’m also liking lighter roasts! I used to be all about that punch me in the face with that dark, liquid love kind of coffee experience, but I’m finding so much joy and depth in a lighter roast. It’s amazing how just an extra minute or two in the roaster can really influence the flavor notes of the bean.

While you can do quizzes like this to find out which coffees you might like, the best way to figure it out is to try them, learn from them, and adjust from there.

Buy a few different bags at the store, start a subscription, visit a local roaster and pick up a few different varieties. Try them, takes notes on them, and figure out the roasts, beans, origins, and flavor notes that make you go weak in the knees.

I also kind of want to make you a coffee flight. You know, like a beer flight, but with coffee. Gah! What would you even do with a DIY on this blog?! Taste different varieties, different brewing techniques side-by-side-by-side to really be able to taste the difference. Or do a cupping (coffee tasting) locally.

So if you’re going to get into coffee, let me know. I’d love love love to hear about it! And give me all your coffee recs plz & thx.

Important note: I’d love to do more coffee-centric posts here on Fooduzzi, so let me know if you A) enjoyed this, and B) would like to see more. I’m thinking I’d focus on the bean-to-cup process (natural vs. washed beans, the roasting process, sourcing, etc.), as well as different brew guides for each of my favorite techniques / vessels. Thoughts? Totally open to feedback from you!

P.S. I don’t want to end this post without an important note. When I was at La Prima a few weeks ago, I met their cycle-delivery guy, Austin. I actually went to high school with Austin, and I’m pretty sure we never spoke in high school. It was a huge school (600+ in my graduating class), so we just had different friend groups and ran in different crowds.

It was great reconnecting with him and learning about his passion for La Prima and cycling (he actually won a race across our state, from Philly to Pittsburgh, two years in a row!). We had a short conversation, caught up, and then I left.

Austin died last week, and I know the La Prima team has been shaken to its core with his passing. It’s a complete tragedy that someone so young lost his life. My heart goes out to his family.

His passing has given me a reminder to enjoy the little things.

Coffee is one of those “little things” that I’m choosing to enjoy every day, and it has had a huge impact on my day-to-day. It’s given me something to learn about, to tweak and adjust, to perfect, and it’s just been a ton of fun for a food nerd like me.

Even if coffee isn’t your thing, I encourage you to find something that you enjoy, something that makes your day a bit brighter, and really go all-in. It’s amazing how quickly a “delicious experimental learning experience” has turned into a full-blown obsession for me. I truly do look forward to learning more, and drinking more, every day. Find something like that and do it.

// La Prima Espresso Co. photo credit: Ryan Neeven (@neevenr)

The post How to Get Into Coffee (for Beginners) appeared first on Fooduzzi.

This recipe is a bit of a process, but it’s just so gosh-darn fun. I’m so excited to show you how to do it today!

So magical pasta…tbh, all pasta is magical to me. #carblove But when the color of the pasta [naturally] changes before your eyes, well that’s just a whole new kind of magic.

And is there a better time of year to make magical pasta? With Halloween coming up, closely followed by the holidays, this time of the year just screams “magical” to me.

From the crisps morning to the twinkling lights to the first snowfall…let’s add magical food to the mix, shall we?!

How to Make Magical Color-Changing Pasta

Step 1. Grab yourself some purple cabbage. Purple cabbage is one of my very favorite vegetables at the moment. Not only is it mind-blowingly beautiful (that purple color happens in nature, you guys), but it tastes great sautéed with some garlic and olive oil. And now? Now it can be used to color pasta.

Yes, really!

You’ll boil some purple cabbage in water for about 20 minutes. The water goes from being clear to that beautiful purple color at the top of that glass ^^. This is the water you’ll use to boil your pasta!

Step 2. Boil. That. Pasta. This is what it’ll look like after it cooks (not too colorful…yet):

Step 3. Time to make the magic! Toss your pasta in a delightfully light Lemon Garlic Olive Oil sauce…and watch it turn colors before your eyes! If you’re interested in food chemistry like me, this is a great resource to check out to see why exactly adding lemon to cabbage makes it change color.

The tl;dr version is that purple cabbage is an indicator, which means that it changes colors when it’s introduced to an acid or base. Lemon juice is an acid which will make our cabbage-water pasta bright pink.

Yes, bright pink:

Then you go ahead and garnish with all the delicious things! Parsley and vegan parmesan (yes, the recipe is coming soon. I promise) are what I chose, but some red pepper flakes would be delizioso as well. And I mean, how freaking amazing is that color?!

So fun, and perfect to show the kiddos. Be sure to toss the pasta in your sauce right at the table so that your friends and family can see the pasta change colors right before their eyes!

It really is magical. Enjoy, friends!

The post Magical Color-Changing Pasta (with Lemon Garlic Olive Oil Sauce) appeared first on Fooduzzi.

Super short and fun post for you today! 

It’s a way to make your late summer dishes look festive, cute, and #instaworthy, and it seriously takes five minutes.

It’s a watermelon bowl! Perfect for holding salads, fruit, and everything in between!

I have a recipe coming at you later this week that looks PERFECT served in one of these. Seriously, I can’t get enough of that pink-green combo in the summer.

Actually, fun fact: because of the recipe I shot last week and this watermelon bowl how-to, I seriously ate my weight in watermelon last week. That’s not an exaggeration. We had two giant containers filled to the brim, and I quickly made my way through both. Pretty sure Mark had like…two pieces.

I’m a total watermelon fiend in the summer – and these watermelon bowls are the perfect way to serve it up!

How to Make a Watermelon Bowl

Step 1: Grab yo’self a watermelon. Because it’s only two of us here in the apartment, I like using those mini seedless watermelons. Not only are they freakin’ adorable, they also are the perfect size for two personal watermelon bowls. If you’re feeding a crowd, grab a bigger one. Slice through the middle with a sharp knife horizontally (aka. veggie-burger style).

Step 2: Cut into the pink flesh into a grid pattern. Each line should be about an inch apart. Then make one more cut around the outside, curving your knife a bit like the curve of the watermelon. Make sure you don’t cut through the white and / or green skin – holes in the watermelon skin are no bueno.

Step 3: Scoop out the flesh with a spoon following the grid pattern if you can. The first chunk is always the hardest, but after that, it’s smooth sailing scooping.

Step 4: Using the spoon, scrape the bowl to clean it up a bit. The watermelon should be fairly smooth inside.

Step 5: Fill your bowl with all the things! Continue with the other side of the watermelon, or chop up the other side to use in a recipe.

And that’s that! So simple, right? And so fun.

If you decide to make these watermelon bowls (Labor Day picnic, anyone?!), show me on social media! Tag me in the photo and let me know what you stuffed inside. :)

ps. The recipe pictured above? Sneak peak for later this week :)

The post How to Make a Watermelon Bowl appeared first on Fooduzzi.

I hope you had a fab week last week and a wonderful Mother’s Day Weekend. 

I have been totally insanely busy, and there just wasn’t enough time in the week last week. So I decided to take the week off from the blog and social media. I want to always always always give my best to you, and I know that if I tried posting last week, it definitely wouldn’t have been my best.

But I am back, babes! Back with delicious flavor.

You see, Mark and I have “cheese plates” for dinner more than I care to admit. They are SO EASY, and perfect for busy nights. Plus, we are both total “appetizer” people, so we’d much rather sit down to a bunch of little things, rather than one big thing for dinner most of the time. Most of the time.

Vegan cheese plates fit that bill perrrrfectly.

And I mean, hello. So pretty, right?

SO. Cheese plates are fun because you can totally customize them based on seasons, your favorite flavors, and/or whatever’s in the fridge.

Got some apples? Cut ’em up. Have some tortilla chips? Perfecto. How about some carrots? Put them on there! Literally anything and everything can work on a cheese plate; it is 100% impossible to screw up.

Tip for winning the cheese board game: I suggest mixing colors, textures, and flavors. On this particular cheese plate, we have:

• Hummus: tan, creamy, garlicky
• Cucumber: green, crunchy, refreshing
• Pistachios: green/purple/tan, crisp, nutty
• Craisins: red, chewy, tart
• Dates: brown, chewy, sweet
• Tomatoes: red, juicy, acidic
• Walnuts: tan, crunchy, nutty
• Grapes: green, juicy, tart
• Vegan Ricotta: white, creamy, garlicky
• Marinated Olives: green, juicy, herby
• Homemade crackers (coming soon!): tan, crunchy, salty

I really couldn’t pick a favorite part of this cheese plate. Each item works so well with the others. If I had to pick, however, I loved the marinated olives (which I marinated myself!), the grapes, and the ricotta/cracker combo. But it really is all so good!

Other delish ideas: sliced apples, carrots, figs (dried or fresh), dried apricots, lupini beans, pesto hummus, french onion dip, jams, candied nuts, pears, sun dried tomatoes…the possibilities and combinations are really endless. I don’t think we’ve ever had the same vegan cheese plate twice!

This is my ideal dinner for the summertime. Light, full of flavor, super satisfying, and crazy simple to throw together. Throw in a glass (or two) or rosé, and I’m set.

This is going to be the best summer yet, friends. Enjoy!

The post How to Make a Vegan Cheese Plate appeared first on Fooduzzi.

And today…all I’m thirsty for is icing. 

Okay, that would be gross tbh. But hear me out!

Easter time reminds me of one thing and one thing only: Easter Bread.

My mom and I make Easter Bread every single year. You can read this post for a gluten free recipe and to learn a little more about the bread, but the tl;dr version is that it’s pretty much the best sweet dessert bread there ever was. And a single bite of the stuff takes me back to my 5-years-old days.

But my favorite thing about Easter Bread as a kid? Making it. More specifically: icing it.

We’d line our kitchen table (yes, the entire table – that’s how much bread we were making at a time) with wax paper, then put the cooling racks for the bread on top. Once the bread was cool enough, we’d ice it with a simple powdered sugar, food dye, milk glaze.

But the best part of the whole icing experience? Eating the icing that had dripped off each of the loaves. We’d just slide our fingers across the icing that had fallen on the wax paper and went.to.town. Our fingers would be dyed crazy colors, we were totally hopped up on sugar, and we would just have the best time ever.

So because of all of those warm and fuzzy memories I have this time of year, I wanted to find a way to naturally dye some icing in the hopes of a somewhat healthier, but still totally beautiful and delicious, baked good for the season.

Yep, just because you’re trying to be a little healthier doesn’t mean that you need to skip out on cute baked goods and desserts! *cue sugar-induced happy dance*

Nature is like…really cool. It gave us so many sources of beautiful colors – so we’re using them today to make natural pink, brown, yellow, and green food dye for icing! And I seriously couldn’t be more excited about the results!

How to Make Natural Pink Icing

Not gonna lie, when I picked up blueberries from the store, I totally thought I’d end up with blue icing. Not exactly sure why – I’ve certainly had my fair share of blueberries before so I know they’re redish purple on the inside, but oh well – we ended up with the cutest light pink icing instead!

When pink is a mistake, you know it’s going to be a very good day.

I just blended about 1 cup of blueberries with about 1/2 cup water and then strained the mixture to get a beautiful dark purple juice. Once I added a bit to my powdered sugar, it became the most beautiful light pink glaze ever.

If you’re not a fan of blueberries, or if you’re holding back from buying them until they’re in-season…do not fret. I got you.

Use red juice instead! Cranberry! Pomegranate! Blueberry! Raspberry! Choose your fave and go to town.

How to Make Natural Brown Icing

Not gonna lie, brown is kinda boring. But! It’s a nice neutral that pairs nicely with the rest of our colors. I had an awesome idea to use it to make speckles on my pink/yellow/green iced goodies, but it was a much better idea in theory.

Regardless! If you’re after brown icing, it couldn’t be simpler. Add cocoa powder to your powdered sugar for a brown (and chocolate-flavored!) icing.

If you don’t want a chocolate flavored icing for some reason (???), and you just want the brown color, no worries. Use a dark brewed coffee instead!

How to Make Natural Yellow Icing

I’m absolutely obsessed with how the yellow icing turned out. That mustardy yellow color is just so lovely this time of year, and it all comes from one of the trendiest ingredients around: turmeric!

You know how when you’re cooking with turmeric and some of it splashes out of your pot and it completely stains your countertops? That’s exactly why it makes the perfect yellow icing for cookies and baked goods alike.

How to Make Natural Green Icing

My favorite of the bunch! That green color is one of my favorite colors eeever. And it all comes from matcha!

You all know I love me some matcha. It is awesome as a icing dye as well! You’ll see that my green icing is kinda speckled because the matcha didn’t fully dissolve. I loved that about my icing because it worked with the type of cookie I was icing (sneak peak below :) ), but I can totally understand how that could be annoying. If you want a smooth icing, I’d suggest dissolving the matcha in 1-2 Tbsp. hot water (whisk super well!) before adding it to the powered sugar. Done and done!

AREN’T THEY THE CUTEST COOKIES EVER?! The recipe is coming next week! Eeep!

I hope you guys love these icings. The best part about them (aside from their completely adorable colors) is that the powdered sugar is so sweet on its own; the dyes barely flavor the icing. Especially once they’re on top of a delightful baked good!

Here’s to a delicious and colorful spring!

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How’s it going? Gearing up for game day this weekend?

As a Pittsburgher, I’m going to be a bit…peeved watching the game on Sunday. But that’s nothing that copious amounts of guacamole can’t fix, right?

But, let’s say, in some crazy world, that you make a little too much guacamole than you can handle. And because avocados are like wayyy $$$, you definitely don’t want to throw the leftovers away.

But avocados, like bananas, apples, etc., quickly turn brown when exposed to the air. So keeping guacamole to munch on tomorrow is often easier said than done.

Until today.

Whew that was dramatic.

But seriously! This is one of my very favorite kitchen hacks; keeping leftover guacamole for another day of snacking is always a very good and delicious thing IMO.  Here’s how it’s done:

How to Keep Guacamole from Turning Brown

Step 1: Cut up some avocados and make your guac! I really really love this Pineapple Guacamole, but use your fave recipe.

Pro tip: Make sure you use a good bit of citrus in your guac recipe. The acid from the citrus will help slow down the browning process.

Step 2: When you’ve had your fill, put your guacamole in a bowl, preferably one with high sides. Take some plastic wrap and press it directly against your guacamole, flattening it straight across as you go along. Flatten the plastic wrap against the sides of the bowl, and wrap the excess plastic over the top edge.

Pro tip: While you’re fitting the plastic wrap to your guac / bowl, be sure to remove as much air as possible. Air is the #1 enemy of browning avocados.

Step 3: Place your guacamole in one of the coldest spots of your fridge. Then, when you’re ready to enjoy it again, remove your bowl, lift off the plastic wrap, and dive in.

Pro tip: I like to fluff my guac with a fork / chip so that it looks less flat and sad. Totally optional, but recommended to give your guac that “first day look.”

Seriously so so simple. And you wanna know something absolutely crazy? I’ve kept leftover guacamole in my fridge for two days using this method! TWO WHOLE DAYS. That’s pretty impressive for a dip whose lifespan is less than a that of a fruit fly.

Let me know if you give this a try, and tell me your favorite guac add-ins – I’m looking for a new recipe to make for the big game ? Enjoy!

The post How to Keep Guacamole from Turning Brown appeared first on Fooduzzi.

Yes, I’m talking about my brand-spankin’ new tortilla press. 

It was one of those gifts that I had no idea was coming. My parents surprised me pretty good, because, honestly, I never even thought of getting one for myself. I mean, I love me some tacos. I really do. But buying corn tortillas from the store was easy enough, so I never believed I actually needed the homemade variety in my life.

I was so very wrong.

Homemade tortillas are A MILLION times better than store-bought. I’m not even being dramatic. It’s a proven fact. Proven by my very happy tastebuds.

And the best part? Making your own homemade corn tortillas is practically as easy as picking them up from the store. I’ll even go as far to say that they’re worth it even if you’re totally hangry and way too excited about Taco Night. Not that I know that from experience or anything.

They take about 10 minutes from start-to-finish, and the flavor easily surpasses anything bought in a box or bag at the store. Here’s how you do it:

How to Make Corn Tortillas (aka. the best tortillas of your life)

Step 1: Get your hands on some instant masa, aka. corn flour. I found mine at Whole Foods, but I’d guess that you could find it in most mega marts. You’ll need 1 cup to make 9-10 6″ tortillas. So my 5 lb. bag of corn flour will make a ton of tacos. Perfecto.

Step 2: Add water to your corn flour and mix mix mix. My package of corn flour says to mix for 2 full minutes, which is kind of aggressive if you ask me, but I try to mix it for at least 1 minute. The picture below is of my mixture about 30 seconds through my mixing process. When ready, the mixture will be soft but easily formed into a ball. Speaking of…

Step 3: Form 9-10 smooth dough balls. Once formed, put your dough balls on a plate covered by a damp (but not sopping wet) cloth. Set aside.

Step 4: Prepare your handy dandy tortilla press. You’ll want to place a piece of saran wrap between the two flat parts. The tortillas will stick to your press if you skip this step. And that would make for a very sad taco.

Place one of your balls just a tad off-center (near the hinge) on the bottom. Keep your other balls covered with that damp cloth.

Step 5: Close the tortilla press and use the arm to flatten your ball. I don’t press all the way down – I stop just before it can’t press anymore. Open the tortilla press to reveal your perfectly circular tortilla!

Just kidding – they’re homemade, so if they’re not perfectly circular, it’s a-OK. In fact, I think they’re more delicious if they’re a bit more…rustic looking. Last night we made one that looked like the Batman symbol.

Step 6: Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, carefully peel the saran wrap away from your tortilla and place it in the hot pan. I like to peel the saran wrap off of one side of the tortilla, place the tortilla in my flat hand saran-side up, peel the saran off the top, and then slap the tortilla down in the pan.

Cook each side for about 30 seconds, flipping in-between. I flip the tortilla twice so that the first side cooks twice and gets those lovely brown caramelized spots. Those brown spots are good, but don’t overcook the tortillas so that they’re crispy. Unless you want crispy tacos. And in that case…why?

But seriously, you do you and cook them tortillas as long as you like!

Step 7: Remove your tortilla from the heat and wrap in a dry towel. Repeat Steps 4-6 with all of your tortilla balls. Voilà! You are all ready for Noche de Taco.

See? Isn’t that simple?! Seriously, this whole process takes about 10 minutes once you get the hang of it. Mark and I have made tortillas four times in the past two weeks, so we’re definitely fans.

While you wait for next week’s recipes (hint hint), here are three of my favorite taco recipes to get you started:

Guacos (Guacamole Tacos)

The Best Damn Vegetarian Tacos

Fall Butternut Squash Tacos

Have fun getting your taco on, and be sure to tag me in your photos (@fooduzzi or #fooduzzi) if you decide to try your hand at making your own tortillas!

The post How to Make Corn Tortillas appeared first on Fooduzzi.

It’s the most wonderful timeeeee of the yeeeeeaaarrrr!

Hello, boots, scarves, sweaters, and gloves! How’s it goin’, pumpkin-spiked everything and cinnamon-scented air?!

Tis the season, people! I love this freakin’ season!

And while I’m sure we can all agree that fall is aesthetically beautiful – changing leaves, crisp air, fog -, let’s not kid around: the best part of this season is the king of all squash.

The Jack to my o-lantern.

The base to the king of all pies.

The essence of the famous #PSL.

Pumpkin, people. It’s pumpkin time.

This time of year, you can almost always spot me hoarding huge supplies of canned pumpkin in my pantry. I use it for everything: oatmeal, smoothies, baked goods, a spoon and a bowl…the possibilities are endless with this dashing orange gourd.

And while I love the convenience of the store-bought variety, I wanted to try something a little different this year and try and make my own! Canned pumpkin is good…homemade pumpkin puree is out-of-this-world crazy delicious. I actually was shocked with how much more fresh and flavorful homemade pumpkin puree is over the canned variety! I find that canned pumpkin can sometimes be watery and tasteless and that it needs a lot of spices and sweetness to really give it any sort of flavor.

Yeah, that’s SO NOT  the case with this homemade pumpkin puree! And while spices and sweetness are never a bad thing when it comes to #pumpkinfever, this puree is touting an impressive and delectable flavor all on its own.

And, guys: it could NOT be more simple!

You can do it, friend! YOU can concur the pumpkin and create a batch of your very own delicious, creamy pumpkin puree! Let’s get to it, people!

How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree

Step 1: Hack the stem off of your pumpkin, then slice the pumpkin in half from top to bottom. You’ll end up with two halves with some funky stringy stuff and some beautiful pumpkin seeds in the middle.

It is incredibly important that you have a sharp knife for this task. A sharp knife can easily cut through the tough skin and flesh of your pumpkin – a dull one will slip, increasing the probability of pumpkin-inflicted knife wounds. Not fun.

Step 2: Scrape out the “funky stringy stuff” and seeds – use an ice cream scoop if you have it! You’ll want to remove as much of loose stringy innards as you can, while keeping the solid flesh in tact.

Also, SAVE THOSE PUMPKIN SEEDS. Simply rinse them in a colander and set aside. We’ll get to them later.

Step 3: Rub the flat edges of the pumpkin with about 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, then place each half face-down on a aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. The edges that touch the aluminum foil should be the ones that you oil! Oil = less burnage and stickage = a happy homemade pumpkin puree consumer.

Roast your pumpkin halves in a preheated 400 degree F oven for 20-35 minutes, or until the pumpkin flesh is fork-tender. My pumpkin was huge, so mine took 35 minutes. Just be sure to start checking your pumpkin around the 20 minute mark.

Step 4: Remove your pumpkin halves from the oven and scoop out the flesh with a large spoon. Make sure you’re just scooping out the flesh – don’t get any of the skin in your mixture! You’ll see that the roasted pumpkin flesh almost resembles thick spaghetti squash!

Step 5: Dump the roasted pumpkin flesh into your food processor and blend until smooth. Depending on the size of your pumpkin and food processor, you’ll probably need to do this in batches. You’ll also need to stop the processor and scrape down the sides a couple of times per batch to ensure your puree is smooth and creamy.

Step 6: Admire your creation. You just made pumpkin puree! High-fives all around.

Step 7: Store in a air-tight container in the fridge. Be sure to scoop some into a bowl to taste test – fresh homemade pumpkin puree is incredibly  addictive when warm!

Optional Step 8: Roast your pumpkin seeds on a olive oil-greased aluminum foil-lined sheet pan for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, toss in a bowl with 1 tsp. olive oil and spice(s) of choice. Return to the sheet pan and bake for another 20 minutes. Voila! A simple, healthy, protein-and-fiber-packed snack!

Let’s embrace the fall, friends, and make our very own pumpkin puree this year. With just a little time, you can be munching on the most flavorful pumpkin puree you’ve ever had in your life. I’m already dreaming of the incredible concoctions I can create with my batch of golden, sweet deliciousness…

Ahh, fall. You’ve been missed.

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How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree

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Ingredients

• 1 pumpkin (as big or small as you’d like – remember that it must fit in your oven)
• 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

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Instructions

1. To Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree*: Hack the stem off of your pumpkin, then slice the pumpkin in half from top to bottom. You’ll end up with two halves with some funky stringy stuff and some beautiful pumpkin seeds in the middle.
2. Scrape out the “funky stringy stuff” and seeds – use an ice cream scoop if you have it! You’ll want to remove as much of loose stringy innards as you can, while keeping the solid flesh in tact. Also, SAVE THOSE PUMPKIN SEEDS. Simply rinse them in a colander and set aside. We’ll get to them later (see below).
3. Rub the flat edges of the pumpkin with olive oil, then place each half face-down on a aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. The edges that touch the aluminum foil should be the ones that you oil! Oil = less burnage and stickage = a happy homemade pumpkin puree consumer.
4. Roast your pumpkin halves in a preheated 400 degree F oven for 20-35 minutes, or until the pumpkin flesh is fork-tender. My pumpkin was huge, so mine took 35 minutes. Just be sure to start checking your pumpkin around the 20 minute mark.
5. Remove your pumpkin halves from the oven and scoop out the flesh with a large spoon. Make sure you’re just scooping out the flesh – don’t get any of the skin in your mixture! You’ll see that the roasted pumpkin flesh almost resembles thick spaghetti squash!
6. Dump the roasted pumpkin flesh into your food processor and blend until smooth. Depending on the size of your pumpkin and food processor, you’ll probably need to do this in batches. You’ll also need to stop the processor and scrape down the sides a couple of times per batch to ensure your puree is smooth and creamy.
7. Store in a air-tight container in the fridge. Be sure to scoop some into a bowl to taste test – fresh homemade pumpkin puree is incredibly addictive when warm!
8. To Make Homemade Pumpkin Seeds: Roast your pumpkin seeds on a olive oil-greased aluminum foil-lined sheet pan for 30 minutes. Remove from oven, toss in a bowl with 1 tsp. olive oil and spice(s) of choice (try salt and smoked paprika!). Return to the sheet pan and bake for another 20 minutes. Voila! A simple, healthy, protein-and-fiber-packed snack!

Notes

*It is incredibly important that you have a sharp knife for this task. A sharp knife can easily cut through the tough skin and flesh of your pumpkin – a dull one will slip, increasing the probability of pumpkin-inflicted knife wounds. Not fun.

Pumpkin Puree recipe was adapted from Alton Brown. Pumpkin Seed recipe was slightly adapted from Food Network.

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Dear readers, it’s true, I am a coconut lover through and through.

My addiction to coconut is fierce this time of year; I crave that tropical, rich flavor all.the.time.

While raw coconut is all fine and dandy, have you ever had the pleasure of sinking your teeth into some roasty toasty toasted coconut?! It’s takes the flavor of an already delicious thing to a WHOLE OTHER LEVEL. It. Is. Insane.

It’s very possible that I will ruin all un-toasted coconut dreams for you with this post. Frankly, #sorrynotsorry. Toasted coconut is ridiculously superior. It’s sweeter. It’s richer. It’s nuttier. It tastes more “coconutty.” It’s PERFECT. And guys, you’re gonna want it in, on, and around everything:

• Oatmeal. Like this! Or this!
• Ice cream. Like this!
• Cookies. Like these!
• Coconut butter. Like this!
• Homemade candy. Like this!
• Smoothies and smoothie bowls. Like this!
• The recipe I’m sharing on Thursday! (you won’t want to miss it!)

Need I say more? Here’s how it’s done!:

How to Toast Coconut in 5 Minutes

1. Grab a bag of your favorite raw unsweetened coconut! I use big flakes of coconut because I go absolutely bonkers over the texture, but I’m guessing shredded would do just fine, too. Actually, shredded will probably take a shorter amount of time because it’s smaller. Toasted Coconut in less than 5 minutes?! Done deal.

2. Spread 1/4 cup of your coconut onto a small plate. Try to evenly distribute the coconut, but it’s OK if the coconut is overlapping. Mine looked like this!:

3. Place the plate in the microwave and microwave for 30 seconds. Yep. A microwave! There’s no need to flip on that oven today!
Once 30 seconds are up, carefully remove the plate, toss coconut with a spoon or your fingers, and place it back in the microwave for another 30 seconds. You should start to see the coconut take on some color after the first few spins in your science oven.

4. Repeat step 3 until your coconut is toasted! It’ll look golden brown. It’ll smell incredible. And it’ll be just about the best darn thing you’ll put in your mouth today.

4 steps. 5 minutes. A lifetime of coconut-filled happiness.

Toasted coconut has about a million different uses…aka. a million different reasons why you need it in your life! How will you use this tasty toasted treat?

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Stay classy, Internet friends!

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