Southwest Chicken Soup

I used this recipe:
http://www.food.com/recipe/southwest-chicken-soup-337279

This soup is tasty and it is really easy to make! Most of the ingredients are canned and they require little preparation. The only part that may be difficult is chopping the onions and mincing the garlic, but that's only if you're a kitchen rookie, like me. Be careful and try not to lose any fingers, haha! This soup is generally healthy with so many vegetables and low-fat ingredients. It also has a great flavor and spiciness. A dab of sour cream on top makes it even better. I would recommend this recipe to anyone! 

Tip: Garlic can be tricky to peel and mince. To make things easier, check out this website:

http://www.cookthink.com/reference/153/How_to_mince_garlic

New York Cheesecake!

I used this recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/chantals-new-york-cheesecake/

Can I just say, I am thoroughly impressed with myself. This cheesecake turned out beautifully! The recipe was incredibly simple, few ingredients and even fewer instructions. It was straightforward and nearly impossible to mess up. Previously, I was intimidated by the idea of making cheesecake, because it seemed complicated and I figured it required some practiced skill. In reality, it can be super easy and yummy. The preparation took no time at all and I didn't experience a single problem throughout the entire process. The only problem I did have was that the cheesecake needed hours to cool before I could eat it. Success(:

Helpful tip: Cheesecakes can crack during cooling. To avoid this, grease the sides of the pan and the cheesecake won't crack!

Marbled Chocolate Banana Bread

I used this recipe:
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/marbled-chocolate-banana-bread-10000000549763/


This bread is delicious! It generally looks and tastes great. Although this recipe takes a lot of work, and it dirties a lot of dishes, it is worth it. Some of the ingredients this bread calls for may not be a common item in the average person's house, like egg substitute, but that's because it's low calorie bread. Low calorie recipes mean low calorie, "healthy" ingredients. The only complaint I have about this bread is that the middle takes a long time to cook, so the cooking time increases a bit, causing the edges to get crispy. Aside from the crispy edges, this bread is a perfect combination of chocolate and banana! Success(:

Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda

After doing some research, I discovered what happened to my red velvet cupcakes! I was so disappointed I had to find out where I went wrong with them. My cupcakes didn't rise like they were supposed to because I used baking powder instead of baking soda. I wasn't paying much attention and I realized that I had used the wrong box from the cupboard. The recipe had called for sour cream, which is an acidic food; baking powder already contains an acidifying agent. The combination of the two caused an imbalance, leaving my cupcakes looking flat and inedible! It is important to use the correct ingredients and the correct amounts. Leavening agents, baking soda and baking powder, are vital ingredients for baking. Without them baked goods would be flat and ugly, just like my cupcakes. Now that we figured out the problem, let's hope there are no more kitchen catastrophes!

Check out this website for more info:
http://chemistry.about.com/cs/foodchemistry/f/blbaking.htm

Red Velvet Cupcakes

I used this recipe:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/red-velvet-cupcakes-3/


For my mom's birthday, I figured she might enjoy some red velvet cupcakes! I Google searched for the most popular red velvet recipe I could find. I went to the store and got all of my ingredients. I set up everything I could possibly need and I began with this endeavor. After the excitement and preparation for these cupcakes, I was thoroughly disappointed. I followed every step, or so I thought, and baked the cupcakes for longer than advised, hoping they would eventually rise. Unfortunately, my cupcakes didn't rise at all and they looked extremely deformed! I guess I must have messed up somewhere because they looked nothing like the picture. Needless to say, this recipe definitely didn't turn out well for me. Talk about a kitchen catastrophe...