Quest 100: Heart Container Cupcakes

Happy 100 Quests! We have been questing for awhile now and I wanted this post to be extra special. So today I sharing with you THE recipe for the cupcakes that are so popular with my family. I often make these for when we people over for board game days and other get-togethers. These are super chocolately and I will bet you that you can't just have one. For being gluten free, these cupcakes will definitely fill your heart container. Enjoy!

Gear!
1 GF chocolate cake mix - Betty Crocker
1 GF brownie mix - Betty Crocker
6 eggs
1 cup water, hot
2 tsp instant espesso
1 stick butter (1/2 cup) softened
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder

Quest!

For this particular recipe, you do need to use these particular mixes. They normally make a small pan of brownies and a single layer cake.

In a mixer, beat eggs until light yellow.

In a measuring cup, measure out your hot water from the tap. Then add instant espresso powder. Mix and let it sit for a little bit.

Add softened butter, vanilla and baking powder to eggs. Mix until combined.

Add mixes to the bowl and stir on low. Add in espresso mix and continue to mix for 2 minutes on medium. Should be like a cake mix when done. Let this sit for at least 5 minutes for the flour to fully absorb the liquid.

Preheat the oven to 350 degree F. Get your cupcake liners ready in the pan and make sure to spray the liners with non stick spray. Spoon the cake mixture in so they come up about 3/4 of the way full. Should make 24 cupcakes.

Bake for 18-23 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the cupcakes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

Once completely cooled decorate with your favorite frosting. Today with have a light pink vanilla frosting.

Add red and pink hearts to indicate how much life the hero still has. Add some extra sprinkles for fun and Enjoy!

Follow the ZeldaGourmet to bring

LOZ into your home every week! Enjoy!

Quest 99: Tamales with Tasty Meat Filling

Tamales are a lovely dish that can take on a number of flavors. Today we are using this as an opportunity to put tasty meat back on the menu. You remember tasty meat? It's a delicious menu item of Crescent Island. Anyways, on the off chance have some tasty meat laying around, these tamales are delicious and can be made in bulk - cuz this recipe make a lot! And frozen for another day. I recommend having a tamale party and divide the tamales among friends - plus you have helpers to get this all done.

Gear!

3 cups masa harina

2 1/2 cups GF chicken broth

2 T onion powder

1 T garlic powder

1 T cumin

1 T chili powder

2 t salt

1 cup lard

Filling

1 recipe of Tasty Meat

Corn husks, dried

Quest!

Soak corn husks in boiling water.

In a bowl, add masa harina and lard. Crumb together with a fork.

Bring chicken broth to a boil. Slowly add to masa mixture, incorporating after each addition. Add 1 tsp of the cumin and 1 tsp of chili powder to dough.

Prep the tasty meat. Chop into small pieces and add to a bowl.

Add remaining cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder. Adjust salt if needed.

Squish the dough into 2 inch balls. Flatten out into circle. Fill with small amount of meat mixture. Tuck dough around the meat.

Put tamale into corn husk and fold closed. Place on a plate until you have a good amount of them done. Tie together in 3s or 4s with string. Place in a steam basket and add to a pot with just enough boiling water to be below the basket. Steam in a large pot for about 40-45 minutes.

Follow the ZeldaGourmet to bring

LOZ into your home every week! Enjoy!

Quest 98: Apples Chips

Apples are falling out of the trees - literally. There are so many apples that we have had to come up with some ways to use them. In my BotW game, I seriously have hundreds of apples. So today, we will be making our own apple chips. This is easier than you think. If you don't have a dehydrator, you can do this recipe in the oven, but I do recommend a dehydrator. There are a lot of things you can make and preserve. Enjoy!

Gear!

Apples - Use your favorite. We used honeycrisp

1 T White Vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

1 T cinnamon

1 t pie spice

Dehydrator

Quest!

First let's prep the area! Cover your table with newspapers and get your apple peelers and bowls prepped. The peelers we are using also have the added advantage of slicing at the same time. This will skip a step later.

Next, let's wash up our apples. Fill up the sink with cold water and add a tablespoon of white vinegar. Add the apples and move them about in the water gently. Let them sit for about 5 minutes. This will help get rid of any pesticides, bugs or other not great things you probably don't want to eat.

Remove from the water and dry the apples. Place in a bowl for easy reach. As you can see, we did quite a few apples today.

After some trial and error, we decided to just slice the apples and keep the peels. This gadget has the option of doing it either way.

Mix up your cinnamon mixture for dipping the apples.

We did some apples plain and some with the cinnamon mixture. We had so many apples, that it was fun to mix it up. Plain apples can go straight to the dehydrator.

The other apples can go in the cinnamon mixture.

Spread out in an even layer on each tray.

Set your dehydrator to about 135 degrees F. Check the trays every few hours. It does help to rotate the trays as you go along. Once the chips are dehydrated to your liking, remove and place in an air tight container. Enjoy!

Follow the ZeldaGourmet to bring

LOZ into your home every week! Enjoy!

Tingle's Random Cooking Tips: Make Awesome Bullbo Strips (Bacon)

Tingle loves crispy bullbo strips. Yum, yummy. He loves them so much that he came up with an ingenious idea of how to get it just right that he would like to share. Enjoy!

Get your bacon spread out on a broiler pan, so it can drip off as it renders. Add a topping option if you choose. Turn on the oven and put the bacon in the oven as it preheats to 425 degrees F. Once it comes to temperature, bake for an additional approximately 10-15 minutes (20-25 minutes total) or until nice and crispy.

Suggested Toppings Options

1/4 cup Brown Sugar and 1 T Cinnamon
3 T Black Pepper
1/4 cup Minced Jalapenos and 1/4 cup Brown Sugar
3 T. Pumpkin Spice
3 T Cumin and Juice of 1 Lime

Follow the ZeldaGourmet to bring

LOZ into your home everyday! Enjoy!

Quest 97: Hero Lasagna

A Hero is defined as one who shows great courage. Well our friend Link sure has done that plenty of times. Pretty sure the first time I saw a Lynel around age 5 in the original LOZ - things got real! To honor the great hero, we have decided to bring lasagna back again - this time, it's fit for a hero and a hero sized appetite. Enjoy!

Gear!

1 lb. Italian Sausage

1 Medium Onion, chopped

2 Garlic Cloves, chopped

1 (3 oz. can) Tomato Paste

1 (12 oz can) Diced Tomatoes not drained

Salt and Pepper

1 Egg

1 Cup Parmesan Cheese

2 cups Ricotta Cheese

8 oz. block Mozzarella Cheese. shredded

10 oz. package gluten free Lasagna Noodles

Quest!

In a pan, get your Italian sausage cooking. Add chopped onions, garlic. Cook until browned.

In a bowl mix together your egg, ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper. Stir together

Add diced tomatoes and tomato paste. Cook together to make it saucey. If it gets too thick, add a little water.

Spray an 8x8 square pan with non stick spray. Spoon in a layer of the meat mixture.

Add a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles.

Coat the noodles with a layer of the cheese mixture. Add a layer of shredded mozzarella cheese.

Continue layering in this method until you reach the top of the pan. Cover with an extra layer of mozzarella cheese. If you want to cook immediately, bake at 350 degrees F for 35-45 minutes. Alternatively, you can wrap this up with cling wrap and freeze for another day.

Follow the ZeldaGourmet to bring

LOZ into your home every week! Enjoy!

Quest 96: Chocolate Coconut Cave Cake

There are many, many caves in the LoZ series. Including the very first one where the Old Man warns that it is dangerous to go alone. Of course, he doesn't accompany you, but at least you end up with a sharp stick to protect yourself. Today, I have for you different kind of cave - a cave of wonders if you will - at least if you like coconut. The concept is pretty 1950s, but the results are gluten free and delicious. Enjoy!

Gear!

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix -We used Pillsbury

Mayonnaise instead of oil in recipe, plus the ingredients on the box

1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

Filling:

2 egg whites

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 cup shredded sweetened coconut flakes

1 T tapioca flour

1 tsp vanilla

Glaze:

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)

3 T milk

2 cups powdered sugar

Quest!

Prep the bundt pan by thoroughly spraying the pan with non stick spray. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Start with the cake mix. Find out what you need to make this cake mix and make it better! Exchange the oil with mayonnaise and add the other ingredients and mix well with a mixer.

Add about half the cake mixture to the pan.

Get started on the filling. Whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Add in sugar and whip together.

Mix tapioca flour and coconut together and fold gently into the egg whites.

The result should come together in a chunk.

Spoon filling over the first half of the cake mixture. Top with remaining cake mixture. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes and check for doneness.

It will dome up and pull away from the edges when it is done.

When the cake is cool but not cold remove from pan. It should release easier than if you wait until it is cold.

Let's make glaze. Melt butter in a sauce pan until just melted. Take off heat. Add milk and powdered sugar. Stir until it makes a smooth glaze.

Drizzle over the completely cooled cake in a fancy design and Enjoy!

Follow the ZeldaGourmet to bring

LOZ into your home everyday! Enjoy

Quest 95: Crescent Island Tropical Meatballs

On my last trip to Crescent Island in Oracle of Ages, I admired the tropical theme and started thinking about recipes that involved pineapple and other tropical fruits. I also like the flavors of sweet and sour, but it is hard to find at a restaurant that is gluten free. So with all of this in mind, I give you Crescent Island Tropical Meatballs - Enjoy!

Gear!
1 1/2 lb ground beef
3/4 c GF bread crumbs
1/2 c finely minced onion
1 egg
1 t course salt
1/4 c milk
1/2 t freshly grated ginger
2 T cornstarch
1/2 c dark brown sugar
1 can pineapple chunks, in juice
1/3 c white vinegar
1 T tamari or GF Soy Sauce
1/2 c sweet peppers, chopped

Quest!
Note: This is the stove top version of this recipe, but this can easily be transferred to a slow cooker application. Enjoy!

Let's make the meatballs! In a bowl, add beef, bread crumbs, onion, egg, salt, ginger and milk. Mix together - though you don't want to over mix. Shape into 1 1/2 inch meatballs.