Curried Pumpkin Apple Soup

Have I mentioned fall is my favorite season? Just making sure all you readers know that. I'm probably the only person in the world that doesn't want to hear Christmas music until AFTER Thanksgiving. Is that seriously too much to ask? Why are people always trying to rush right past Thanksgiving as soon as the Halloween candy goes on clearance? While Halloween is my favorite holiday, Thanksgiving is a close second. Turkey? Pie? Cranberry sauce that retains the shape of the container it came out of? All amazing things!

In honor of my approaching 2nd favorite holiday (and because I was craving soup like whoa), I whipped up this seasonal treat for myself. This recipe for Curried Pumpkin Apple Soup is sort of like a liquid form of Thanksgiving dinner (awesome), but even better because it has some of that delicious curry taste going on. 

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 onion, chopped
• 4 stalks celery, chopped
• 1/2 large apple, peeled, cored, and chopped
• 2 tsp curry powder
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 1 15 oz. can pumpkin
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 2-3 Tbsp honey or maple syrup

How to:

• Melt butter in a medium sized pot over medium heat, and saute onion, celery, and apple until onion is transparent and ingredients are cooked through. 
• Stir in curry and saute 1 min.
• Add in broth and pumpkin and heat to a boil.
• Reduce heat, and puree until smooth.
• Add salt and bay leaf, and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.
• After 5 minutes, stir in heavy cream and honey. Adjust taste with salt and more honey if necessary.
• Simmer 2 more minutes, then remove from heat and serve hot.

Obviously if you hate curry, this dish is not for you. But I love Indian food and flavors, so when I found this recipe, it was sort of a match made in heaven - curry + pumpkin + apple = perfection. Unfortunately, I cannot remember where I got this recipe from. It's one of those recipes that has been written and rewritten in my recipe books. Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this - let me know how yours turns out!

Enjoy!

Festive Chocolate Dipped Pretzels

Happy Fall, Y'all! We are in the middle of my favorite season. Leaves are changing, the air is getting colder, and I've been drinking hot cider for a good 3 weeks straight. A-mazing.

Fall brings another one of my favorite things - Halloween! Last weekend, Jake and I went to a Halloween party (check out my fab 80s costume). I wanted to bring something to the party, but was running short on time. I had an unopened bag of pretzel rods and some Wilton Milk Chocolate Candy Melts hanging around, so I decided chocolate dipped pretzels were the way to go. I decorated them with some festive sprinkles, and viola! Quick and delicious Halloween-themed deliciousness.

This weekend, Jake and I are headed to a pig roast. I picked up some large pretzels and decided to try dipping these instead of the rods. They look awesome, and taste even better than they look.

My sis-in-law and I on
Halloween this year!

Ingredients:

• Candy Melts (any flavor)
• pretzel (rods or large pretzels)
• assorted sprinkles, candies, chopped nuts, and/or coconut

How to:

• Melt chocolate as according to package.
• Dip pretzels.
• Lay pretzels on parchment-lined cookie sheet.
• Decorate with toppings.
• Let set and serve.

I just love these things. They're so easy to make, and you really can't go wrong with a sweet & salty combo. And depending on the occasion, you can totally decorate the pretzels to match your theme. I actually made chocolate-dipped pretzels as wedding favors back in May, and my wedding guests only had great things to say about them. 

Enjoy!

The Perfect Cupcake

Happy 1st birthday to Potions & Poppy Seeds! I can't believe it's been a whole year! And what a year it's been for my little blog - in just 12 short months we reached 15,000+ page views, and I get emails every day from Pinterest letting me know that people are happily pinning recipes and crafts from Potions & Poppy Seeds. So thank you, readers!

In honor of my baby's 1st birthday, I decided to make some cupcakes. This recipe is very simple, but very delicious. I will admit - in the past, I've been a huge fan of making cakes/brownies/etc. from a box, and this is one of my 1st REAL attempts at baking from scratch. Honestly, after eating these babies, I will never again make cupcakes from a box mix.

Ingredients:

Yellow Cupcake Batter:

• 3 cups sifted cake flour
• 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 cups milk

Buttercream Icing:

• 1/2 cup solid vegetable shortening
• 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
• 2 Tbsp milk

How to:

To prepare batter:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with baking cups.
• In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In a second large bowl, beat butter and sugar with electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add flour mixture alternatively with milk, beating well after each addition. Continue beating 1 minute.
• Fill baking cups 2/3 full.
• Bake 18-20 min or until toothpick inserted in center of cupcake comes out clean. 
• Cool cupcakes in pan on cooling grid for 5 min. Remove from pan and cool completely.

To prepare icing:

• In a large bowl, beat shortening and butter with an electric mixer. Add vanilla.
• Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often.
• When all the sugar has been mixed in, the icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.
• Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.

The batter recipe makes 24 cupcakes, and the icing recipe makes about 3 cups. The cupcake recipe yields really light cupcakes - the consistency of mine was somewhere between an angel food cake and normal cake from a box, which I really enjoyed. The icing is also quite light tasting (although it clearly is the farthest you can get from 'light' - just look at the recipe!). I'm calling this recipe The Perfect Cupcake, because my coworkers raved about these, and Jake ate 3 cupcakes in less than an hour. I dare you not to eat more than one!

So, happy birthday again to my blog! And a special thanks to all of you for sticking with me over the past year!

Enjoy!

Fresh Garlic Bread

Fall is FINALLY upon us! There's nothing better than that crisp chill in the air and when pumpkin and apple flavors start cropping up in everything from coffee to baked goods. Another thing about fall that I absolutely love is all the transition to grilling practically everything I eat during the summer to finding a way to eat soup and other savory comfort fall foods as much as possible. There's nothing better than a delicious bowl of hot soup and a good old fashioned grilled cheese sandwich on a wonderful fall afternoon. 

This post is not focused on soup, but it IS focused on savory bread that will accompany any bowl of soup perfectly. This recipe for Homemade Garlic Bread is definitely a staple in my house. Jake and I use it for pretty much any sort of sandwich we make (it's great with peppercorn turkey breast or grilled chicken), or slathered up with butter as toast. Our favorite use of this bread is - are you ready for it? - grilled cheese. This toasted garlic bread + melted cheese + butter = perfection. 

The recipe here is catered to those using a breadmaker (like me!).

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cup water, 90 degrees* 
• 2 Tbs butter or margarine
• 3 1/3 cups bread flour
• 2 Tbs dry milk
• 1 Tbs dried parsley flakes**
• 1 Tbs sugar
• 1 1/4 salt
• 1/2 - 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tsp active dry yeast

How to:

• Add water to the bread pan first, then the dry ingredients. Make sure the dry ingredients are leveled to ensure you achieve the proper consistency in your baked bread.
• Quarter the butter or margarine and add it to the corners of the bread pan.
• Make an impression in the center of the dry ingredients in the bread pan and add the yeast.
• Bake according to your bread machine's specifications.

*My recipe (and most recipes utilizing a bread maker) recommend using water at 80 degrees. After fooling around with this recipe, I have found that water at a temperature of 90 degrees works best.

**I have also substituted half of the dried parsley in this recipe with Italian seasoning and was pleased with the results.

If you are looking for a good soup recipe to pair this bread with, I suggest taking a look at my recipe for Chunky Vegetable Soup or (my personal fave) Chicken Noodle Soup. I'd love to hear how you use this bread, so let me know!

Enjoy!

Heirloom Tomato Pizza with Pesto and Fresh Mozzarella

One of my favorite things about summer is visiting the local farmer's market to purchase some of the freshest produce around. But one thing that's even better than purchasing fresh produce is getting it for free - the tomatoes used in this recipe were grown in a friend's garden! They had some extra heirloom tomatoes lying around and graciously gave a bunch to Jake when he was over visiting them a couple weeks ago. 

This recipe (like the majority of pizza recipes) takes only a couple minutes to prep, and the pizza is ready to eat in under 15 minutes! Best of all, this recipe only requires 5 ingredients.

Ingredients:

• prepared pizza dough
• cornmeal or flour for dusting
• pesto
• fresh mozzarella
• heirloom tomatoes

How to:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Allow pizza dough to come to room temperature. Dust a pizza peel or other surface with cornmeal or flour to prevent dough from sticking to surface.
• Roll out dough using your hands or rolling pin on top of dusted surface.
• Spread 2-3 Tbsp of pesto on top of the dough.
• Top pizza with fresh mozzarella and heirloom tomatoes.
• Spread 1-2 more Tbsp of pesto on top of the mozzarella and tomatoes.
• Transfer pizza to oven and bake for 12-15 minutes.

Jake and I received a pizza stone as a wedding gift, and we absolutely love it. If you too are using a pizza stone, place it in the oven before turning it on, so it heats up as the oven is preheating. We use our pizza peel to then transfer the pizza into the oven.

I love that despite this recipe's simplicity, it tastes like a gourmet pizza! I'm so glad our friends gave us lots of heirloom tomatoes - we'll be making this pizza again very soon. I made the dough from scratch from my recipe I've previously shared with you. I didn't have enough basil on hand to make my own pesto, so I just used the store bought stuff (which was still delicious).

Enjoy!

The original recipe can be found here.

Chicken Tostadas

As the summer is coming to an end, I find myself getting busier and busier. In the past month, Jake and I have had three weddings (although we could only make it to two of them), I've traveled to visit friends all over the place, and have started training to run the Baltimore marathon relay. Things don't seem to be slowing down anytime soon - Jake and I are making a trip up to Massachusetts in the next few weeks to attend ANOTHER wedding, and I'll be starting a second job in September. As hectic as things are, I've had a pretty fantastic summer, and am excited for all the fun things I have planned over the next year! But I can delve into that at another time...

Anyway, because things have been so crazy (especially with trying to fit in a work out after a long ass day in the lab), I'm finding less and less time to craft fab gourmet meals for Jake and I. Which leads me to introduce this recipe for Chicken Tostadas. This recipe uses leftover chicken, and can be assembled in less than 30 min.

Ingredients:

• 8 6-in flour or corn tortillas
• 2 avocados, pitted, and cut into 1/2 cubes
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup fat-free refried beans
• 2 cups shredded, cooked, boneless chicken breast
• 1 1/2 cups (~4 oz.) shredded pepper Jack cheese
• 2 cups shredded romaine lettuce
• 1 cup tomato salsa

How To:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with heavy-duty foil.
• Mist both sides of tortillas with cooking spray, place on sheet, and bake until crisp (~ 8 minutes). Set aside.
• Toss avocado with lime juice, and season with salt.
• Spread some beans on each tortilla, top with chicken and avocado, and sprinkle with cheese. 
• Return to oven and bake until warmed through (7-10 minutes).
• Top with lettuce and salsa and serve immediately.

Jake and I had a ton of leftover chicken from the last time we made Jerk Chicken using my recipe for Jamaican Jerk Marinade. I diced up a bunch of that chicken and used it in this recipe. The spices and heat from the marinade worked well with the coolness of the avocado here, so I recommend trying that out! You can also just use a rotisserie chicken if you don't have any grilled chicken laying around.

Enjoy!

Triple Chocolate Ice Cream

So Jake and I bought a house in the burbs last year. At first I thought it was going to take some serious getting used to. Let me explain - Jake and I would frequent Cold Stone Creamery at LEAST once a week during the summer. There was one right down the street from us when we lived in the city. I'm pretty sure I've tried every single flavor this place has to offer. And I've mixed almost everything into my ice cream - which is one of the best things ever about Cold Stone. AMIRIGHT?? Clearly, dessert is a priority in my life. 

Lucky for my stomach, we happened to move to a place that is in VERY close proximity to a frozen yogurt place. This became my new obsession. Honestly, Jake and I ended up at this fantastic establishment twice a week. We had a problem - the amount of money we spent here is sad. There's really no other word for it. But dammit, that stuff is good.

Anyway, one of my fabulous bridesmaids bought me an ice cream maker that I can hook up to my KitchenAid mixer. Once I started using this fantastic appliance, I sort of forgot (I use the words 'sort of' very loosely) about my love affair with frozen yogurt. I was eating real, full-on-fat, creamy delicious ice cream again. I was hooked. Now, I'm constantly looking up new ice cream recipes to try. Jake suggested I try a chocolate ice cream recipe (he was always a sucker for the chocolate shakes at Cold Stone). Alas, I share with you my recipe for Triple Chocolate Ice Cream.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whipping cream, divided
• 2 squares (1 oz. each square) semisweet baking chocolate, cut into chunks
• 2 squares (1 oz. each square) unsweetened baking chocolate, cut into chunks
• 2 cups half & half
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 8 egg yolks
• 4 tsps vanilla
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups chopped milk chocolate (from ~4 bars of milk chocolate)

How to:

• In a small saucepan, place 1/2 cup whipping cream, semisweet chocolate, and unsweetened chocolate. Heat over medium-low heat until chocolate melts, stirring frequently. Remove from heat & set aside.
• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, heat half & half until very hot but not boiling, stirring often. Remove from heat and set aside.
• In a small bowl, combine sugar and cocoa powder. Set aside.
• Place egg yolks in a mixer bowl. Whisk eggs while gradually adding adding in sugar mixture until well blended and slightly thickened. 
• While continually whisking, very gradually add in chocolate mixture and half & half. Mix until well blended.
• Return mixture to saucepan. While stirring constantly, cook over medium heat until small bubbles form around the edge and the mixture is steamy - do not boil.
• Transfer mixture to a large bowl and stir in remaining whipping cream, vanilla, and salt. Cover and chill thoroughly in fridge, at least 8 hours.
• Make ice cream in an ice cream maker, according to its directions, adding in the milk chocolate during the last 1-2 minutes of freeze time.

I followed the recipe for Triple Chocolate Ice Cream that's outlined in the little booklet that came with my ice cream maker. Of all the different types of ice cream I've experimented with, this was my most successful. I found that freezing the ice cream maker attachment and chilling the prepared mix for at least 24 hours and overnight, respectively, yielded the best consistency. When Jake tried this, he legit said to me "This tastes like real ice cream. You could serve this to people and they would have no idea you made it." Thanks? Haha, that's what I was going for!

Enjoy!

DIY Chunky Necklace

I think I'm now starting to suffer from what I've heard people refer to as the 'post-wedding blues.' I feel like I was crafting various wedding-related items for so long, that now there seems to be a void in my life. I guess this is a good thing for all you blog readers out there, because since the wedding, I have returned to my regular blogging schedule.

Anyway, I decided that it was time I shared a few of the crafty things I did for my wedding with you. I knew Jake and I's wedding colors were going to be gold and some shade of pink. I ultimately went with a mauve color for my bridesmaid dresses - the pink wasn't 'in your face pink,' nor was it a pastel Easter egg color. I liked that it was subtle and thought it would be easy to match jewelry with. Man, was I wrong. You know when you have a vision of the way something should look, but you cannot find the perfect accessory to complete your vision? This was my case in finding perfect jewelry for my beautiful maids. 

So, I decided to make their jewelry. Their simplistic dresses warranted a statement necklace, so I searched for a necklace idea that would really pop against and complement their dresses. Below are my instructions for making your own Chunky Necklaces!

Materials:

• 8 mm glass pearls (75)
• 4 mm glass pearls (38)
• headpins (95)
• 5 mm closed jump rings (19)
• 70 cm of ribbon (2)
• 25 cm 22 gauge silver wire

How to:

• Using the headpins, make wrapped loops of 8 mm pearls (57) and all of the 4 mm pearls (38).
• Begin assembling your clusters; place an 8 mm pearl on a jump ring, followed by a 4 mm pearl, another 8 mm pearl, a 4 mm pearl, and another 8 mm pearl. Do this 18 more times so you have a total of 19 clusters.

• Make a wire wrapped loop on one end of the silver wire, and thread a single pearl onto the end of it. Then, add a cluster. 
• Alternate stringing a pearl and a cluster, until you've added all but two clusters to the wire. End with a pearl.

• Push all of the clusters together on the wire so they bunch up and appear full, then secure the other end of the wire with another wrapped loop.
• Thread the ribbon through the loops on either end until it is halfway through, and fold it on itself.
• Thread one of the remaining clusters through the ribbon, and slide it down until it is close to the other pearls. Repeat on the other side.
• Trim off any frayed ribbon, and secure the necklace around your neck by tying a bow!

Here's a picture of my gorgeous matron of honor wearing her necklace at my wedding. While this tutorial recommends tying the necklace to secure it, I actually attached a clasp to the ribbon on the bridesmaid necklaces. I was concerned that the girls would constantly be worried about their necklaces coming untied throughout the day, so I figured a clasp was an easy fix. I was so pleased with the outcome of this project, that I'm considering selling them!

Please let me know what you think! I will say, this project certainly takes time - it took me about 4 hours to complete each necklace (including adding a clasp). If you are interested in purchasing a custom-made necklace, please email me!

I worked from the tutorial found here.

Dragon Noodles

Holy mother, it is HOT outside. As in 'too hot to cook' hot. As dinner approached today, I was in search of a quick and delicious meal that would allow me to quickly return to my spot on the couch, where I could eat in the air conditioning and watch bad TV. I found this recipe, and it was exactly the type of dish I was looking for! Although I will warn you - as the name implies, this dish is super spicy. Maybe not the best thing for a hot day like today, but we all know how I feel about spicy food.

This dish is ready in less than 10 minutes. I kid you not. And it's SO delicious. It's also SERIOUSLY spicy. I feel like I should stress that so you don't hate me for not warning you.

Ingredients:

• 4 oz. lo mein noodles
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1 large egg
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp Sriracha (rooster sauce)
• fresh cilantro
• 1 green onion, sliced

How to:

• Boil water in a medium size sauce pan, and cook noodles according to package.
• While noodles are cooking, prepare the sauce: combine brown sugar, soy sauce, and Sriracha in a small bowl.
• In a large skillet, heat butter over low-medium heat. Add red pepper flakes as butter is melting.
• Whisk the egg in a small bowl, and add to butter in skillet. Stir gently until egg is cooked through. Then, turn off heat.
• When the noodles are tender, drain and add cooked noodles to the skillet. Add sauce and turn noodles until they are evenly coated with the sauce.
• Heat the skillet over low heat to reduce some of the sauce. 
• Sprinkle with cilantro and onion, and serve.

If the spice is too much for you to handle, try adding less crushed red pepper, or omit it altogether. You can also try this dish with any type of noodle - linguine or udon noodles work well too. 

The original recipe can be found here.

Honey-Balsamic Sweet Potato Mash

Happy Thursday, readers! This week has been crazy. Well, let me rephrase - this week has been crazy in an awesome way. I was a social butterfly this week! Some girlfriends and I ventured out to experience Paint Nite at a local bar (which was fantastic, by the way!), and the following night I met up with some more friends to share delicious margaritas and Mexican food. So many awesome plans on weeknights? Sometimes (most of the time) my life rules. 

Needless to say, I haven't spent a whole lot of time in the kitchen this week. I did, however, find time to whip up this sweet little side dish. This recipe for Honey-Balsamic Sweet Potato Mash is VERY tasty. It's great, because you can pop your potatoes in the oven to cook while you throw the rest of your meal together, and by the time your main dish is complete, the potatoes are ready to be mashed.

Ingredients:

• 3 lbs sweet potatoes
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 1/4 cup half & half
• 1 Tbsp honey
• 2 tsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• freshly ground pepper

How to:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Prick your potatoes with a fork, and bake on a foil-lined baking sheet until very tender (50-60 min).
• Set the potatoes aside to cool.
• When they are cool enough to handle, halve them lengthwise and spoon out the flesh into a large bowl. Discard the skins.
• Mash the potatoes to your desired consistency, and stir in the remaining ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste.
• Serve immediately.

The original recipe uses heavy cream, but I only had half & half in my fridge. The sweet potatoes still tasted very velvety and rich with this substitution. Additionally, the original recipe suggests using wildflower or lavender if you don't have any honey. I'm thinking it's time for me to purchase these ingredients, so I can see how they change up the dish!

Enjoy!

This recipe is from Williams-Sonoma Bride & Groom Cookbook.

Jamaican Jerk Marinade

Countless people told Jake and I that we'd never have another vacation like our honeymoon. Well, after  spending a week at the all-inclusive Wild Orchid Resort in Montego Bay, Jamaica, I completely agree. We had a fantastic time here. Every day was filled with sunshine, delicious food, and countless adult beverages. Amazing! I honestly don't think Jake and I will ever have a vacation like this again. I mean, I HOPE we have a vacation like this again, but it's going to be tough to top this one. 

Some of the best food on the island!

One of the MANY highlights of our vacation involved sampling some of the authentic eats Jamaica has to offer. Every day, our noses would tell us it was noon - the Jamaican Jerk Chicken cart would park itself just upwind of where we were sunbathing, and we would scurry off the beach to go find it. Sometimes we'd find it twice a day. I legitimately gained 5 pounds on our honeymoon. I'm not even ashamed, it was worth all of that delicious spicy Jerk Chicken (which was always washed down with a high calorie and equally delicious frozen beverage). 

Delicious Jerk Chicken! Accompanied by
delicious alcoholic beverages

Upon arriving back in Maryland, I took it upon myself to duplicate the delicious marinade these Jamaicans have clearly perfected. While my recipe for Jamaican Jerk Marinade is delicious, it's not exactly reminiscent of what Jake and I gorged ourselves on in Jamaica. I anticipate this will be my of my many attempts at perfecting this marinade!

Ingredients:

• 3 scallions, chopped
• 4 large garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 4-5 habanero peppers, stemmed and seeded*
• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 2 Tbs soy sauce
• 3 Tbs olive oil
• 1 Tbs kosher salt
• 1 Tbs packed brown sugar
• 1 Tbs fresh thyme leaves
• 2 tsp ground allspice
• 2 tsp black pepper
• 3/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

How to:

• Blend all ingredients together until smooth.
• Marinade pretty much anything - from chicken, to pork, to veggies. We marinated some chicken breasts overnight before grilling them.
• Grill & enjoy!

*Traditionally, Jamaican Jerk seasoning is made with Scotch Bonnet peppers. My local grocery store didn't have any of these, so I used habaneros as a substitute. The first time I made this, I used 4 habaneros and left some seeds in before adding the peppers to the blender. The marinade was ridiculously hot, but ridiculously good. The 2nd time around, I didn't leave any seeds in, and I felt like the marinade could have used a little more heat. I think I'll search for Scotch Bonnets next time I'm in the mood for some Jamaican Jerk!

Jake and I grilled up some chicken that had been marinated overnight. It tasted great! We made some  Jerk Chicken sandwiches and reminisced about our amazing honeymoon. I'd love to hear your take on this marinade!

Enjoy!

The original recipe can be found here.

How to Change Your Name After Marriage

L.A.B. 

These were my initials for 29 years, 1 month, and 7 days. I thought a lot about whether or not to change my name after Jake and I got married. Not because I was heartbroken over the idea of losing my maiden name - I have three brothers and a nephew, our surname will live on - but because in science, a lot of women decide to keep their maiden name so their publications can be easily tracked. Until I moved to Baltimore, the concept of keeping my maiden name was completely foreign. In fact, growing up all the moms I knew had that same name as their children and husbands. Sure, there are a handful of women I can think of (OK, actually I can only think of two women) who have a hyphenated last name, but I met those women in college. So, I naturally assumed that when it came my turn to take the plunge, I'd take my husband's last name. 

Then, I met women scientists in Maryland. The idea of taking another name after marriage seemed blasphemous. And God forbid you were already published as Sally Maidenname - how would anyone be able to associate pre-married you with post-married you who decided to publish as Sally Husbandslastname? Some women apparently circumvent this issue by dropping their given middle name, moving their maiden name to their middle name, and then taking their husband's last name. Yikes, lots to think about. 

I was torn. Growing up in Massachusetts, I always imagined I'd be Leighanne A. Husbandslastname. But now I have people in my new home and profession telling me I should keep my name, or if I HAVE to change it, change it to Leighanne Maidenname Husbandslastname. I knew I wanted to take Jake's last name in some way, shape or form. So keeping my entire given name was out. Jake and I talked about it, and I briefly considered moving my maiden name to my middle name and dropping my A. altogether. Then Jake pointed out if I did that, my initials would no longer be L.A.B. Jake's last name begins with B. My new initials would be L.B.B. I work in a lab. I feel like it's way too coincindental that my parents gave me the intials L.A.B. by giving me a middle name that starts with A. My decision was made - I dropped my maiden name altogether, retained my middle name, and took Jake's last name. Same initials, which still describe the place I spend most of my time, but new last name, just as I had always imagined it would be. Perfect. 

OK, now that you have my back story how do you actually go about changing a name after marriage? Regardless of whether you choose to just change your last name, or change your middle AND last name, the process is the same. Here's how you change your name after marriage (at least in the state of Maryland - Baltimore county, to be exact).

1. Obtain a certified copy of your marriage certificate. In order to change anything, you need this document. This is not your marriage license. Yes, after you tied the knot, you made it a point to have your officiant sign your marriage license, proving that you and your husband/wife had, in fact, married. He or she needs to submit this signed document to the proper officials so the state will recognize that you are married. Our officiant returned our marriage license to the Baltimore County Clerk of the Court, and by the time Jake and I returned from our honeymoon, our marriage was on file. I went over to the Clerk of the Court (which is the same place where I obtained our marriage license from), paid $5.50 in cash - they do not accept credit card - and walked out with a notorized copy of our marriage certificate. 
2. Visit your local Social Security Administration Office. I thought this would be painful, but this was actually the easiest part of the whole 'changing of the last name' process. I recommend getting to the SSA bright and early. I visited the SSA on a Tuesday morning, and got there about 5 minutes before they opened. I was in and out of this place within 30 min. It does not cost anything to change your Social Security information. In order to change your name on your Social Security card, you need the following documents with you:
1. Legal document providing proof of name change (your certified marriage certificate - see #1).
2. Current license (this will still have your maiden name on it, that's OK).
3. Proof of US citizenship (passport or birth certificate).
4. This form.
3. Visit the MVA to update your license. You must wait at least 48 hours after updating your Social Security information to get your new license. Apparently you do not need your new card in hand to update your license, as long as it's been 48 hours since you requested the name change on your Social Security card. The SSA will tell you that it can take up to 10 business days to receive your new card in the mail, but mine was there 4 days later. I just waited until I got my new card in the mail before heading to the MVA. We all know how trips to the MVA go, so I wasn't about to make the trip over there and have them tell me I needed my card before I could change my license. But I digress. The MVA snapped a new picture of me to display on my license, and I also got to update my weight so it reflected the 20 lbs I dropped before the wedding (bonus!). They told me that my new license would be valid for 8 years, and it was issued right then and there. This is what I needed:
1. My license (again, this still had my maiden name on it - duh, this is the reason you're going to the MVA).
2. Certified marriage certificate (again, see #1).
3. Your new Social Security card (see #2 - although it's still unclear to me if you actually need this. Just make sure you wait at least 48 hours).
4. $48.00, payable by cash, check, or credit card. 
4. Inform your employer. This was the most painful part of changing my name. It seemed like a million different people had to sign off on my new name, and I still haven't been issued a new work ID badge yet. I imagine this process varies greatly from employer to employer. Ironically, my employer didn't even ask to see proof of my new name, but if they had, I would have been able to show my new Social Security card and/or license. Update: four days after requesting my name change with my employer, I had to demonstrate proof of marriage. I thought it was strange they didn't need any paperwork proving there was a reason I took off 2.5 weeks for wedding/honeymoon-related activities.
5. Update your passport. I actually haven't done this yet, as I don't envision taking a trip outside the US in the near future. However, if you need to do this, here is information on how to change your name on your passport.
6. Update your banking information, credit cards, online accounts, email addresses, etc. I was able to change the name on my bank account by visiting my banking branch with my new license and marriage certificate. My new debit/credit card was issued on the spot. Changing my name on my credit cards took some time, and I found that with most of them, a quick phone call to each company was all it took. The same applied for updating my information with my cell phone company. A few credit card companies require proof of the name change and requested I send a copy of my marriage certificate to them. To update my car insurance so my policy reflects my new name, I simply logged in to my Geico account and did it online. I'm sure this varies from insurance company to insurance company. 

And that's pretty much it! By far, the most annoying aspect of all of this was updating all of my online account usernames. I do all of my banking and what not online, and almost all of my usernames contained some aspect of my maiden name. I figured since I was taking Jake's last name, I should get accustomed to said name and wanted to change the usernames and email addresses associated with each account to reflect my new name. So that took a LONG time. But now it's all done! 

Best of luck to all you newlyweds out there. Hopefully this information will be of use to you!

Pizza Dough

Well, hello readers! It has certainly been a while. I've been VERY busy these past few months. Jake and I finally got married, we honeymooned in Jamaica, and now we are settling into married life. Although it pretty much feels the same as pre-married life. Oh, except Jake now wears a wedding band - that's pretty great!

You could probably guess that the two months leading up to the wedding were very hectic. I'd like to pretend that I still found time to make dinner for Jake and myself, but if I'm being honest? We ate a lot of cereal for dinner. And pasta. And Panera. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Panera, but you can only eat so much of it before you're craving a delicious home-cooked meal. 

I can't believe how many amazing and generous gifts we received from our wedding guests. I used quite of few of said gifts while making this recipe for Pizza Dough, so that was awesome!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups warm water (100 - 110 degrees)
• 2 1/2 tsp active dry yeast (or two envelopes)
• 2 tsp red wine vinegar
• 3 Tbsp olive oil, plus some for greasing
• 4 cups flour
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 Tbsp kosher salt
• Cornmeal or flour for dusting

How to:

• Combine water, yeast, vinegar, and 3 Tbsp olive oil in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with dough hook. Mix on low speed until just blended (~30 seconds).
• Add 1 cup of the flour and mix on low speed for 30 seconds. 
• In a separate bowl, mix together remaining flour, sugar, and salt. 
• Add the flour mixture to the wet dough mix in 3 batches, beating on low speed after each addition until thoroughly combined.
• Once all the flour has been added, raise the mixer speed to medium and mix for 2 more minutes. The dough will pull away from the sides of the bowl, will come together in a bowl, and will feel soft to the touch.
• Place the ball of dough in a well-oiled bowl and turn it several times to coat the surface lightly with oil. Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel, and let the dough rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Divide the dough into two equal portions* and roll each piece into a smooth ball. Place the balls on a baking sheet and cover with a damp kitchen towel. Let the dough rest for 10 minutes.
• Use dough immediately, refrigerate up to 4 hours, or freeze.**

*Alternatively, divide the dough into 6 equal portions to make individual pizza crusts.

**If you've chilled the dough, allow it to warm to room temperature prior to rolling it out.

I used a pizza peel (wedding gift!) dusted with cornmeal as a working surface to stretch the dough on (I just used my hands). You can use flour to prevent the dough from sticking to your surface before stretching it out if you don't have any cornmeal on hand. I also cooked the pizzas on a pizza stone (another wedding gift!), and found that it worked great for evenly cooking the crust.

Clearly, I didn't get too crazy with this pizza - just cheese for a topping. The individual pizzas cooked very quickly (only about 6-8 minutes at 450 degrees on the pizza stone). I froze the remaining portions of dough and will certainly be cooking those up soon! This recipe is very easy, and tastes great. It passed the Jake pizza test, so I'd say it's a winner!

This recipe is from Williams-Sonoma Bride & Groom Cookbook (another wedding gift!).

Spicy Thai Noodles

I have slowly been trying to convince Jake he likes ethnic foods. If he had his way, he'd eat pizza all day, every single day. I'm sorry, but just because pizza was technically 'invented' in Naples, Italy, I don't consider it an 'ethnic' food. It's one of the most commonly consumed foods in the US, and I'm sure the type of pizza that Jake and I eat is nothing like it is in Italy. I've never tested this theory, but I imagine Italian pizza has far less grease. And I'm sure it's not topped with random (but delicious) things like pineapple. But I digress. Anyway, every month or so, I'll throw some random recipe into the mix - usually an Indian or Greek dish - and pray to God that Jake loves it so I can permanently add it to our dinner menu rotation. Usually those recipes fail Jake's taste test, or don't taste the way I hope they will, which explains why there are a lack of ethnic recipes featured here at Potions & Poppy Seeds.

Well, times have changed, my friends. I made this dish two nights ago, and Jake LOVED it. This recipe for Spicy Thai Noodles is reminiscent of a dish I used to order at the Cheesecake Factory, although I'm not sure they serve it any more (it's been years since I've been). 

Ingredients:

• 3/4 box of whole wheat thin spaghetti
• 1 can condensed cream of broccoli soup + 1 can water
• 1/3 cup crunchy peanut butter
• 3 Tbs soy sauce
• 2 Tbs lime juice
• 2 Tbs packed brown sugar + more to taste
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 3 cups coleslaw mix
• 2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro (if desired)
• Extra peanuts, crushed (if desired)

How to:

• Cook and drain pasta as according to package.
• In a large skillet, heat the soup plus water, peanut butter, soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, and pepper flakes over medium-high heat to a boil.
• Add additional brown sugar, if necessary, to taste.
• Remove from heat and stir in pasta and coleslaw until evenly coated.
• Top with peanuts and cilantro, if desired.

If you think the sauce is too thick, you can add more water to thin it out a little bit. After reading some of the comments about the recipe I worked from, I opted to "prepare" the condensed soup as indicated on its label, as the original doesn't add any water.

I also suggest that, when reheating leftovers, add in extra coleslaw AFTER you've warmed it up. This will bring back that extra crunch that works so well in this dish.

Enjoy!

2nd Free Giveaway!!

Hey readers! It's free giveaway time! Last time, I had you guys vote on which recipe you wanted me to post. This time, I'm looking for recipes or crafting ideas from all of you! All you have to do is comment on this post with your suggestion for my next post. After about a week, I'll pick which recipe/craft idea I'm most interested in, and the winner will receive a special gift from Potions & Poppy Seeds. And you're suggestion will be featured in the near future. 

To be automatically entered: Leave a comment below with the name of the recipe or crafting idea (I don't need the details of the recipe, just the name will do!).

Looking forward to all of your suggestions!

Skinny Broccoli Mac & Cheese

What kid doesn't have fond memories of Kraft mac & cheese? I used to love this stuff. In fact, the first time I had legitimate macaroni & cheese - you know, the homemade kind made with like, eighteen different cheeses, that's baked and all crunchy on top - I thought it was disgusting. Apparently I was a sucker for artificial fluorescent cheese powder. Anyway, I hadn't had Kraft mac & cheese in years, and Jake actually re-introduced me to the 'thick & creamy' version a few months after we started dating. I fell in love all over again.

While I still enjoy some of the good old Kraft version from time to time, I've also learned to LOVE legitimate macaroni and cheese. Which is why I've decided to share this fabulous recipe with all of you. This skinny recipe for Broccoli Mac & Cheese combines two of my favorite things - cheese (duh) and broccoli. It's also a relatively healthy version, so chow down!

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. macaroni elbows
• 2 Tbs butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 small onion, minced
• 2 cups skim milk
• 1 cup fat free chicken or vegetable broth
• 2 cups (8 oz.) reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese
• 3 cups broccoli florets
• 1/8 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
• cooking spray

How to:

• Cook pasta & broccoli together in a large pot of salted water so the pasta is al dente (under cook for 2 minutes). Drain and set aside.
• Spray a large casserole dish with cooking spray and set aside. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• In a large heavy skillet, melt butter. Add onion and cook over low-medium heat until onions are fragrant (~2 minutes). Add flour and whisk together until flour is golden and well combined. 
• Add milk and chicken broth and whisk together, raising heat to medium-high until it comes to a boil. Cook for an additional 5 minutes, whisking frequently, until the sauce becomes smooth and thick. Season with salt and pepper.
• Remove sauce from heat and stir in cheese. Mix well until cheese is melted. Season with salt and pepper. 
• Add the cooked macaroni and broccoli to the sauce and mix until coated. Pour into the prepared baking dish.
• Top with Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs. Spray top lightly with cooking spray.
• Bake, uncovered, 15-20 minutes or until bubbly. Broil for a few additional minutes to allow the breadcrumbs to brown.

I used 6 oz. regular elbow macaroni, and 6 oz. whole wheat/high fiber elbows. Although the recipe I worked from used fat free chicken broth and reduced fat cheddar cheese, I used regular chicken broth and extra sharp cheddar cheese. You can definitely tweak it to your preference (I'm such a sucker for all things cheese), and it will still turn out fab. 

This dish is reminiscent of my Chicken Cheddar Broccoli Bake, except it's much simpler and is perfect for all you vegetarians out there! Ironically, as Jake was eating this he said to me "this would be awesome with chicken in it." So pick your poison, readers! 

Easy Fried Rice

I swear, these past few weeks have been so busy, I can't even keep up with my blog. I suppose it's because Jake and I's wedding is only a mere 9 weeks away, and the amount of things we have piling up is starting to get a little overwhelming. Oy, is it May yet?

One day last week, between trips to the gym and addressing wedding invitations, I threw this meal together. Super easy, super fast, super delicious. Like most of my meals, chances are you already have all these ingredients in your pantry and fridge. So, you should be able to whip this up in no time.

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbs sesame oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup frozen vegetables, thawed*
• 2 slightly beaten eggs
• 3 cups cooked rice**
• 1/4 cup soy sauce

How to:

• Warm oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet.
• Add onion and garlic and cook until fragrant, stirring occasionally.
• Add in frozen (thawed) veggies and egg, stirring until egg is cooked through.
• Add in rice and soy sauce, mixing thoroughly, until veggies are cooked through and dish is heated throughout.

*You can really use any type of frozen veggies you want. I used a mix of peas, carrots, and corn, but anything will work.

**Day-old leftover rice works best. I also found that cooking the rice with 1/4 cup water less than what is recommended gives the rice a good texture as well.

This is one of those meals that you can pretty much add anything to, and it'll still taste good. If you have leftover chicken or beef, I say toss it in. As you can see in the picture, I've also diced up some raw chicken and cooked it in the sesame oil before adding in the onion & garlic. It turned out pretty good!

Enjoy!

Penne alla Vodka

Believe it or not, Baltimore's Little Italy has some seriously delicious Italian food. My absolute favorite restaurant in all of Baltimore is La Scala. OK, I'm gonna say it - this is my favorite Italian restaurant ever. EVER. And that's saying a lot, considering I grew up frequenting the North End in Boston. Even my mom, who introduced me to the fabulous North End at a young age, said the best cannoli she's ever had was from La Scala. Seriously, if you live near Baltimore and you haven't been here, GO.

Anyway, La Scala introduced me to Penne alla Vodka. Their recipe for this dish has the perfect amount of richness and heat. I've been wanting to duplicate their version for some time now, and I think I've finally found a recipe that comes close. So I'm sharing it with all of you. You can thank me later.

Ingredients:

• 4 oz package of sliced pancetta, cubed
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large yellow onion, minced
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup vodka
• 1 28 oz. can of tomato puree
• 1 can Italian-style diced tomatoes
• 2 cups whipping cream
• 1 box penne pasta
• fresh basil, if desired
• Parmesan cheese, if desired

How to:

• Over medium heat, cook pancetta until brown and crispy in a large skillet. Reserve the fat and transfer the pancetta to a paper towel-lined plate.
• Add the olive oil to the skillet with pancetta fat. Saute onion, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper until onion is soft and fragrant. 
• Add the vodka and cook until the alcohol has evaporated, stirring occasionally (about 5-6 minutes).
• Add the tomato puree and the diced tomatoes, and simmer for about 15 minutes to thicken the sauce.
• In the meantime, cook and drain pasta according to the package directions.
• Add the pancetta back to the sauce and mix. Add the whipping cream, stirring constantly. Make sure you're cooking over a relatively low temperature so you don't scorch the sauce.
• Add the drained pasta to the sauce and mix until evenly coated.
• Add basil and Parmesan cheese before serving, if desired.

You can find pancetta in the fancy cheese section of your local grocery store, if you don't feel like going to see a butcher. I bought a pre-sliced package and used about 3 slices, but I recommend using the whole thing. You can never have enough pancetta, if you ask me. I no longer purchase vodka in 1.75 L plastic bottles that costs ~$10 like I did in college (don't judge, you did it too). I used Smirnoff for this recipe. - It's a small step up from Rubinoff. I also used 1 cup of heavy whipping cream and 1 cup light whipping cream, because I still haven't recovered from the richness of this recipe.

I modified this recipe quite a bit to come up with my delicious version of Penne alla vodka. Actually, it's very different from this recipe, but I did 'work' from this one, so I felt like I should include it.

Enjoy!

Skillet Chicken Parmesan

Sorry for the LONG break between posts! February has proven to be quite a hectic month thus far. I actually prepared this dish about a week and a half ago, and am just now getting around to posting this. YIKES!

This was my first attempt at making any sort of Chicken Parmesan recipe, and I think it turned out great (I can't say the same for the picture of it, though!). I love this dish, because all the taste of Chicken Parmesan is there, but the fried greasiness isn't! I hope you enjoy this as much as I did!

Ingredients:

• ~1 lb of boneless, skinless chicken breast
• 1/3 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp garlic salt
• 1 large egg
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 3/4 cup your favorite marinara sauce
• 3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

How to:

• In a shallow bowl, mix together breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, oregano, and garlic salt.
• In a separate bowl, beat the egg until frothy.
• Wrap the chicken in plastic wrap and pound chicken breasts with a tenderizer until they are an even thickness. I butterflied my chicken breasts before wrapping them so they were nice and thin - about 1/2 inch.
• Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
• Dip each piece of chicken in the egg, then roll in the breadcrumb mixture.
• Add the coated chicken to the skillet and cook for 4-5 min on each side, or until the chicken is well browned and just cooked through.
• Spoon the marinara sauce evenly over the top of the chicken and sprinkle with mozzarella.
• Cover the skillet and reduce heat to low. Cook for ~3 more minutes, or until the cheese is melted.

I served my Skillet Chicken Parmesan with a side of spaghetti. And some red wine, of course. I recommend you try the same :)

The original recipe can be found here.

Enjoy!

Bourbon Whiskey Meatballs

I feel like any good party requires meatballs in some way, shape, or form. Am I right? This recipe is SO fast and super simple. Even better - odds are you already have the ingredients required for this sauce in your kitchen.

This sauce is delicious. If you're planning on having a lot of people over, I suggest doubling the recipe - you want plenty of sauce to cover all your meatballs!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of your favorite meatballs (I used frozen)
• 1/2 cup ketchup (heaping)
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup bourbon whiskey
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

How to:

• Combine all ingredients except the meatballs in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly.
• *Place meatballs into a crockpot.
• Pour sauce over meatballs and mix so the meatballs are coated.
• Cover, turn crockpot to high, and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
• Turn to low once meatballs have thawed a little and cook for another hour or so.
• Turn down to warm, taking care not to burn your sauce.

*You can also do this on the stovetop - you don't really need a crockpot!

These are SO good! If you don't like frozen meatballs, try your own recipe with this sauce. Or you could try my recipe for Turkey Meatballs with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

The original recipe can be found here.