From the mind of Laura........

Lentil Quinoa Soup

2012-01-26T21:43:00.000-08:00

It is almost the end of January and here in sunny southern California I am still waiting for winter. I know I ordered winter but it has yet to be delivered. I love winter and the wonderful soups it brings with it. Yes, I know soup can be eaten in any season but winter just makes me crave soup.

About a week ago it was another one of those nights with no dinner plan. When I got home I decided it was going to be a soup night. What kind of soup? I had no idea what kind of soup but soup it was going to be. I opened the pantry and dug around until I found what I thought would be a good combination, some lentils, a little quinoa and some assorted veggies. What did we end up with? YUM! It may not be the prettiest soup but the flavors come together perfectly. Plus, with the lentils and quinoa in there together you have a perfect protein. This soup will become a regular in my home.

Lentil Quinoa Squash Soup

3 Tablespoons olive oil
½ onion, chopped
3 Carrots, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
10 cups water
2 Tablespoons concentrated chicken stock
1 cup brown lentils
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ cup dry quinoa
½ acorn squash, pealed and cut into ½ inch pieces (can use a whole if you like more)
1 medium zuccini, cut into ½ inch pieces
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in large pot over medium heat. Add onion and cook about 3 or 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, do not brown onion. Add carrots, garlic and 2 large pinches of salt. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring often. Add water, concentrated chicken stock, lentils, coriander, cumin and paprika, stir to combine. Cover pot with lid and cook about 40 minutes, stirring a few times, until the lentils are just tender. Stir in the quinoa and acorn squash. Cover and cook ten minutes. Add zuccini and salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook about 10 minutes more until quinoa is completely cooked.

Serves 8

New Years Eve Wedding and Polka Dot Cake

2012-01-04T20:45:00.000-08:00

My friend Mary got married on New Years eve. When she asked me to be her Matron on Honor, about 3 weeks before the wedding, I was happily said yes and asked her if she would like me to make the cake. Knowing it was a small wedding helped me not panic at the thought. I used to make wedding cakes on a regular basis when I was catering but in the last 10 years or so I have not done anything more than really large childrens birthday cakes and various other cakes for family and friends.

I wanted to do something a little different for her and since she didn't insist on it being a white cake and trusted me to do whatever I wanted I knew I had to try something new. Polka Dots! Not on the outside of the cake but on the inside. Polka dots made of cake. How? Well that is where the experimenting came in. Did I do a trial run? Nope! I flew by the seat of my pants and lucky (whew!) it turned out great. The frosting was a no brainer, flour butter cream, smooth and creamy but not overly sweet. Perfect! I won't be posting any cake batter recipes tonight but at the end I will give you the frosting recipe.

You can use any cake recipe as long as it is a moist cake. If you aren't sure how moist your recipe is try adding buttermilk for part of the water or milk or stir in about a half cup of sour cream. These things can help keep a cake moist. You can also use a cake mix if you like.

Prepare the cake batter of your choice for the cake balls. You can prepare the ever popular cake pops which require you to bake a cake, crumble it and mix in frosting, then form balls but..... these balls with sink to the bottom of your batter. I used my daughter's cake pop maker. It can be found at Bed Bath and Beyond (when they are in stock), Amazon, order directly from the company's website and is probably available at other retailers. Bed Bath and Beyond also has pans that you can use to bake some in the oven if you prefer. I stuck with what I already had at home. We really like this little machine.

I mixed a double batch of white cake batter and added a few drops of red food coloring to get the shade of pink I wanted. In a little less than a hour I had over twelve dozen cake balls.

When you are done preparing the cake balls mix the cake batter you will use for most of the cake. I used a twelve inch pan for the bottom two layers of the cake using almost a double batch of my batter for each layer. I then used the left over batter from the bottom layers and added it to a single batch of batter for the two nine inch layers of the cake. Grease and flour your pans. Cut some of the cake balls in half. Pour a thin layer of cake batter on the bottom of the pan and press some of the cake ball halves into the batter. Using a little batter stick some of the halved balls to the sides of the pan.

Pour more cake batter into the pans, don't quite fill it as if you were going to bake it. Take the whole cake balls and gently push them into the batter evenly through out the pan.

Cover the cake balls you pushed into the batter with a little bit more batter, just enough to be able to spread it around and cover the balls.

Bake the cake adding 10 to 15 minutes to the usual bake time, checking to see if it is baked through using a tooth pick. When a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, remove the cake from the oven and cook on a rack for 15 minutes before turning it out of the pan. My twelve inch layers needed to cool for about 35 minutes before they would fall out of the pan. If you are not sure if it is ready to turn out shake the cake pan from side to side and see if the cake will shift a little in the pan, if so it should be ready to turn out without sticking to the pan and tearing the cake.

Allow cake to cool and frost as desired. I put a thin layer of Nutella between the layers of cake. The cake was nice and moist and was a big hit.

As for the polka dots on the inside.......see below :)

As I said I used my favorite flour butter cream frosting. This frosting may seem like it is more work than you like but it really isn't and is worth every step.

Flour Butter Cream Frosting

3/4 cup skim milk

1/4 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup flour

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract (almond works well too)

In a sauce pan mix together the milk, cream and flour. Heat over medium heat, stirring continually, until the mixture thickens and is almost like a thinned pudding. You should see the bottom of the pan when you stir it. Remove from heat and strain the milk mixture through a mesh strainer, stirring and pushing it through, to remove any lumps that may have formed. If you do not strain it your frosting will not be smooth and will have the occasional flour lump. Cool mixture in the refrigerator until completely cool, stirring it occasionally. This is very important. If it is not completely cool it will melt your butter and your frosting will not set. It should only take about 10 minutes to cool but I have been known to cool it in the freezer to hurry things along.

When the flour mixture is cool beat the butter and sugar together using an electric mixer. Mix for about three minute until it is light and fluffy. Add the flour mixture and continue beating for 8 to 12 minutes, using a whisk or wire beater attachment if you have it, until it is smooth and fluffy. Add the vanilla extract and beat about 30 more minutes to combine. Frost your cake as desired.

This recipe will frost 18 - 24 cupcake, a 8 inch two layer cake or a 9 by 13 cake (top and side). You can easily double or triple the recipe depending on the capacity of your mixer. For the wedding cake I used about 5 batches of the frosting.

POLKA DOTS!!!!!

Christmas 2011

2011-12-26T18:07:00.000-08:00

Christmas always seems to arrive so quickly and this year was no exception. I felt very unorganized and didn't get as much baking done as I would have liked but when all is said and done, life was good. My brother Jared, his wife Coralee and their three boys were visiting and it was so wonderful to see them and spend a little time with them. I love spending time with my family and enjoy their company. We are a loud group but full of love and fun.

I was able to get some of the baking done and put together some lemon loaves (recipe coming soon)

persimmon bread

and fig jam (thankfully I actually got the jam done in November)

for my friends at the office. Unfortunately I didn't get the oreo balls done in time to share them with me but I hope they don't mind not getting them this year.

I did get some wonderful peppermint marshmallows (I never got around to making the marshmallows this year) and hot chocolate mix made by Carol and some yummy sugar cookies made by Barbara. Can never have to much good stuff.

The Elders came over a two days before Christmas and helped make some pita bread. Nothing like putting two young men to work in the kitchen.

On Christmas eve we all gathered and Adam, Marie and Lisha's home. We had dinner, socialized and exchanged gifts. Dad brought some old mementos for us all to choose from which included music he had written, photos, programs from when he played in the Tel Aviv orchestra and much more. He gave Nathan a copy of the a hymn that he has written. We were all able to choose something to keep and Adam scanned some of the things that we all wanted a copy of.

(Picture of me with my mother, father and two brothers just before my baptism in the Jordan River)

Dad decided it would be a great idea to make marshmallow launchers for all the kids under 18, personally it makes me worry about his sanity. They all LOVED them of course! And I.....am picking up stray marshmallows.

Christmas morning we had breakfast first (red velvet pancakes this year, recipe below), as always, just the four of us spending time together, well five if you count the cat.

Knowing that my kids are good balls I gave them each some "drinking glass straws" as a stocking stuffer.

The kids enjoyed exchanging gifts with each other. Tara wrote a series of clues for Nathan and sent him on a scavenger hunt for his gift. All the clues where written in "pirate speak" and Nathan read them aloud in his best pirate accent. Ryan sent Tara on a much shorter hunt for her gift. As you can see they take great pleasure from torturing each other. The kids all seemed pleased with their gifts and they were so sweet and gave me the Apothecary jar I liked at Williams Sonoma.

Later in the day their father, Alma and the girls came over and we had a meal provided by Jason's (Tara's boyfriend) family restaurant. Great Taiwanese food. We exchanged gifts and spent time socializing and relaxing. Nathan and Kristina ran upstairs as soon as they could sneak away and immediately started playing his new video games. Some things never change.

Spending time with my family one of the greatest parts of life. I am so lucky to be surrounded by so many wonderful people. Hope you all had a great Christmas too.

Red Velvet Pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons granulated sugar

4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

2 large eggs

1-1/2 cups buttermilk

1/2 cup sour cream

2 teaspoons red food coloring

4 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, sour cream, food coloring and vanilla. Add wet ingredients to dry, and mix just until combined, do not over mix. Add chocolate chips and fold in batter.

Pour about 1/4 cup onto medium low griddle and lightly brown on both sides. These pancakes darken quicker than regular buttermilk pancakes and need to be flipped sooner than you may think. I found that the edges just started to look dry when they were ready to be flipped. When the pancakes are cooked through they spring back with you touch them with your finger like a cake would.

Serve with butter and powdered sugar or maple syrup if you like. Enjoy!

Adapted from that's so yummy

Baked French Toast Casserole

2011-12-22T10:12:00.000-08:00

This time of year many of us have family gatherings and often have family and friends who come from out of town and stay with us. Times like this you want to have a nice meal without spending hours in the kitchen. Breakfast can sometimes be hectic, everyone wanting something different and working around each other. It can be difficult to find something that makes everyone happy.

My family actually agree that this baked french toast is a crowd pleaser. It is quick and easy to put together the night before, the children can help tear up the bread and whisk the egg mixture, and the adults are able to socialize and get back to other activities quickly. In the morning it is quickly put in the oven and easily served with fruit, bacon (which can also be cooked in the oven to eliminate all the time and splatter) or anything else that your family would like.

Baked French Toast Casserole

1 Loaf french bread
6 eggs
3/4 Cup heavy cream
1 Cup + 2 T. milk
3/4 Cup sugar
2 T. vanilla extract

Topping:

1/2 Cup flour
1/2 Cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick cold butter, cut into cubes

Spray 9x13 pan with non-stick spray. Tear bread into large chunks into greased pan.

In a mixing bowl beat eggs with a whisk until slightly frothy. Add heavy cream, milk, sugar and vanilla. Whisk until completely combined. Pour egg mixture over bread, toss bread slightly to distribute evenly, cover pan with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (or at least 4 hours).

In a bowl combine the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add in the cold butter. Using a pastry cutter or forks cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles sand with some larger pieces. Cover or put topping in a zip lock bag and refrigerate until you are ready to bake the casserole.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle the topping evenly over the casserole. Bake 45-55 minutes until it is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes before cutting. Serve warm, top with your choice of butter, syrup, powdered sugar or fruit if desired but it is REALLY GOOD on it’s own.

Adapted from Pioneer Woman (love her!)

REALLY Tired of Chicken Soup but Still Recovering from the Stomach Flu Ginger Chicken and Quinoa

2011-12-13T22:23:00.000-08:00

The stomach flu has reared it's ugly ahead. It is making it's rounds and insuring we all know it is back in town. I think we can all agree that this is NOT A GOOD THING. Just in case you couldn't tell I have had a visit from this nasty bug and at this point am really beginning to miss real food but my stomach was not quite ready for much. What my family needed was a meal that would satisfy those that have been lucky enough not to have been ill (I want their secret!) and nurture those of us who were not so lucky. But the meal needed to be quick and easy so boneless chicken and quinoa it is. And the ginger.....good for you and tasty.

Ginger has long been known to help an upset stomach and nausea. Chicken is naturally mild and nutritious as is quinoa. The nice thing about quinoa is it can absorb most flavors so it works well in many meals. This meal can be done beginning to end in just under 30 minutes and I get to use the Roasted Ground Ginger from McCormick that I really love. Salad is great with this but some of us where just not ready to digest it, for those of you that are, enjoy!

Ginger Chicken Quinoa

2 cups chicken broth or stock
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon roasted ground ginger
1 cup quinoa
Sea salt to taste
Shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)
Grape tomatoes, cut in half (optional)

In a sauce pan combine the chicken broth, garlic and ginger to a low boil over medium high heat. Add the quinoa, lower heat to medium low and cover. Cook about 15 minutes until quinoa is tender but a bit chewy adding a little water (if needed) and continuing to to cook a few minutes until it is absorbed (tips on cooking quinoa here). Fluff with a fork season with salt to taste. Serve topped with cut tomatoes and freshly shredded Parmesan cheese (for those whose tummy is ready for it).

Ginger Chicken

3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Sea salt
Roasted ground ginger
3-4 Tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion

Lay chicken breasts on plastic cutting board or on plastic wrap. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap and, using the flat side of a mallet, pound each breast until it is half an inch thick. Begin by pounding in the middle, the thickest part of the breast and work your way out. By pounding the chicken it cooks more evenly and more quickly. The thinner you pound it the quicker it will cook but be careful you don't over cook it and dry it out.

Uncover the chicken and sprinkle with sea salt and ginger.

Heat skillet over medium heat, add olive oil. Add garlic and onions and cook while stirring one minute. Add the chicken on top of the onion/garlic mixture in the skillet. Cook on first side about 7 minutes, watching that it doesn't get too dark.

If it is cooking too quickly lower the heat slightly. Turn Chicken over and cook the other side about 7 more minutes, just until done. Remove from the skillet and allow the chicken to set for 5 minutes before cutting it to allow the juices to settle, keeping your meat juicier. Remove the onion slices if you like (I only remove the darkest ones). Slice each breast in half and serve.

Pumpkin Pull Apart Bread

2011-12-07T08:00:00.000-08:00

I love pumpkin year round and am often disappointed when it is no longer on the shelves in the stores. I have been known to stock the pantry with several cans of pumpkin puree so that I will have available until at least spring. Adding pumpkin to a cinnamon pull apart bread just seems natural and something that HAD to be done.

My family came for dinner along with a few other people and I decided this would be perfect to have for dessert. Before dinner was served my family dug right in and were thrilled, well everyone but the few crazy people who don't like pumpkin. They were limited to the other option, chocolate chip cookies.

Pumpkin Pull Apart Bread
Adapted from: Willow Bird Baking

Dough:
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup half and half
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste / 1/2 vanilla bean split and scraped / 1-1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup white whole wheat flour
2-1/4 teaspoon instant yeast

Filling:
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

Vanilla Bean Glaze:
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1-2 Tablespoons half and half
1/2 cup powdered sugar, shifted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

To make the dough:

Melt the butter in a small sauce pan over low heat, swirling pan occasionally, until it becomes light brown and smells nutty. Pour butter into the mixing bowl. Pour half and half into sauce pan and heat until warm, this will only take two or three minutes. Pour half and half into mixing bowl. Add the pumpkin, sugar, salt, pumpkin pie spice and vanilla paste to the butter and half and half, stir to combine. Add the all purpose and white whole wheat flours as well as the yeast to the mixture in the mixing bowl. Mix using a dough hook until you have a soft, but tacky, dough adding more all purpose flour as needed. Dough should pull away from the sides of the mixing bowl but feel sticky when you touch it with your finger. Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap, place bowl in a warm place and allow dough to rise until double.

While dough is rising mix together the brown sugar, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice in a bowl and set aside.

When dough has doubled spray your counter with oil and spread it around so there is a light coating on the counter. By using oil on the counter you avoid adding any further flour when you are rolling it up. This helps keep the dough nice and soft, more flour makes for a denser stiffer bread. Gently deflate the dough in the bowl and pour it onto the counter, gently shape it into a small rectangle, cover it with the plastic wrap and allow it to rest for about 5 minutes. This allows the gluten to rest and makes it easier to roll the dough out without it bouncing back to a smaller size. Uncover the dough and roll it out using a rolling pin, lightly covered with oil, into a rectangle measuring 20 inches by 12 inches. Spray a medium loaf pan with non-stick oil spray.

Melt the butter in a mug or small microwave safe bowl in the microwave. Pour the melted butter onto the rolled out dough and brush out the butter until all the dough is coated with butter (all the way to the edges of the dough). Spread the sugar/cinnamon mixture over the melted butter and gently press it onto to dough to help it stick.

Starting on the long side, cut the dough into two even halves (you will have two 10 inch by 12 inch squares) then cut each half into three even strips. You will have 6 strips of dough about the same size.

Carefully stack all the strips of dough on top of each other.

Cut the stack of dough strips into six even pieces.

Pick up each stack (all six layers at once) and stand them in the loaf pan, placing each stack in front of the other, pressing the stacks together a little to make room if needed.

Cover the loaf pan with a clean damp kitchen towel and place in a warm place to rise until double in size. Preheat the over to 350 degrees.

When dough has doubled in size, place it in the center of your preheated oven and bake for 30-35 minuted until the top is dark golden brown. You may want to put a layer of foil on a rack just below your loaf as it bakes in case the buttery/sugary yumminess bubbles up and over the rim of the pan (mine did). Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack. Allow to cool for 20 - 30 minutes.

While bread is cooling melt the butter for the glaze. Combine the melted butter, half and half and powdered sugar, stir until smooth. Add vanilla paste and vanilla extract, stir until combined.

When loaf is still warm but just cool enough to touch, run a butter knife around the edges to loosen the loaf from the pan and turn the loaf over onto a plate to remove from the pan.

Turn loaf right side up on serving dish. Drizzle glaze over the loaf while still slightly warm. Serve.

Helpful Hints

2011-12-06T13:46:00.000-08:00

With the Holidays upon us I thought it would be good to have some helpful hints for your cooking and baking. I find that sometimes it is the little things that make the most difference when trying to get everything done.

* I love to use lemons and limes in my cooking and lemon bars are one of our favorite treats. I always feel like I am not getting all the juice from the fruit. I was thrilled to find this video from Gourmet! ....and it works really well.

* Spraying your counter with non-stick spray instead of sprinkling with flour when working with most yeast doughs prevents the dough from sticking to the counter and not picking up any more flour. The more flour the dough picks up the denser it will be. The key to light and fluffy breads is using as little flour as possible allowing the dough to expand and stay soft.

* When making cuts on the top of your loaf use a very sharp knife and lightly spray the blade help prevent it from dragging across the loaf.

* To clean cast iron cookwear do not use detergents it will absorb the detergent and effect the taste of food cooked in it. Scrubb them with salt and a clean paper towel.

* If you are making gravy and accidentally burn it, just pour it into a clean pan and continue cooking it. Add sugar a little at a time, tasting as you go to avoid over-sugaring it. The sugar will cancel out the burned taste.

* If you aren’t sure how fresh your eggs are, place them in about four inches of water. Eggs that stay on the bottom are fresh. If only one end tips up, the egg is less fresh and should be used soon. If it floats, it’s past the fresh stage.

* Before making popcorn on the stove or in an air popper, soak the kernels in water for 10 minutes. Drain the water, then pop as normal. The additional moisture helps the popcorn pop up quicker and fluffier with fewer unpopped kernels.

* Before you chop chili peppers, rub a little vegetable oil into your hands and your skin won’t absorb the spicy chili oil.

* For cleaning smelly hands after chopping onions or garlic, just rub them on a stainless steel spoon. The steel is supposed absorbs the odor.

* If you are making gravy and accidentally burn it, just pour it into a clean pan and continue cooking it. Add sugar a little at a time, tasting as you go to avoid over-sugaring it. The sugar will cancel out the burned taste.

* Cook bacon on a meat rack in a roasting pan for 20 minutes at 350 degrees to allow greases and oils to drip below. The oil will drip to the bottom it provides for perfect bacon and crispness every time. Bonus - no splattering of bacon grease all over your stove top!

* Spray measuring spoons or cups with non-stick vegetable spray before measuring sticky ingredients like honey, molasses and peanut butter so they’ll slide right off.

* Here are some tips from Gourmet on making cupcakes, (YUM! cupcakes!):

and last but not least......

* Common Ingredient Substitutions

Allspice (1 teaspoon) - 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/4 teaspoon ginger, and 1/4 teaspoon cloves

Baking powder (1 teaspoon) - 1/4 teaspoon baking soda plus 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar OR 1/4 teaspoon baking soda plus 1/2 cup buttermilk (decrease liquid in recipe by 1/2 cup)

Bread crumbs (1 cup) - 1 cup cracker crumbs OR 1 cup matzo meal OR 1 cup ground oats

Broth: beef or chicken (1 cup) - 1 bouillon cube plus 1 cup boiling water OR 1 tablespoon soy sauce plus enough water to make 1 cup OR 1 cup vegetable broth

Brown sugar (1 cup, packed) - 1 cup white sugar plus 1/4 cup molasses and decrease the liquid in recipe by 1/4 cup OR 1 cup white sugar OR 1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar

Buttermilk (1 cup) - 1 cup yogurt OR 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar plus enough milk to make 1 cup

Corn syrup (1 cup) - 1 1/4 cup white sugar plus 1/3 cup water OR 1 cup honey OR 1 cup light treacle syrup

Half & half (1 cup) - 7/8 cup milk plus 1 tablespoon butter

Heavy Cream (1 cup) - 1 cup evaporated milk OR 3/4 cup milk plus 1/3 cup butter

Cream of tartar (1 teaspoon) - 2 teaspoons lemon juice or vinegar

Crème fraiche (1 cup) - Combine 1 cup of heavy cream and 1 tablespoon of plain yogurt. Let stand for 6 hours at room temperature

Egg - (1 whole)- 1 tablespoon ground flax seed soaked in 3 tablespoons water

Evaporated milk (1 cup) - 1 cup light cream

Bread Flour (1 cup) - 1 cup all-purpose flour plus 1 teaspoon wheat gluten.

Cake Flour (1 cup) - 1 cup all-purpose flour minus 2 tablespoons

Self Rising Flour (1 cup) - 7/8 cup all-purpose flour plus 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon of salt

Honey (1 cup) - 1 1/4 cup white sugar plus 1/3 cup water OR 1 cup corn syrup OR 1 cup light treacle syrup

Mayonnaise (1 cup) - 1 cup sour cream OR 1 cup plain yogurt

Sour cream (1 cup) - 1 cup plain yogurt OR 1 tablespoon lemon juice or vinegar plus enough cream to make 1 cup OR 3/4 cup buttermilk mixed with 1/3 cup butter

Sweetened condensed milk (1 14-ounce can) - 3/4 cup white sugar mixed with 1/2 cup water and 1 1/8 cups dry powdered milk: Bring to a boil and cook, stirring frequently, until thickened, about 20 minutes

Leftover Turkey Hash

2011-11-25T12:35:00.000-08:00

We all love our yummy Thanksgiving turkey with all the sides but after you have eaten the same thing several times over it can be hard to look at it just sitting in the refrigerator. Finding new or different ways to eat that turkey can sometimes seem like more work than it is worth.

One way I like to use up some of the turkey is in a hash, adding flavors that are a little different than you may have with your Thanksgiving dinner, giving me a little welcome change. It can be eaten for breakfast with some eggs on the side, or for lunch and dinner with a bunch of veggies or a big salad on the side. I don't know about you but after Thanksgiving I feel the need for a lot more fruits and veggies. My breakfast today.....this hash and a large bowl of mixed fruit. YUM!

Turkey Hash

3 Tablespoons olive oil
3-4 medium potatoes, peeled and shredded (about 3 cups)
1 small onion, diced (about 2/3 cup)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1-1/2 cups shredded turkey
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon smoke sweet paprika
1/4 chopped cilantro
Salt and Pepper
Cheese of choice (optional)
Tomatoes, diced (optional)
Sour cream (optional)

Wash, peel and shred the potatoes. Place potatoes in a strainer and run under cool water for about 2 minutes, allow to drain completely. Heat non-stick skillet. And add olive oil and diced onion and cook over medium low heat until soft, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and and cook while mixing for about one minute. Add potatoes, spread them over the onion and garlic, then sprinkle with about 1/2 teaspoon of salt, stir. Continue to cook the potatoes over medium heat until tender and just beginning to brown. Add turkey, stir, then sprinkle the coriander, cumin and paprika over all. Stir in the seasoning and turn up heat to medium high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes brown. Add more salt and some pepper, to taste. Mix. Add the cilantro, stir, and cook an additional minute or two. Top with shredded cheese (I used a sharp white cheddar), tomatoes and sour cream if desired.

Salt Cured Turkey (Dry-Brined) - Day 4 Cooking Day!

2011-11-20T22:28:00.000-08:00

Let me just start this with......OH MY GOSH THAT IS SO GOOD! Yes, I just tasted the turkey and it is so good and juicy.....heaven!

The fourth day is cooking day and in the end, as you can see above, the wait is definitely worth it.

Remove the turkey from the refrigerator and remove it from the bag if you didn't do so the night before. If you didn't remove the turkey from the bag at the end of day three then pat it dry with paper towels. Place the turkey in your toasting pan, I like to use a wrack to allow the drippings to drop below the turkey and not make the meat at the bottom of the bird soggy.

Set turkey, in pan on the counter and allow it to set for about an hour. Bringing the meat closer to room temperature helps it cook more evenly.

Combine the following in a bowl:

4 Tablespoons of butter, softened
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

Separate the skin from the breast meat by gently working your hand in between the skin and the meat. If you are going to stuff the turkey now would be the time to do so or you could do like I did and throw in a few pealed garlic cloves and two onions, quartered and make your stuffing in another pan. Under the skin place about 1-1/2 Tablespoons of the softened butter mixture and spread it the top half the the breasts by patting the top of the skin. Rub the remaining butter mixture over the the rest of the turkey concentrating on the breasts and legs.

Place meat thermometer in the thickest part the the leg and place it in the oven on the rack at lower third of the oven. Cook at 450 degrees for 30 minutes. Turn down the oven to 325 degrees and cook until the thermometer reads 165 degrees (about 12 minutes per pound not stuffed and about 15 minutes per pound stuffed). Do not baste the turkey while it is cooking. Remove turkey from the oven and allow to sit for at least 30 minutes to allow the juices to settle in the meat. Cut and serve your turkey. Enjoy!

(Not the clearest picture, sorry I was really excited!)

As you can see my oldest son was ready and waiting to be a taste tester. His comments were "really juicy" and "this is really good" so I think we have a winner! As a side note, I think I have the most handsome taste tester/model around. (wink)

Salt Cured Turkey (Dry-Brined) - Day 3

2011-11-18T22:22:00.000-08:00

So today is just is as easy as yesterday with just a little flip.

Remove your turkey from the refrigerator and once again give it a nice gentle massage, through the plastic bag. (The turkey is getting much more massaging than I am, something is wrong here.) Okay back on track.......You may notice that there is a little less liquid, this is good! Now......ready....flip the turkey over in the pan, bag and all. Your turkey should be "bottoms up" at this point. Place the bird back in the refrigerator and go find someone to give you a massage.

That is all for today! Simple right?

Part two of day 3 (for those that like a crispier skin)

If you like a crispier skin, late on day three remove the turkey from the bag and place it on a large plate or in a pan and place it back in the refrigerator over night to dry out the skin. If you prefer not do this, no problem, just pat the skin dry with paper towels when you remove the bird from the bag on day 4. I chose to set remove it from the bag on place it on a wrack in the roasting pan.

Salt Cured Turkey (Dry-Brined) - Day 2

2011-11-17T21:19:00.000-08:00

Everyone loves a good massage, even your Thanksgiving turkey, although unlike myself the turkey likes a gentle massage. That is all that needs to be done to your bird on the second day.

Remove the turkey from the refrigerator, pan, bag and all, and gently massage the bird for a 2 or three minutes (through the bag). You may notice that there is no longer any obvious salt. Don't worry this is a good thing. Also you may also notice that the salt has started to draw out some of the liquid from the meat. Don't panic it will be reabsorbed. Just give your bird a gentle massage and put it back in the refrigerator. Don't think about it for another 24 hours or so.

Easy peasy! Day two is complete. Now go relax you worked hard all day.

Salt Cured Turkey (Dry-Brined) - Day 1

2011-11-16T19:30:00.000-08:00

I have been asked by many people how to cook a turkey, even my ex-husband. He now cooks a turkey almost every year and my understanding is that it is quite good.

There are many approaches to cooking a turkey and tradition can play a large part in how you prepare your bird. There are those who like to deep fry (would love to try that one day), those that brine in salty or my favorite, salty/sweet water, and those that keep it simple with seasonings and butter or oil.

Recently salt curing, often called dry-brine, has been making a showing. Now I have made a prime rib encrusted in rock salt (YUM!) and was impressed with the results (not salty AT ALL) so this peaked my interest. You need to think ahead a few days (4 to be exact) but the results should be wonderful. The first day it will take about 20 to 30 minutes to prepare the turkey, days 2 and 3 only take about 5 minutes. Day 4 is cooking day. There should be about 30 minutes of hands on work to prepare the bird, about an hour to allow the turkey to come to room temperature, and the cooking time (depending on the size of your bird).

I am going to make a small turkey (13 pounds) for my family because. Although we are going to my Dad's house for Thanksgiving my family always loves to have plenty of turkey to snack on and use to create other meals. You can do this along with me, follow behind a few days or wait, and see the results on Sunday (just in time for you to start your own salt cured bird for the holiday). I started with a fresh (not frozen) bird but you can use a frozen turkey if you like just run it under cool water for about 10 or 15 minutes when rinsing it to start the thawing.

Salt Cured Turkey (day one)

Ingredients:

Whole turkey

Kosher salt (coarse)

Bay leaves, optional

Rubbed (or ground) sage, optional

Crushed Rosemary, optional

Dried Lemon Zest, optional

Plastic turkey roasting bag or small trash bag

In a small bowl or jar crush the bay leaves and then add the sage, rosemary and lemon zest if you choose to use them. The herbs are not required but will add more flavors to finished turkey. Add the salt to the herbs and crush everything together using the bottom of one or your spice jars (as you would with a pestle and mortar) to bring out the aroma of the herbs. If you choose not to use the herbs, just measure out the salt in the measurements listed below.

For every 5 pounds of turkey use:

3 bay leaves, broken up

1/4 teaspoon sage

1/4 teaspoon rosemary

1/4 dried lemon zest

1 tablespoon of salt

Set aside the bowl with the salt mixture.

Open the turkey package and remove the neck and gizzards from the inside of the turkey. Make sure you check the neck opening to be sure you get it all. Rinse the turkey, inside and out, under cool running water. Pat the turkey dry with paper towels, making sure to get the inside and all the hidden nooks.

Place the dried turkey in a roasting pan. I opened up the roasting bad and placed the turkey inside to try to simplify things but you can always move the turkey into the bag after you season it. Starting on the legs, pat the salt mixture onto the skin (not under the skin), making sure to tilt the turkey a little and get some salt on the bottom of the bird, move up the bird and continue to the pat the salt onto the breast. Toss a few pinches of the salt mixture into the inside of the turkey. Concentrate the majority of the salt mixture on the legs and breasts.

Place the turkey in the plastic bag (or pull the sides of the bag up if you placed the turkey in the bag to begin with), push out most of the air and close the bag tightly. Place the turkey, in the bag, in a roasting pan and place it in the oven.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

2011-11-12T18:03:00.000-08:00

I love oatmeal any time, especially Coaches Oats. I like Coaches Oats because they have a firmer texture then their rolled counter parts, much like steel cut oats, but cook much faster. The groats (whole grain oats) are toasted and cracked and have a wonderful nutty flavor. I buy them at Costco but I understand they can be found in other stores and can also be ordered from their website and delivered right to your home.

Many people start eating oatmeal more often when the weather gets colder. I love adding fruit, nuts, peanut butter and even topping it with plain Greek yogurt. Nathan likes to stir in raspberries and chocolate chips. Apples are perfect in the fall and if you make too much you can always put it in the refrigerator and have it the next day to two, just add a little water and pop it into the microwave and heat it through. Since weekday mornings can be busy and rushed I have made this the evening before and put it in the refrigerator for a quick healthy breakfast in the morning.

My whole family enjoys this oatmeal although there is one in particular that prefers much more sugar in his than the rest of us do.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

1 cup coaches oats

1 cup chopped and peeled apple

4 T. butter, divided

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 C. water

Brown sugar taste
Half & half, heavy cream or milk if desired

In a medium size pot melt 2 T of butter and add the oats. Toast oats for about 2 minutes over medium heat. make a well in the center, add the remaining butter and the apples and stir and cook about 2 more minutes. Stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg and cook about one minute. Add the water and vanilla and bring to a boil. Cover, lower heat to low and cook for 5 minutes, until most of the water is absorbed, stirring once or twice. Remove from heat and add brown sugar (my family likes about 1/4 cup added) and stir to combine. Serve topped with half and half or cream if desired.

Serves 4

This can be made with steel cut oats. After toasting the oats (using all 4 T of butter) add the cinnamon and nutmeg (skip the apples for now), cook 2 minutes, add the water and cook about 35 to 40 minutes, until the oats are almost done. At this point add in the apples and cook and additional 5-7 minutes, cooking until the oats are done.

Chicken Spinach Orzo Salad

2011-10-05T20:41:00.000-07:00

Have you ever found a local special food store that you love to visit and inspires you each time you go in? Last year my father introduced me to a small store in Pasadena that specialized in California olive oils appropriately named Beyond the Olive. In addition to olive oil they also carry some amazing balsamic vinegars, salts, dips, pesto sauces and tapenades and of course olives. When you walk into the store you are greeted warmly and they are always happy to help you. You may taste all the products and they are always willing to share ideas and recipes with you. If you live locally it is worth a visit. Go in, relax, taste the products and get inspired. The nice thing about this store is that if you would like to take home just a small amount of some of the oils or vinegars you can do that because they have small sampler bottles for only $4 each for many of their products.

On my last visit I found a beautiful raspberry basil vinegar that I knew I had to have. I knew it would be perfect on a salad but the question was what salad would be first. The answer, something with spinach and fruit but filling enough for a teenage boy. I have to say, I think we have a winner.

Note: Beyond the olive has online ordering and will ship their products to you if you don't live locally or can't make it into the store. If you are unable to find a raspberry vinegar I have provided a recipe below so you can make it at home.

Chicken Spinach Orzo Salad

1 pound dry orzo
3 cups shredded cooked chicken breasts (about 2 breast halves)
2 cups packed baby spinach leaves, washed roughly chopped
1 cup Craisins
1/2 cup good quality olive oil
1/3 cup raspberry basil vinegar (raspberry vinegar or raspberry champagne vinegar will work also)
1 glove garlic, minced
Sea salt & fresh cracked pepper

In a bottle or jar combine the olive oil, vinegar and garlic. Shake with lid on or whisk together and aside while preparing the salad.

Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil, add about 1/2 tsp. salt and dry orzo, stir. Cook for about 9 -11 minutes until pasta is "al dente" (firm but not hard) and pour into a colander to drain. Run colander with orzo under cool water to stop the cooking and cool pasta quickly. Allow to drain completely.

In a large salad bowl combine the orzo, spinach, chicken and Craisins. Slowly pour half of the dressing over the salad and toss to combine well. Slowly pour the remaining dressing over the salad and toss again to combine. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste. Allow salad to set for at least 15 minutes before serving to allow flavors to meld.

Serve chilled.

Raspberry Basil Vinegar

2 cups white balsamic or white wine vinegar
large handful raspberries, washed and dried
large handful sweet basil, washed with stems removed and roughly chopped

In a glass bowl, jar or measuring cup warm the vinegar in the microwave until slightly warmed. In a glass container that is air tight when sealed place the raspberries and basil. Pour warm vinegar over the raspberries and basil. Seal container and place it in a dark cool place (do not refrigerate) for 1 month. Do not open container during this time. After one month strain out the solids by pouring the infused vinegar through a mesh strainer lined with cheese cloth. Clean container. Pour strained vinegar back into cleaned airtight container. Store in cool dark place.

Comfort Food - Tator Tot Casserole

2011-09-12T14:14:00.000-07:00

Well we are finally moved and have mostly settled into our new home. I. Hate. Moving. It makes me crazy. Not just the normal crazy. Certifiable, over the edge, impossible to live with CRAZY. Needless to say nothing else gets done until I am settle and most things are where they belong. Most importantly, the kitchen needs to be unpacked and functional before I can even begin to consider settling down. And this is why there have been no posts for over a month. Plus if I had posted anything during this time it would have proven just how crazy I am and those who have wanted to have me committed for years would have had proof they needed to FINALLY do so. Anyway.....moving on....

One thing that is always welcome is comfort food. Quite often though comfort food is so full of mouth watering, deliciously heavy ingredients we hesitate to make it. So, I decided that I needed, okay wanted, something that was warm and comforting but made a little lighter so that I could actually do more than sit around after eating.

By using 98% fat free cream of chicken soup (yes I used canned soup, it happens, get over it) you have almost half the calories, and quarter of the fat and less sodium than if you used the original version. Using light sour cream cuts the calories by a third and the fat in half. If you use fat free sour cream the calories are less than half and no fat at all. Using ground turkey breast instead of ground beef (15%) cuts half the calories and the fat is cut from 17 grams of fat (7 grams saturated fat) per serving to 1.5 grams of fat (no saturated fat) per serving. Then there is the cheese. Well sorry folks I don't use low fat cheese. Hate the taste, doesn't melt properly and just generally not worth it. If you want to cut down on the amount of cheese that works but I have my limits and low fat cheese just not worth it in my opinion. If it helps you can use Parmesan for part of the cheese, it adds a lot of flavor and you can use considerably less. have fun with it, enjoy, relax....be comforted. Life is crazy but dinner can be easy and relaxing.

Paired this with a salad or a nice big serving of broccoli and life is good.

Turkey Tator Tot Casserole

1 1/2 lbs ground turkey or chicken

1 cup chopped red onion

1 can 98% fat free cream chicken soup

1 cup light or fat free sour cream

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

2 lbs bag tator tots

3 green onions, chopped

Preheat oven to 400. Pray 9x13 baking pan with nonstick spray.

Brown the turkey in a skillet with a little canola oil. Season lightly with salt, pepper and garlic powder. When turkey is cooked about halfway through add the chopped onions and continue cooking. Pour into the bottom of the prepared 9x13 pan.

In a bowl combine the cream of chicken soup and sour cream. Pour mixture over meat and gently spread to cover the meat. Sprinkle half of the cheese of the sour cream mixture.

Cover the cheese with Tator tots. Cover as completely as possible so that you have almost none of the cheese layer showing through. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and green onions.

Bake for 35-40 minutes.

Quinoa Salad with Chicken, Apples and Grapes

2011-07-29T23:02:00.000-07:00

Quinoa is one of my family's favorite foods. It is versatile and easy to prepare and so amazingly good for you. Quinoa contains a set of essential amino acids making it a complete protein. It is also a good source of dietary fiber and phosphorus and is high in magnesium and iron. It easy to digest and gluten free. Best of all, it is delicious!

Last week when some of my family came to over for small low key celebration of my son's 21st birthday I introduced by siblings to quinoa. Everyone, except for a certain 9 year old that doesn't know what's good, loved it. Even my ex-husband asked me how to make it and took a small bag of left overs home!

I love that this salad can be served at room temperature or chilled. It is light and refreshing but satisfying. Add any fruits or nuts you like, if it sounds good to you it will work with the quinoa. On it's own, quinoa has a light nutty flavor but takes on the flavor of any broth you cook it in, dressing you mix it with or spices you add to it.

Quinoa Salad with Chicken, Apples and Grapes

1 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed (I used white but red or black is also great)
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup water
3 T olive oil
3 T white wine vinegar
2 cups shredded chicken
1-1/2 grapes, cut in half (I used red for color)
1 large red apple, diced
2 green onions, chopped
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 oz crumbled Gorgonzola cheese
Salt & pepper to taste

Place quinoa in a fine wire strainer and run under running water until rinse water runs clear. It is VERY important to rinse the quinoa because it will be bitter it you don't. I have purchased Bob's Red Mill Quinoa which is rinsed (it is indicated on the package) and have had it turn out fine, but I highly recommend rinsing it just to be sure.

Combine the chicken stock and water in a pot that will hold 4 times the amount of dry quinoa you are cooking. Bring liquid to a boil, stir in the quinoa, lower heat to medium low and cover pot with a lid. Cook quinoa for 15-20 minutes until tender and fluffy. When the quinoa is done cooking it will be soft but not mushy and may look like it has a thin tail wrapped around it. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.

Place the quinoa in a large bowl. In a small bowl combine the olive oil and white wine vinegar with a whisk. Pour dressing over quinoa and mix well to evenly distribute. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Add the chicken, grapes, apples and green onions. Stir. Add Gorgonzola cheese and stir again to evenly distribute the cheese. Add the almonds and toss salad once more. Serve chilled or room temperature.

Serves 4-6

The New Newton

2011-07-13T22:17:00.000-07:00

I rarely buy packaged cookies but when they are given to me....well.....what's a girl to do? I have to admit that I was a little skeptical when received a package of Newtons Fruit Thins.

My kid broke into the package first. Hey! I had to have guinea pigs!

I watched as my 16 year old son took a bite and waited for "the face." To my surprise his eyebrow lifted and he said something to the effect of 'hhmm not bad' and shrugged his shoulder. Now if I translated that correctly (from the language of a teen boy to English) this means 'these are really good.' So I decided to give them a try and found that they were actually quite good. They were crisp, lightly sweet and have small bits of fruit. They make a nice little treat and go very well with a cup of herbal tea.

Everyone of my children, as well as my co-workers and one of my oldest son's friends all liked them quite a bit. Do they replace a fresh homemade cookie? No. But they are definitely worth having around for a quick treat and they will most likely find their way into my shopping basket in the near future.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received Newtons Fruit Thins

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

2011-07-04T11:37:00.000-07:00

Do you ever want something just a little different that will impress your family and guests. This recipe may not seem like much but the minute they taste it they will be won over. I happen to think it is pretty too. It is cool, creamy and has just a little crunch. So Good!

This only takes a about 30 minutes to prepare and is set in about 2 hours so you can throw it together at the last minute and have a cool, refreshing and oh so satisfying dessert.

Strawberry Pretzel Salad

2 cups small pretzel, crushed
3/4 cup butter, melted
1 Cup plus 3 T. sugar
2 - 8 oz. blocks cream cheese
8 oz Cool Whip, thawed
1 (6 oz)package strawberry jello
2 cups water, boiling
2 - 10 oz packages frozen strawberries, partially thawed

Preheat oven to 400. Measure out 2 cups of pretzels, place them in a gallon size zip lock bag, crush pretzels. Crushing pretzels is made easy by rolling over the bag with a rolling pin or smashing them with the back of a wooden spoon. Place crushed pretzels in a bowl, add 3 tablespoons of sugar and stir in the melted butter. Press mixture into the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Cool crust in the freezer while mixing the next two layers.

Using a mixer combine the softened cream cheese and 1 cup of sugar until smooth. Fold in the Cool Whip. Spread evenly over pretzel crust.

Dissolve jello in the boiling water then add the partially frozen strawberries and stir. the more frozen your berries the quicker the jello will begin to set up. Allow to sit for about 5 to 10 minutes until it just begins to thicken. Pour over cream cheese layer. Refrigerate until set (about 2 to 3 hours). Cut into squares and serve.

Baked Mac n' Cheese

2011-06-10T21:58:00.000-07:00

This dish is one of my family's favorites, it is comfort food at its best. It can be done simply with one cheese, no onions, garlic or chicken or it can be added to and customized as much as you like. While I realize it isn't what most may consider a summer dish I really think it is perfect anytime you want a comforting and satisfying meal.

I love this with three cheeses, onions, garlic and some chicken or ham. I have been known to add polish sausage.

Baked Mac n' Cheese

1 1/4 cup Gouda cheese, shredded

1 1/4 cup Jarlsberg cheese, shredded

1 1/2 cup mild cheddar cheese, shredded

1 1/2 roughly shredded chicken

1/2 cup chopped onions

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 T. olive oil

1 cup milk

1 pound small shells or elbow macaroni

3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs (Japanese bread crumbs which are courser give great texture)

1 T. butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Boil the macaroni in salted water until it is just fork tender. Do not make it too soft, it should be very al dente (firm but not hard). Pour cooked pasta into a strainer and run cold water over it to stop the cooking. Allow to drain completely. Place in a bowl.

In a skillet heat the olive oil and add the onion, cook until tender and beginning to caramelize, add the minced garlic and saute a minute or two. Do not allow the onions or garlic to burn, the garlic will become bitter. Remove from heat and mix into the cooled macaroni.

Spray a 3 quart casserole dish (9 x 13 works well) with nonstick spray. I like using a glass dish so you can see the layers of gooey cheese after it bakes. Add just enough macaroni to the baking dish to cover the bottom (about the depth of one macaroni) so that very little of the bottom of the dish shows through the macaroni layer. Layer with the cheeses using 1/3 of each and top with about 1/2 cup of chicken.

Add another layer of macaroni and repeat cheese and chicken layers. Make a third layer of Macaroni, cheese and chicken and top with a thin layer of macaroni.

Pour milk over the top of the whole dish, it will settle on the bottom. As you bake the macaroni the milk will heat up and steam the macaroni softening it a little more.

Combine the Panko bread crumbs and melted butter in a small bowl until butter is well distributed.

Spread the bread crumb mixture evenly over the dish.

Bake for about 30 minutes until the top is golden and the cheese is bubbly.....YUM!!!

Allow to sit for about 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Uncle Ben's and the Thai Sticky Rice with Mango

2011-06-06T22:08:00.000-07:00

Uncle Ben's has introduced whole grain rice to their line up of products. Through Foodbuzz Tastemakers Program I was provided with a box of this rice and asked to create a kid friendly dish. Hopefully I was successful.

Kids love dessert and so I decided that that was the way to go. Thai Sticky rice is usually make with a short grain rice that has much more starch than is in a long grain rice so I needed to find a way to add starchiness. I added rice flour to the rice once it was done cooking and that seemed to do the trick. Coconut milk is a key ingredient in this and canned works great.

This is typically served with mango sliced and placed on top of the rice but thought it would be fun to put it on the bottom. Whatever you decided to do remember it is best served fresh but it can be rewarmed (don't let the appearance scare you away) with additional sauce added.

Thai Stick Rice with Mango

1 package Uncle Ben's whole grain rice
1/2 tsp. coconut flavor
1 tsp. rice flour
2 cups canned coconut milk
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 tsp salt
3 ripe mangoes
whipped cream, optional

Cook rice according to the directions on the package adding the coconut flavor to the water before cooking. DO NOT stir the rice and the end before it sits to absorb the remaining moisture. After the rice has set for 5 minutes, stir in the rice flour and cover. Allow to sit while preparing the sauce.

Place the coconut milk in a heavy pot and heat over medium heat until hot. It will be thick and possibly clumpy but liquefy as you heat it. Do not boil the coconut milk, just get it warm enough to be steamy.

Add the sugar and salt to the coconut milk and stir until it dissolves completely.

Pour 1 cup of the coconut milk sauce over the cooked rice, cover rice and allow to sit and absorb the sauce for 30 - 60 minutes.

The rice will absorb most of the sauce.

While you wait for the sauce to be absorbed peel and slice the mangoes. There is a great video HERE that shows you how to do this if you need help.

To serve, place a mound of rice on each plate (or bowl) and place mango over or around the rice. Ladle some of the remaining sauce over the rice and mango. Top with whipped cream if desired.

As I said I decided to place the mango on the bottom this time but it comes out tasting great!

The traditional dish usually has stickier rice but this is version works well and cooks up much faster.

Dill Chicken Potato Salad

2011-05-15T17:30:00.000-07:00

As the weather gets warmer we often need recipes that will keep for a day or two and that are easy to put together. Meals that are easy to take on a picnic or BBQ are perfect for this time of year. Tyson's Grilled & Ready chicken breast strips help make this much easier. They are tender and juicy and perfectly seasoned so they are easy to add to almost any recipe. My family doesn't use a great deal of mayonnaise and prefers salads with vinaigrettes, even when it comes to potato salad. Combining the light taste of my potato salad with the easy to use Tyson chicken strips makes for a winning salad.

This salad has it all. Fresh tender chicken, potatoes, veggies (leeks), fruit (tomatoes ...yes I know there is some disagreement on this but I say fruit) and a light refreshing taste. Add more chicken for an even heartier meal, it is a great lean protein.

Dill Chicken and Potato Salad

9 oz Tyson Grilled & Ready chicken breast strips, cut into cubes
2 pounds assorted baby potatoes, (ie. purple, red and new potatoes) or cut potatoes into large bite size pcs.
1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half
3/4 cup chopped leeks
1/4 cup chopped chives
1 T. fresh dill or 1 tsp dried dill
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 T. red wine vinegar
Sea salt and pepper to taste

Wash the potatoes. I found an assortment of baby potatoes which were perfect for this salad. Cook Potatoes in salted water until they are fork tender but not mushy.

While the potatoes are cooking cube the chicken and chop the leeks. Rinse the leeks very well to remove any dirt that may be trapped between the layers.

Place about 2 T. of olive oil in a hot skillet, add the leeks, and cook a few minutes until softened.

Drain potatoes and run cold water over them to stop the cooking. Set leeks aside. In a small bowl combine 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 T. red vinegar and whisk well. Cut the potatoes in half.

In a bowl combine the potatoes, tomatoes, chicken, leeks, chives and dill, stir mix well.

Whisk the olive oil and vinegar again and pour over the salad. Mix until well coated. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate for at least one hour before serving to allow the flavors to meld.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program, I received Tyson Grilled & Ready Chicken Breast Strips.

Soft & Fluffy 100% Whole Wheat Bread (and So Easy)

2011-05-02T08:24:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a piece of whole wheat bread that although the flavor was good the texture was dry, dense or heavy? The kind of bread that when you fold it in half it breaks apart and leaves crumbs everywhere? This bread is the answer to all of those things and it can be made from start to finish in an hour and a half!

The presence of bran in whole wheat flour reduces gluten development and therefore bread made with it tends to be more heavy and dense. Gluten gives dough elasticity, helping it to rise and keep it's shape as well as contributing to the chewy texture of the bread. Therefore adding wheat gluten will help make your whole wheat bread lighter. Wheat Gluten can be found in most major grocery stores (I use Bob's Red Mill) and can be ordered from places like King Arthur. Adding honey, butter or milk for part of the water can also help also.

One of the other ingredients that can be used is barley malt syrup. This is an old ingredient but is still found fairly easily if you know where to look. Barley malt syrup acts as a fermenting agent in both baking and brewing. In baking, barley feeds the yeast which then releases gases into the dough. The gases make the dough lighter and airier. It also provides an earthy, nutty flavor to the bread. I have found this at Whole Foods but it can also be found in stores that carry brewing supplies and online.

Although freshly ground whole wheat flour is the best I do not yet have a grain mill so I, like most people, must rely on what my local grocery store carries. When purchasing your flour be sure it is 100% whole wheat flour and not mixed with all purpose flour or bread flour.

Honey butter is great on this bread, okay.....most bread. Recipe for Honey butter follows bread recipe.

Whole Wheat Bread

6 cups whole wheat flour, divided
1/3 cup gluten flour (vital wheat gluten)
1 1/4 Instant yeast (quick rise or bread machine yeast)
2 1/2 cups steaming hot tap water (not boiling)
1 T salt
1/3 cup Canola oil (see update below, this can be done differently)
1/4 cup honey
2 T barley malt syrup
1 T lemon juice

UPDATE: I have found that this bread does not need much oil. I have forgotten to add the oil and it was still moist and soft. I have found that I like using only about 2 tablespoons of oil instead of the 1/3 cup indicated above.

Mix 3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, gluten flour, yeast and hot water for one minute. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes. This allows the yeast to proof a bit and the hot water to soften the wheat a little.

While allowing the dough to rest combine the salt, oil, honey, barley malt syrup and lemon juice in a small bowl. After dough has rested for 10 minutes add the wet ingredient mixture to the dough and mix for about one minute.

Add the remaining 2 1/2 cups of flour a cup at a time, combining each addition completely before adding the next. Knead the dough for 10 minutes (12-14 if doing it by hand) until a soft dough forms and it pulls away from the side of the bowl. Form the dough into loaves and place in greased loaf pans.

Turn on oven to any temperature for 1 minute and then turn it off. Place loaves into the warmed oven (with oven turned off) and allow to rise for 15 minutes, dough should double in size.

Leaving the loaves in the oven set it for 350 degrees and bake for 30 minutes until deep golden brown and loaves sound hallow. Removed from the oven and place on cooling rack. Coat the tops with butter if desired. Allow loaves to cool in pans for 10 minutes then remove from pans and cool bread on rack until cooled completely.

Honey Butter

1/2 cup butter, softened (1 stick)
2-3 T. Honey (I love to use carmalized honey, the flavor is deeper)
1 tsp. vanilla paster (or extract)

Beat butter until fluffy.

Add honey and vanilla and beat until combined.

Serve.

Baked Cream Cheese Rangoons

2011-04-25T15:31:00.000-07:00

I love cream cheese Rangoons but since they are typically fried they can upset my stomach at times. So, I decided I needed to make some that were baked. Now those of you who know me realize that once I get an idea in my head I will work on it until I figure it out. Thankfully this was an easy one. In fact there are those of you that like to ask me something knowing my curiosity will get the best of me and I will just have to find a way to do it....you know who you are. Moving on..... I thought that baked rangoons would be an easy enough recipe to make so that they would be something that could be thrown together at the last minute and would be fun to serve. Hopefully you will agree.

As I mentioned in this post won ton and egg roll wrappers can be used in many different ways. Quite often I prefer to buy the egg roll wrappers and cut them into four equal squares because I get more for my money that way.

Should you have any extra of the cream cheese filling it is great on a bagel!

Baked Cream Cheese Rangoons

24-30 won ton wrappers (or 6 to 8 egg roll wrappers cut into 4 equal squares)
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 T. chopped chives
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Preheat oven to 375. Spray a mini muffin pan with non stick spray.

Combine the the cream cheese, chives and garlic until well mixed.

Place about a teaspoon of cream cheese mixture into the center of each won ton wrapper.

Moisten all four sides of the won ton wrapper with a little water. Pinch the wrapper together by bringing the center of each edge to the center and pressing it together to make a pouch. Only moisten one wrapper at a time, the edges must be moist in order to stick together.

Place in mini muffin pan. Lightly spray with non stick oil spray.

Bake about 15 minuts until golden brown.

Note: These can be done on a cookie sheet if you like.

Ciabatta Bread - No Knead

2011-04-12T23:25:00.000-07:00

Ciabatta bread is a bread that I have wanted to try making for a long time, but I was worried because I had read it is not an easy bread to make. To add to the said difficulty of creating the long, broad and short loaf there are many versions from different regions in Italy which just added to my confusion. I finally decided that I would go with what worked best for me and hope that the purists weren't offended.

What is Ciabatta? Ciabatta means slipper. I have yet to see a loaf that looks like a slipper but ...... to each their own. And does it really matter? No. All that matters is that this bread is wonderful. One thing that all the versions of this bread seem to agree on is that the dough should be slightly soured with a light airy crumb and and a crusty, chewy crust. It's shape is perfect for sandwiches and is often served with olive oils and other dips, since the crumb absorbs dips and liquids very well, for this purpose it may be toasted. To refresh a loaf who's crust may have gotten soggy, spray it with a little water and toast in a really hot oven right before serving. Should you find yourself with stale Ciabatta it makes nice big croutons.

This simple version of this bread takes some time but only because of the time required to ferment the dough. This dough is VERY wet (which worried me at first) but if you follow this recipe and have some faith you will be just fine.

No Knead Ciabatta

4 Cups bread flour (I used 3-1/2 cups bread flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)
1/4 tsp dry active yeast (yes that is right, only 1/4 tsp)
2 Cups warm water
1-1/2 tsp. table salt

Combine the flour, yeast, salt and water in a large mixing bowl using a rubber spatula. Be sure you use a bowl about that will allow your dough to quadruple in size.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow dough to ferment for 18 to 24 hours in a warm, not hot, draft free place. Dough should be bubbly and have grown significantly.

Punch down the dough using a rubber spatula and fold the dough using the spatula for a minute or so.

Flour a piece of parchment paper large enough for fill a baking pan (a large cookie sheet or jelly roll pan works well) and pour the dough directly on to the flour parchment paper forming a long "loaf."

Lightly flour the top of the dough and gently stretch and shape the dough into a long flat loaf. Flour the top of the loaf and transfer to your baking sheet.

Cover the dough with a clean towel and allow to rise for 2 hours in a draft free place. Loaf will not rise in hight much but will widen quite a bit. About 20 minutes before the dough is done rising preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Place a pan of water on the lowest shelf of the oven and place your dough in the center rack of the oven and bake (on the floured parchment) for 35 minutes until a rich brown color is achieved. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Bread sticks: Quick and Easy

2011-04-07T17:40:00.000-07:00

I love bread! I also have this fascination with all the aspects of making good bread, the science behind it. It is so satisfying to slice into a fresh loaf that has just cooled and see how perfectly it has turned out. Video of this is definitely food porn! I have found that generally it takes time and patience but in the end you are rewarded with anything better than you could ever buy. And you should always wait until your bread has cooled completely before cutting into it. But this recipe contradicts all of that.

You can have soft, hot and flavorful bread sticks in about an hour......from scratch! This recipe makes a jelly roll pan full but at my house it is usually gone in less than 24 hours. They are best warm right out of the oven but rewarming them in the microwave for about 10 seconds is a close second.

Bread sticks

1/2 C warm water
2 T sugar
1 T Quick rise (Instant or bread machine) yeast
1 C warm buttermilk
3/4 tsp salt
3 1/2- 4 C flour
6 T butter, divided
1-1/2 tsp garlic salt
1-1/2 Italian seasoning
3/4 C shredded Parmesan cheese
3/4 C Shredded Asiago cheese

In your mixing bowl combine the yeast, sugar, warm water and 1/2 cup flour. Stir to combine, it will be lumpy.

Allow to sit for about 15 minutes until it becomes a little bubbly.

Add remaining flour and and mix for 5 minutes. While your dough is mixing melt 2 Tablespoons of butter and pour into jelly roll pan, spreading to cover the bottom of the pan and all the sides.
Dough is ready when it is smooth but a little sticky (it should stick to your fingers but pull off when you pull away).

Allow dough to rest for 5 minutes (it will make it easier to form the dough to the pan and not keep bouncing back). While dough is resting shred the cheeses finely. Place dough in buttered pan and spread evenly with your hands to cover the bottom of the pan.
Melt remaining 4 Tablespoons of butter, pour over dough and spread with a pastry brush covering all the dough all the way to the edges.

Sprinkle dough with garlic salt, garlic seasoning and then the cheeses.

Cut the dough into three pieces on the long side and 12 rows on the short side creating 36 long thin sticks.
Place pan in a COLD oven and turn oven on the 350 degrees. Once oven reaches 350 degrees bake for 12-15 minutes, turning pan half a turn after 8 minutes, until they bread sticks are golden.
Wait 5 minutes and re-cut the slices you made before baking. Enjoy while still warm.

Four Cheese Baked Ravioli

2011-03-25T23:40:00.000-07:00

What could be better than melted cheese in a small hand held pouch? Yum! I love finger food and this is perfect. These can be served as an appetizer or snack and are so much fun. Nathan helped me by sealing the edges with a fork and sprinkling the toppings on top. And when they were done, he spent the better part of the afternoon returning to the kitchen periodically to grab "just a couple more." Ah! The appetite of a teenage boy never ceases to amaze me.

Four Cheese Baked Ravioli

1 pkg Wonton wraps or 12 egg roll wraps
1 cup Ricotta cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup freshly shredded Asiago cheese
1/4 cup half and half
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
Garlic salt and/or Italian seasoning mix
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

In a bowl combine Ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, Parmesan cheese, Asiago cheese, half and half, oregano and basil. Season the cheese mixture with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

If using the egg roll wrappers cut them each wrapper in half vertically and then horizontally. I like to buy the egg roll wrappers because you can easily double this recipe using just one package or use the left over wrappers for other recipes such as cream cheese Rangoons, fried mozzarella sticks and more (these recipe will begin making an appearance in the near future).

Fill half of the wrappers with a heaping tablespoon of the cheese mixture on each, being careful not to place any filling near the edges. Slightly flatten the filling.

Using a pastry brush, small clean paint brush or your finger, brush water on all four edges of the wrapper. Place a second wrap on top, then crimp the edges together tightly with your fingers and then with the tines of a fork sealing all four edges. It is best to wet and seal one Ravioli at a time to insure that they seal properly. Place on greased baking sheet.

Brush Ravioli with olive oil and sprinkle with either garlic salt or Italian seasoning mix.

Bake for 10-12 minutes until lightly browned. Serve with marinara sauce for dipping if you like.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T14:46:00.000-08:00

For many Valentine's Day can be stressful, but I like to think that when you are doing something for your valentine they will be pleased with anything that comes from the heart. Sometimes it is the simple things that make the best impression. You can take one of your valentine's favorite dessert and cut heart shapes from it or add a few hearts made of pie crust cut into heart shapes, moistened with a little water, sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar and baked for about 8 minutes at 375 degrees until golden brown.

When the produce woman showed me the giant strawberries she had I knew what my home needed (yes I said needed)..... chocolate covered strawberries. The nice thing about these is they are easy and quick and can be dressed up without much effort. I like to use chocolate made for candy making (Wilton's candy melts is an easy brand to find - Walmart even carries it) but you can melt any chocolate you like to make these. If using chocolate bars, roughly break or chop up the bars into pieces before beginning to melt them.

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

Remember to melt your chocolate slowly, either in a double boiler or carefully in the microwave. If using the microwave there are a few things to keep in mind to insure success, remember it is better to go slowly than risk scorching your chocolate (this can happen very quickly). Begin by putting chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and heating for 20 seconds, remove from the microwave and stir. At this point it will probably just be starting to melt in a few places. Return it to the microwave for 15 seconds and stir, repeat until melted. As you get closer to the chocolate being almost melted begin to heat for only 5-7 seconds at a time. Remember to stir each time to distribute the heat. If you only have a few small chunks of chocolate that haven't melted stir a little longer and see if they will melt without any added heat, if not return to microwave for 5 seconds more.

The strawberries should be washed and dried completely. I usually wash my berries and then lay them on a towel to dry for an hour or two, then I take each berry and dry it with a paper towel. Be sure to get all the water off each berry, including the stems and leaves. If any water gets into your chocolate it will seize up.

Take the berry by the stem and dip it into your chocolate. Allow a little to drip off the berry and then place the it on a parchment paper lined dish or tray. If your chocolate starts to cool and get too thick, just put it back in the microwave for 8-10 more seconds and stir. After dipping all of your berries place them in the refrigerator to harden. If using melting chocolate you will not need to refrigerate the berries to harden the chocolate shells.

Have some fun with it. Use sprinkles, coconut, finely chopped nuts, double dip, dip in white chocolate first then in dark (after dipping in chocolate immediately dip in sprinkles/coconut/etc before the chocolate dries). You can also put some melted chocolate in a small zip lock bag, snip a tiny hole in one bottom corner and drizzle them. "Tuxedos" can be made by first dipping the front only of the strawberry in white chocolate then once it has dried dipping in dark chocolate one side at a time leaving a "v" of uncovered white chocolate in the front. Use a tooth pick to dot some buttons and bow tie on the front "shirt" and allow to dry. I have also used edible glitter and sparkling sugar to decorate berries. Just remember to have fun with it.

You can place your beautiful berries in a nice box or put them on a plate and wrap with cellophane and tie it all together with a bow.

Love bug Truffles

Truffles are wonderful rich and so easy. If you don't want to create love bugs you can simply dip the soft centers in melted chocolate (and then in nuts, coconut, etc if you like) or roll them in cocoa powder. No matter what you decide to do these will be loved and appreciated.

12 ounces good quality chocolate, broken into pieces ( used semi-sweet)
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place chocolate in microwave save bowl. In a mug heat the cream in the microwave until steamy. Pour hot cream over chocolate allow to sit for about 2 minutes. Stir chocolate mixture. If chocolate has not melted completely place bowl in the microwave and heat for 10 seconds at a time, be sure to stir the chocolate each time you take it out of the microwave to evenly distribute the heat and insure you don't scorch the chocolate. Once it has melted completely stir in the vanilla extract.

Place bowl of chocolate in the refrigerator for 1 - 1/2 hours until softly set but not hard. Using a melon baller, scoop chocolate, roll between hands and place on parchment paper lined dish or tray.
(Note: If you are going to roll in cocoa powder do so right after rolling into ball with hands and then place on parchment paper.) Place tray in refrigerator for 30 minutes. At this point you can dip in chocolate (if you didn't chose to roll in cocoa powder) and chill until set or make love bugs.

To make love bugs, melt red melting chocolate slowly as described above in the microwave 10-15 seconds at a time until completely melted. Using two forks, dip your chilled truffle centers in melted red chocolate and place back on parchment paper.

While red chocolate is hardening slowly melt dark melting chocolate. Dip 1/3 of each red ball in the chocolate and place it on the parchment paper. Place some melted chocolate in a small zip lock bag and snip one of the bottom corners to create a very small small hole. Using the zip lock bag filled with chocolate draw a line down the center of the "bug" from the head the the tail and place dot and/or hearts on the wings.

Slowly melt a small amount of white melting chocolate and place in another small zip lock bag. Snip a bottom corner of the bag to create a very small hole. Place two white dots on the face for the eyes and a little line for the mouth.

To finish the eyes, use the melted dark chocolate in the zip lock bag which you used to makes the lines and dots on the wings and place a very small dot on top of the white. Allow to harden.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Chicken Taco Filling

2011-02-05T16:02:00.000-08:00

I love making this filing and having it on hand to use for tacos, burritos, nachos, taco salad and more. It is a recipe that many are familiar with. Most people do it in a slow cooker, and I did for years, but I found that there are times I don't remember to put everything in the slow cooker before I leave, so I adapted it for the pressure cooker. is easy to put together. It only takes a four ingredients so it Best part is it can be done in minutes and doesn't heat up the kitchen when you use an electric pressure cooker. This recipe works great for taco bars and pot lucks also.

Chicken Taco Filling

2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 (16 oz) salsa, use your favorite
1 package taco seasoning mix
1/2 chicken broth

Combine salsa and seasoning mix in a bowl. Pour broth into pressure cooker, add chicken. Pour salsa mix over chicken, making sure a little gets between the layers of chicken pieces. Bring up to high pressure and cook for 6 minutes, use quick release to relieve the pressure.

Remove chicken and shred with two forks.

Spoon some of the salsa mixture remaining in the pressure cooker over the shredded chicken. Serve.

Pressure Cooker Pinto Beans

2011-01-14T11:48:00.000-08:00

I am ashamed of how long it has been since my last post. My one New year's resolution - post more often. You would think I could come up with a better resolution, or least a few more, but we all know I need to take baby steps. So in an effort to start the year off right (yes I know it has been a new year for almost two weeks now - sshh!) I thought I would tell you about my new electric pressure cooker and some of the wonderful things that can be done in it. I love this machine! It has made making dinner after a long day at work so much easier, and it doesn't heat up the kitchen so using it in the summer will be a breeze. Oh! and you can even make dessert in it! Yippee!

I have the Cuisinart 6 quart electric pressure cooker from Costco (thanks to a tip from my wonderful friend Carol). If purchased in the warehouse it is $69.99 which is the lowest price I have seen on this cooker. Some of this machine's features are:

Digital thermostat, 99-minute timer and LED countdown display
Programmed temperature settings: low and high pressure, browning, simmer, sauté and automatic keep warm
Non-Stick Cooking pot
Stainless Steel trivet
Cool-touch side handles
Dishwasher safe cooking pot and trivet

If you choose to purchase this machine, there is something you should be aware of. Do NOT follow the instructions when it comes to placement of the pressure control valve. The first time I tried to use it it would not build up pressure. Now mind you I have used a stove top pressure cooker for years and have never had a problem (other than it is kind of a pain to put the lid on and it takes some experience learning to keep the pressure at a certain point) but I couldn't for the life of me get it to work properly. I read the instructions a second and third time and still.....nothing! I then called Carol and asked her. Thankfully she already had this model and had seen a demonstration of it being used. She told me not to worry about lining up the dot on the valve control to the dot on the lid but to turn the valve control until I find the lowest point and that should take care of it. She had a problem with things burning when she followed the instructions but once she figured this little trick out all has been fine since. At this point I even asked my 20 year old son to read the instructions and see if I was missing something. Obviously I was desperate! Finally I figured out that it actually needs to be on backwards (from what the picture in the manual shows) I was it worked great.

I have called Cuisinart and pointed this out to them. The woman was very nice and said that she would let them know and that the change most likely will be made to the manual available online. I recommend making a small batch of rice first in order to be sure you are able to find the best way to place your valve release. If you have trouble give them a call, they are very helpful. Once you have it all figured out you will love your pressure too.

I have make several things in the cooker now but believe it or not the pinto beans seem to be the most popular. The nice thing about this is that there is no soaking and rinsing and they are done in just over an hour from beginning to end. Plus they are healthy! Something that people with "real" resolutions might be looking for. I served these with chicken tacos (filling also make in the pressure cooker - recipe to come) and Mexican rice.

Pinto Beans

2 Cups (1 lb) dry pinto beans

8 Cups water

1 medium onion, chopped

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1-1/2 tsp. dried Mexican oregano (any dried oregano will be fine, Mexican is a little earthier)

1-2 pinches cayenne chili powder

2 Knorr Cilantro cubes or 2 tsp. dried cilantro or 2 T. fresh chopped cilantro

2 Knorr Chipotle Chili cubes or 2 tsp. dry chipotle chili powder or 2 canned chipotle chili crushed

Salt to taste ( I used about 1/2 tsp)

Rinse beans (do not soak them) to remove any dirt or other particles. Set pressure cooker to high pressure. Add the beans, water, onion, garlic powder, oregano and cayenne chili powder to the cooking pot. Lock lid into place and set timer for 35 minutes of pressure (it will take about 10 or 15 minutes to build up the pressure then begin counting down the time). Once the cooker has signaled that the cooking has completed allow the pressure to release naturally, this will take about 20 minutes. Once the pressure has released open the lid carefully. Keeping the cooker on "keep warm" setting sprinkle in the cilantro and chipotle chili. If using the cubes just pinch the cubes and they will crumble quickly allowing you to to add it to the liquid easily. Also, if you are using the cubes do not add any salt until you have stirred all the cubes in and tasted the liquid (the cubes contain some salt). Add salt to taste. Replace the lid, locking it in place is not necessary. Allow to set for about 20 minutes in order for the beans to absorb some of the new flavors.

If you would like to freeze the cooked beans, place them in a freezer bag with enough liquid to just cover the beans, push out most of the air and seal bag. Frozen beans can be stored in the freezer for 3 months.

Note: The Knorr cilantro and chipotle chili cubes are great to have on hand to add to soups, meats and more. I found them in the Hispanic food section of my local Walmart. Carol looked for them at her Walmart (about 10 miles from me) but they did not carry them. If you have a Latin food market near you , you may want to check there also. They can also be ordered online by following the link in the ingredients list or ---->click here the cilantro and ----> here for the chipotle

Quiche & Cake

2010-12-07T17:49:00.000-08:00

I have a friend who loves quiche and peanut butter with chocolate in almost any form, separately not combined of course. So, for her birthday I made two quiches; Quiche Lorraine and Spinach with Mushroom Quiche as well as a chocolate peanut butter bundt cake.

I like my quiche to be nice and cheesy and with a hint of egg. It is rich and gooey and good either hot or cold. I usually prepare it in my tart pan but it can, and has been, made in a pie dish. If you have never tried making quiche give this a try, you will be pleasantly surprised at how easy and delicious it is.

Since I don't seem to have a fuctioning brain much of the time I only remembered to take pictures as I assembled the spinache and mushroom quiche but, no matter what you choose to put in your quiche just follow the same process; cheese and other fillings of choice first then top with the egg mixture. As for the pie pastry you can make your own or....use Pillsbury (GASP!) ;) .....Few people will notice the difference.

Quiche Lorraine (Bacon and swiss cheese)

2 cups shredded swiss cheese
8 slices of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
1/4 cup chopped onion, raw
1-1/2 to 2 cups half and half
4 eggs
1 pie pastry

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Line tart pan or pie dish with the pie pastry. Sprinkle the shredded cheese, bacon and onions into the pie dish. In a bowl combine the half and half (start with 1-1/2 sups and add more later if needed to fill the dish) with the eggs and whisk until well mixed. Pour egg mixture over the cheese, bacon and onions until it fills the pie dish, being carefull not to allow overflow (add the additinal half and half at this point if needed). Carefully place the pie dish in the center of the oven.

Hint: You may want to lay some foil on the lower shelf of your oven to catch any egg mixture that may spill as it 'puffs.'

Bake for about 45 minutes until the filling has set. Remove from the oven and allow to rest 10 minutes before serving.

Spinache and Mushroom Quiche

10 oz package of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cups shredded swiss cheese
1-1/2 to 2 cups half and half
4 eggs
1/4 salt
2-3 pinches ground black pepper
Olive oil

In a skillet sautee the mushrooms in about a tablespoon of olive oil, over medium heat, until tender. Remove from skillet and set aside. Add the chopped onions to the skillet and carmalize over medium heat. Remove from skillet.

Assemble the quiche as discribed above adding the salt and pepper to the egg mixture mixing.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 45 minutes, until filling is set. Remove from the oven and allow to rest 10 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Bundt Cake with Peanut Butter Tunnel
(no it is not from scratch but no one will ever know)

1 box chocolate cake mix
4 eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
1 cup sour cream
2 cups chocolate chips, divided
1 cup creamy peanut butter
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 - 1-1/2 cups heavy cream, divided

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Spray the bundt pan with oil spray, make sure to give it a good coating. Stir together in a medium bowl the peanut butter, powdered sugar and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream. Stir until well combined adding more cream as needed until the mixture is soft enough to squeeze through and ziplock with a hole but not runny. You want it to hold its shape and be thicker than cake batter but not so stiff that it will be dificult to squeeze out of the zip lock bag. Fill zip lock bag with peanut butter filing, cut a one inch hole in one of the lower corners of the bag and set aside.

In a mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, eggs, buttermilk, oil, and sour cream and mix until well combined and no large lumps of cake mix remain. Add 1 cup chocolate chips to the batter and stir to combine. Pour 2/3 of the batter into bundt pan. Take yoru zip lock bag with peanut butter filling and squeeze it around the center of the cake batter going all the way around and using all the filling.

Pour the remaining batter over the filing and place the pan in the center of the oven. Bake 50 minutes until a toothpick comes our clean.

Allow cake to cool for 20 minutes. Place a large plate over the top of the bundt pan, and holding both the bundt pan and the plate together flip them both over removing the cake from the pan. Allow cake to cool completely.

Place remaing cup of chocolate chips in a medium bowl. Warm 3/4 cup heavy cream in the microwave until hot and steaming. Pour hot cream over chocolate chips and allow to sit for 2 minutes. Stir chocolate and cream together until all chocolate is melted. If you would like you can add a tablespoon of creamy peanut butter at the point and stir until combined.

Allow to cool slightly to allow to thicken slightly but still pourable and pour of bundt cake allowing it to drip down the sides of the cake.

Birthdays, sushi and ice cream cake cupcakes

2010-11-06T02:02:00.000-07:00

Life has been hectic and I have fallen behind blog posts. I decided that instead of trying to do several posts I would combine several considering they having a theme......Birthdays!

As hard as it is for me to believe, my little princess has turned 18. The family, minus the sickies Lisha and Marie, came over the day before her birthday for cake and ice cream.

Each birthday I ask the kids what kind of cake they would like. We have a few favorites that are served fairly regularly but every once in a while they come up with something different. This year Tara decided she wanted ice cream cake, but she wanted it served as cupcakes. Now you could go to Cold Stone Creamery and buy them but why when they can be made at home. I wasn't sure what I was going to do but I dived right in and thankfully they turned out great. I learned a few things as I went....but more on that later.

On the day of her birthday we went to Kabuki Restaurant and had a wonderful dinner. The sushi there is so fresh and the presentation is beautiful. One of our favorites is the spicy tuna on crispy rice. Luis and Alma (the kids father and step mother) had never been to this restaurant but seemed to love it. It is hard to resist all the good food, we always seem to order slightly more than we can eat. Our waiter, Ted, was wonderful and handled our party of ten in a friendly and efficient manner. Everyone had a good time enjoying each others company.

Luis' birthday was last week and he loved Kabuki so much he asked all to join him there to celebrate. As usual the food was amazing and the company wonderful. As you will see there is no shortage of variety and everything looks beautiful (even if I haven't been the best photographer lately). As usual the waiter (Ted again) was very accommodating and even stroked Luis' ego by saying he thought it was his 21st birthday when Tara loudly announced it that was the reason for our visit. The usual green tea ice cream (delicious) was brought with a candle and most of us had a bite or two to round out the meal.

Now for the Cupcakes......

Prepare your cake batter and bake it in greased and floured jelly roll pan. I used the Texas sheet cake recipe. Allow it to cool completely. Using biscuit cutters measure the size circle needed to fit in the bottom of a cupcake liner and the top edge of the cupcake liner. Cut enough circles for a top and bottom layer for each cupcake (I got about 15 cupcakes worth from one sheet cake).

Place rounds of cake on a tray, using wax or parchment paper to divide layers if needed, and set in freezer for about an hour.

Now here is one of biggest things I learned while doing this: never use paper cupcake liners - only use FOIL liners! Why?....well as we all know if you have a piece of paper and you add something liquid to it will become very soft and in the case of cupcake liners.....well they lose their shape. Now I know this about paper but for some reason it never occurred that softened ice cream was, well, firmer liquid. I am chalking it up to having a blond moment. Anyway, as soon as I saw the cups losing their shape I quickly threw them in the freezer and frantically called by son. Now what you don't know is that at this point he was on a date (of sorts) and I wasn't sure when to expect him home but, darn it, I needed to be rescued! Thankfully he was on his way home and he stopped in at the store and picked up a package of foil cupcake liners and brought them home. He is so patient and good to me. Exhibit "A" -

(Thankfully I was able to freeze them quickly enough and transfer them to foil liners)

Moving on, place a one of the smaller pieces of cake in the bottom of each liner. Soften ice cream slightly in the microwave and place a small scoop of ice cream on top of each bottom cake round. I used cookies and cream ice cream on half the cupcakes and mint chocolate chip on the other half.

Place a top cake round on top of each and gently press down using the palm of your hand. Place them in the freezer and freeze until hard. I froze them overnight but about 4 hours should do.

Prepare your favorite frosting. Buttercream or canned (I know! but does the job in a pinch) work the best and hold up well in the freezer. Fill a pastry bag with a star piping tip with frosting, or use a gallon size ziplock bag and cut a small hole in one of the corners to squeeze out frosting. Remove cupcakes from the freezer. Working quickly, pipe on the frosting and put them back in the freezer.

About 5 minutes before serving remove the cupcake from the freezer to allow them to soften slightly. Enjoy! My family loved these! (as you can see we are a real formal bunch) I will definitely be making these again soon.

Wild Mushrooms

2010-10-11T14:44:00.000-07:00

I have recently had the opportunity to participate in a wild mushroom recipe challenge by Marx Foods. I LOVE mushrooms and was very excited to have this opportunity to this. They sent me 5 varieties of dried mushrooms; Porcini, Lobster, Black Trumpet, Chanterelle and Matsutake. They all have a wonderful aroma and I had some trouble deciding what do with them. I wanted to show a few different ways to use dried wild mushrooms and finally decided that just one recipe would not do. Here are three recipes I have come up, including a dessert of sorts (yes really) that I hope you will also enjoy.

To begin with for most recipes you will need to rehydrate the mushrooms. Marx Foods has great instructions HERE.

Filet Mignon with Wild Mushrooms and Red Wine Reduction

2 (4 oz.) pieces filet mignon

1 oz dried wild mushrooms (mix and match any varieties you like)

1 scallion, sliced thin

1 1/2 cups red wine

olive oil

1 T. butter

salt

pepper

Rehydrate mushrooms and set aside. I used Lobster, Black Trumpet and Mutsutake mushrooms.

Make a one inch slit in the side of each filet and create a 'pocket'. Stuff some of the rehydrated mushrooms inside each filet, save the rest for later. Season each side of the filets with salt and pepper, drizzle with a little olive oil and allow to set for a few minutes. Preheat over to 450 degrees. Using an oven safe pan add a tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and heat pan until very hot high heat. Place filets in pan and and sear for one minute, turn meat over and sear other side for one minute.

Place pan with filets in the oven, cook for 4 minutes. Turn meat over and cook another 3 minutes. Remove from the oven and removed meat from the pan and allow to rest while preparing the reduction sauce.

Using the same pan add scallions and cook over medium high heat for 1 minute.

Add wine, mushrooms and butter, stir to melt butter.

Cook for 1 minute and remove mushrooms from the pan. Continue to cook wine sauce until reduced by half. Turn off heat and remove sauce from pan.

Serve filets whole or sliced with sauce drizzled over it and mushrooms on top.

Serves 2

Porcini Risotto

2 cups Arborio rice

1 small sweet onions, chopped

6 cups chicken stock

1 cup dry white wine

1 clove garlic, minced

2 T. butter

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 oz. dried Porcini mushrooms

Heat the chichen stockand hold warn over medium low heat.

Place dried mushrooms in a spice or coffee grinder and grind until a fine powder.

Heat pot or skillet large enough to hold all ingredients on medium high and add the olive oil and onions. When onions are almost translucent add the garlic, cook for about 30 seconds, mixing constantly. Add the rice and stir with a wooden spoon to toast the rice for about 2 or 3 minutes. Add the wine and continue to stir until all the wine is absorbed.

Add about 2 cups of the chicken stock and the ground mushrooms, cook until all chicken stock is absorbed, gently stirring often.

Do not add more stock until the first addition is absorbed. Add 2 more cups of chicken stock and stir gently. Add final 2 cups of stock and continue to stir. Only add the final 2 cups of stock when all other stock is absorbed.

Once stock is absorbed removed the pan from the hear and add the butter and cheese, stir gently once more until butter is melted.

Serves 4 - 6

Toasted Brioche with Goat Cheese, Caramelized Figs and Candied Chanterelle Mushrooms

1 oz. dried Chaterelle Mushrooms, rehydrated (reserve water used to rehydrate mushrooms)

1 cup sugar

32 Black Mission figs

4 oz. goat cheese, room temperature

4 slices of Brioche, toasted

Place one cup of the water from rehydrating the mushrooms (add water if needed to make one cup) and sugar in a small sauce pan over a medium heat. Once all sugar has dissolved add the mushrooms and bring to a simmer.

Simmer for 5 or 6 minutes and allow to cool to room temperature. Remove mushrooms from syrup and drain slightly on a paper towel. Reserve syrup. Chop mushrooms into small pieces.

Remove the skin from the figs, cut each fig in half. Heat a non-stick skillet, sprayed with canola oil, over medium heat. Place figs, cut side down, in hot skillet and cook until caramelized (watch closely). gently turn each fig half over and caramelize the other side. Removed from heat.

Spread about one ounce of goat cheese on each slice of toasted brioche. Place 8 fig halves on each slice, top with chopped mushrooms and drizzle with reserved mushroom syrup to taste.

Serves 4

Rosemary Raisin Pecan Crisps

2010-09-20T17:26:00.000-07:00

A few months ago my boss brought some Raincoast Crisps to the office. They are crisp, tasty and have the perfect balance of sweet and savory. Everyone one of us loved them but when we found out they are about $8 for a small box it was decided I needed to find a way to make them.

Fast forward a few months and I finally have a recipe that tastes just like the originals. They take a little time to make but are not difficult and definitely worth the wait. These are great all on their own and the bread is really good even before turning it into crisps. Serve with some cheese and fruit and you will impress everyone.

Rosemary Raisin Pecan Crisps

Makes 6-8 dozen crackers

2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup flax seed, ground
1 tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Add the buttermilk, brown sugar and honey and stir a few strokes. Add the raisins, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, flax seed and rosemary and stir just until blended.

3. Pour the batter into two 8″x4″ loaf pans that have been sprayed with nonstick spray.

Bake for about 45 minutes, until golden and springy to the touch (Note: For mini loafs bake for 30 minutes).

Remove from the pans and cool on a wire rack.

4. The cooler the bread, the easier it is to slice really thin. You can leave it until the next day or pop it in the freezer (I froze my mini loaves for about two hours). Slice the loaves as thin as you can (I slided them about 1/8th of an inch thick)and place the slices in a single layer on an ungreased cookie sheet. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees and bake them for 15 minutes.

5. Flip them over and bake for another 15-20 minutes, until crisp and deep golden brown, adding more time if needed. Remove from the sheets to a cooling rack. They will continue to crisp as they cool.

Adapted from Dana Treat

And the Palms have it!

2010-09-07T23:28:00.000-07:00

I recently became aware of a product that intrigued me, palm plates. These are plates are made of palm leaves that have naturally fallen and been cleaned, dried, stretched and flattened into various plate sizes and shapes. And cutlery is also available. These items are all biodegradable and compostable making them the most green disposable plates and cutlery available.

When I first received the package I was pleased to find that the plates where not only beautiful but appeared to be fairly sturdy.

I was excited to put them to use and decided that the first thing I would use the plates for was to serve my Rosemary Raisin Pecan crisps. The natural beauty of the crisps looked perfect against the plate, almost as if they belonged together.

I then decided to test the plates to see how they would hold up to foods with a lot of liquid. I placed some colored water in one of the small plates and allowed it to sit on the counter for an hour. I was surprised that although some of the water seeped through to the counter it really was not much at all and the plate still held together.

Moving on, I placed five large cucumbers on one of the larger plates and lifted it holding it only by the edges. The plate held the weight without any problems.

After removing the cucumbers I had my daughter hold the same plate while I placed a five pound bag of flour in the center. There was no sign of breakage.

I began to wonder if these plates could be used several times over. I decided to use one plate for different meals or snacks and try washing it between each. I started with hummus (with olive oil and paprika) and pita, washing to plate when I was done.

On to dinner, a little jasmine rice, chicken, broccoli and cauliflower.....and another wash.

And of course.....dessert.....

Although the plate began to show slight wear....

The plate was mostly intact other than a small break in one edge while applying medium pressure....

In the end I decided that these plates are not only beautiful but very sturdy. They are pricey though. The natural grain shows...

and would be a beautiful addition to any event.

There is one thing my children found these plates were not good for......Frisbee.....they crack when you catch them against your hip.........

Plates were provided by Marx Foods for review.

Salted Caramel Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies!!!!!

2010-08-18T16:38:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wished you could find a cookie that would give you that wonderful sweet/salty combination? At The Picky Palate they have come up with the perfect cookie for your cravings. Caramel, chocolate, salt.....what could be better?

When I first saw this post I knew I had to make these cookies. I needed to pick up some dark chocolate but within a day or so I was happily putting these together. A muffin top pan is suggested but since I don't have any of those I used my medium cookie scoop which holds a generous 2 tablespoons (apx 1/8 cup) this made my cookies about half the size of the Picky Palate's, but still a really good size. I also chose to use Maldon flaked sea salt (available at Whole Food and Williams Sonoma) to sprinkle on top. After making these cookies for the first time I decided to add a little more caramel to the mixture. If you choose to use the canned Mexican caramel (I did) which is very think (peanut butter consistency) be sure to add a tablespoon of milk to the dough also.

These cookies I have to say are PERFECT!!!! Sweet, gooey with just a little bit of salt, what more could a girl ask for? They take a little more time than a normal chocolate chip cookie but are definitely worth it.

Salted Caramel Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies

2 sticks softened butter
3/4 Cup granulated sugar
1 Cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 Tablespoons pure vanilla
1/2 Cup caramel sauce (if using extra think sauce add 1 Tbl of milk with the caramel)
3 3/4 Cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
12 oz bag mini chocolate chips
8 oz chopped good quality dark chocolate

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a stand or electric mixer, beat the butter and sugars until well combined. Beat in the eggs and vanilla following the caramel sauce (and milk if using) until well combined.

2. Place the flour, salt and baking soda into a large bowl; mix. Slowly add to wet ingredients then the chocolate chips. Save dark chocolate chunks for later.

3. Scoop cookie dough into baking sheets. Press down to flatten a little and sprinkle with a pinch or two (2 is what I used) of the sea salt then press dark chocolate chunks over top. Bake for 113 minutes until light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the cookie sheet for 3-4 minutes before cooling on rack.

If using a muffin top pan for extra large cookies........

3. Place 1/4 Cup of cookie dough and place into muffin top cups. Press down then sprinkle with a pinch or two of sea salt then press chocolate chunks over top. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until just golden around edges. Remove and let cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

Makes 3 dozen cookies or 18 extra large cookies
Adapted from The Picky Palate

Yikes! Spaghetti!

2010-08-07T23:05:00.000-07:00

Much to my horror my children love spaghetti. You see, I have some deep psychological issues. But why spaghetti you may ask, well let me demonstrate exactly how crazy I am.

As a child, when my family returned from living in Israel my father worked very hard to support his family. There were times we struggled financially and my parents did the very best they could. At one point my mother, doing the best she knew how, bought the items necessary to make spaghetti for many dinners to come. We at spaghetti for dinner each night for 3 weeks. My favorite part, about halfway through this time my family was asked to someone's house for dinner. We were so excited! We were going to have something other than spaghetti! Can you guess what was served?.......you got it!!!!!! SPAGHETTI!!!!

Looking back this story is quite funny but to this day I cannot bring myself to eat long thin noodles with a red sauce. Like I said....I am crazy.

That said, when my children are dying for spaghetti I find something else to eat.

This week, when the princess made the dish that must not be named, I decided to give Buitoni Shrimp and lobster ravioli a try.

The directions on the package where easy to follow and I soon had dinner ready to go. A pot of water is filled with water, the package of sauce placed in the water and brought to a boil. Once the water is boiling the pasta is added and cooked for 5 short minutes. Drain the pasta, place in a bowl, cut open the sauce pack and pour over the pasta. Quick, simple and easy to do.

I decided to pair this dish with a salad made of tomatoes, cucumbers and fresh mozzarella cheese. Each package makes perfect sized serving so I did allow my sons to try some and even shared a little with my friend Carol.

The pasta is tender and the filling simple yet satisfying. My sons liked the creamy garlic butter sauce which was included in the package but Carol and I would have preferred to lightly toss the the pasta with a lemon butter sauce. The shrimp and lobster meat are recognizable and as fresh as you can expect from a frozen meal. This would never be my first choice as a meal but it is a good quick meal on a day when you need to prepare something quickly or are too tired to prepare a full meal.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastmakes program Buitoni sent me a coupon for a free item of my choice.

Pictures of spaghetti not provided, author unwilling due to insanity.

They really work!

2010-07-13T16:28:00.000-07:00

I have been participating in a test bake group for The New York Bakers. They are working on a cookbook and have three groups of people testing the recipes. We have completed seven weeks of testing with six more to go. I have done sweet yeast pastries and cakes and have one more week of making cookies. I am looking forward to doing four weeks of breads. We have been asked not to share the recipes but here are a few pictures of the recipes so far (I forgot to take pictures of some).

If you ever need hard to find flour or specialty flour take a look at what they have. They have been quite helpful to me and best part .....they will send you a FREE sourdough starter.

Moving on. Since I have been busy with the test bakes and now have some remodeling going on there hasn't been as much cooking going on in my kitchen. If fact, that is now impossible but hoping that by the weekend it will be accessible.

What else have I been doing? Well growing tomatoes and herbs. Now, those of you who have known me for a long time know that I always say that I raise children not plants. What I mean by that is I have a black thumb. I have killed a cactus. How? Who knows, but I did. The amazing thing is I actually have had some luck with the heartier herbs the last two or three years so I thought I would get really adventurous and grow tomatoes.

Growing tomatoes apparently takes quite a bit of direct sun each day and that is surprisingly difficult to find in my large yard. One day I saw the Topsy Turvy Tomato Planter advertised and I thought I might give it a try. I spoke with a few people who have tried them and most of them said they had been successful in growing tomatoes in the planter. Well what the heck? I thought that with this planter I could hang the plants high enough that the sun would reach it for at least 6 hours a day, that works. Instead of ordering the planter online I looked at a few local stores and was happy to find them at Home Depot for $9.99 each (now on sale for $6.99). I bought three planters, two tomato and one strawberry (for my herbs).

Tara and helped plant the tomatoes and herbs and Ryan helped hang them. Luckily Ryan has taken on the watering of the plants and therefore they have had less contact with my black thumb than usual. What I have found is that the heartier herbs did fairly well but the others may have been a bit shocked and have now been cut down. The tomatoes on the other hand have done very well. I planted tomatoes that grow to about 3-4 inches in diameter (can't for the life of me remember the name) and cherry tomatoes. The pictures show the tomatoes after Nathan has picked several and the cherry tomatoes we have been eating for a few weeks. I never had to worry about bugs eating the plants, they were trouble free (my favorite) and are producing beautifully.

I would say it was a success. I will have to buy a new planter or two for next year in order grow even more. After all they seem to be Laura proof.

Texas Sheet Cake

2010-07-10T22:05:00.000-07:00

My first memory of this wonderful cake is when my great aunt Dorothy would visit from Alaska. I remember being fascinated that this cake was made on what I knew as a cookie sheet. The first bite was wonderful as was the last. As I got older Aunt Dorothy's visits became more infrequent and I forgot about this cake, most of the time. On occasion I would remember this cake and wonder why I hadn't made it in so long, and each time I did make it I swore I would do it more often.

A few weeks ago I thought of this cake and decided to make it. But life happens and each time I went to make it I realized I had STILL not bought any confectioners' sugar. How is it that I can't remember to buy sugar?!? Then the remodeling began. Have I ever told you how much I hate remodeling? Never mind moving on.......

Anyway..........My daughter, Tara got a card from Aunt Dorothy for graduation earlier this week and of course the first thing that came to mind again was this cake. So, yesterday I went to the grocery store just to buy sugar, no excuses this cake was being made. Now you may wonder what the big deal is. Well, I really can't say exactly, except....... it is just wonderful. It is sweet, chocolaty, moist and tender and oh so easy to make. How often do you find something like that?

Tara decided she was going to help me make this cake. Now, just to be clear, this cake is super easy so help is not really needed. I told Tara to go ahead and start it and I would be there to guide her if she needed it. In the end all I did was break the eggs, sift the confectioners' sugar, whisk the icing a little and scrape the bowl. It was as if our roles where reversed and I was a small child "helping" mommy cook. The cake was perfect, of course, and Tara and her boyfriend decided they needed to find a way to sell it.

The origin of this cake is not known and there are many versions out there. Some use buttermilk, shortening or add cinnamon and there even are vanilla versions (why, who knows but I guess it works for some). The recipe I have here is what I found works best for me. Is it low fat and low calorie?.......Uummm, NO but worth every bite.

Keep in mind it may not look like much, but the simple flavors come together perfectly and will satisfy any chocolate or sweets craving. Go ahead give it a try, you won't regret it.

Texas Sheet Cake

1 cup butter

1 cup water

1/4 cup cocoa

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

1/8 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp vanilla

Icing:

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup cocoa

1/4 cup plus 2 Tbls milk

1 lb box (4 to 4 1/4 cups) confectioners' sugar, sifted

1/2 tsp vanilla

chopped pecans, optional ( I usually don't add these)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a jelly roll pan (17-1/2" x 12-1/2" x 1"). If you like you can line the bottom of the pan with parchment or wax paper but I find if you spray it well with oil it works fine.

In a sauce pan, combine the butter, water and cocoa over medium heat until the butter is melted. Do not allow it to boil. In a separate bowl, combine the sugar, flour, salt, and baking soda. Add the butter mixture to the dry ingredients, then mix in the eggs, sour cream and vanilla. Mix well. Be careful, it will be hot. Pour into jelly roll pan and spread evenly. Bake 20 mins or until toothpick comes out clean. Be careful not to over bake, you want it to be moist.

While the cake is baking, in a saucepan combine the butter cocoa and milk for the icing. Cook over medium heat and bring to a boil. Immediately remove from heat and combine with sifted confectioners' sugar. Add vanilla. Mix well to remove lumps.

As soon as you remove the cake from the oven and place it on a rack to cool pour the icing over the HOT cake, spreading evenly. If you would like pecans you may sprinkle them over the top at this point or if you like you can mix them in the icing before pouring it over the cake.

Allow cake to cool about 20 to 30 minutes and serve. This cake is good served warm or cold.

I have mixed, baked, iced and served this cake in one hour. It is a perfect dessert to throw together and serve quickly.

Quick & Easy

2010-06-25T14:03:00.000-07:00

There are times you need a quick dessert but dread heating up the kitchen by baking. With the arrival of warmer weather it is nice to find something you can make that tastes good, is easy to make but doesn't require baking. If you are thinking that cake is out of the question, you will be surprised.

'Baking' a cake in the microwave is quick and easy, especially if you take a short cut and use a boxed mix. Two minutes to mix, eight minutes in the microwave and TA DA!!! CAKE!

There are many containers that work for this. Silicone baking pans are excellent and allow you a variety of shapes and sizes and glass baking dishes work well also. Whatever container you decide to use be sure it is not made of metal and is microwave safe.

Directions:

Mix cake according to directions on the box or follow your usual recipe. Generously spray your baking dish with cooking spray. Pour mixed batter into baking dish (I used a 2 quart glass casserole dish). 'Bake' in microwave for 8 minutes at full power. If your microwave doesn't have a turning table you'll need to give the cake a quarter of a turn every 2 to 3 minutes. After the 8 minutes is up the center should look a bit shiny, but not watery and the edges of the cake should be coming away from the sides of the dish. If the center is still runny give it another minute to cook. (My microwave is 1200 watts and cooks the cake in 7 Minutes 45 seconds.)

Allow the cake to cool for about 15 minutes and remove from dish if you choose. The cake can be frosted, glazed or used in any other way you prefer.

I made some cheesecake flavored pudding and Nathan put it on top of a slice of cake and topped it with whipped cream.

From Food

I chose to make a small trifle (of sorts) with part of the cake. I cut bite size pieces of cake and layered it on the bottom of a glass bowl. I then added a layer of the pudding and topped it with raspberries (juices and all). Then another layer of cake topped by more pudding and then whipped cream. Cover and refrigerate.

Trifles made in clear glass bowls make a beautiful presentation and are easy to serve.

Blondies

2010-06-21T13:40:00.000-07:00

I have house full of teenagers, three of my own and any number of extras at any given time. What does this mean? Well quite often a dessert is wanted, either by them or their stressed out mother, and it is wanted in a hurry. Nothing fancy, just really good. Well Blondies is the answer. They are adaptable to many different tastes and are so easy to throw together you will be shocked. Our favorite is chocolate chip. Like I said simple but good.

Blondies

8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla or 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
Pinch salt
1 cup all-purpose flour

1.Butter an 8×8 pan
2.Mix melted butter with brown sugar – beat until smooth. Beat in egg and then vanilla.
3.Add salt, stir in flour. Mix in any additions (use your imagination or see below). Most of the time I use 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips.
4.Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350°F 20-25 minutes, or until set in the middle. I always err on the side of caution with baking times — nobody ever complained about a gooey-middled cookie. Cool on rack before cutting them.

Further additions, use one or a combination of:

•1/2 to 1 cup chopped nuts, toasting them first for even better flavor
•1/2 to 1 cup chocolate chips
•1/2 teaspoon mint extract in addition to or in place of the vanilla
•1/2 cup mashed bananas
•1/4 cup bourbon, scotch or other whiskey; increase the flour by one tablespoon
•2 tablespoons of espresso powder with the vanilla
•Stir 1/2 cup dried fruit, especially dried cherries, into the prepared batter
•Top with a vanilla butter cream or chocolate peanut butter cream frosting

Recipe adapted from How to Cook Everything

Birthday & Cupcakes

2010-05-24T12:56:00.000-07:00

My youngest is now 15! When exactly did this happen? Wasn't it just last month that he was my itty bitty (under) 3 pound baby? Wow time flies!

Our family met at Red Robbin restaurant to celebrate Nathan’s birthday. It was so nice to have everyone there. We had dinner and then the Hi Hat cupcakes I made for the celebration (more on this later). Nathan had a wonderful time and received some nice things for his birthday.

Thank you everyone for making this a nice day for Nathan.

Now for the cupcakes. The recipe is from Martha Stewart, who I understand used the recipe in the "Cupcakes!" cookbook. I found the marshmallow like frosting to be far to sweet. It is basically a very sweet version of a 7 minute frosting. Following the original recipe you will find my recommended changes.

I would use the following frosting recipe (or your favorite 7 minute frosting recipe):

Marshmallow Cream Frosting

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons water
2 egg whites
1 (7-ounce) jar marshmallow creme
1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
In top of double boiler, combine sugar, water, and egg whites. Cook over simmering water, beating until soft peaks form.

Add marshmallow creme; beat until stiff peaks form. Remove from heat; beat in vanilla.

The chocolate coating can also be done with melting chocolate which will give it a harder shell that will not melt to the touch.

Panini

2010-04-28T17:27:00.000-07:00

There are days that we are so busy I just don't have the time or the inclination to cook a full meal. The night was like that. The kids were going in ten different directions and no one was home at the same time. On days like this I pull out the panini press, lay out some bread, vegetable, cheeses and meats and let everyone use their imagination.

A panini is a sandwich typically made with cheese, meats and/or vegetables which is then pressed and grilled to perfection. The great thing about them is that you are only limited by your imagination.

I would recommend constructing your sandwich in this order from bottom to top: bread, condiment, cheese, meat, vegetables, cheese, (more condiment if you like) and top with your second slice of bread. This will allow the cheese to melt and the the meat and vegetables to warm enough to have the flavor blend well. Using a study bread is best.

We like to use sourdough, french, nutty multi-grain and rolls or baguettes. Keep in mind that rolls and baguettes get crispier on the outside than sliced bread so try to choose one that may be a little softer. As for condiments, all I can say it have fun. Some of our favorites are basil or sun dried tomato pesto sauce, Dijon mustard, artichoke spread, olive tapenade, or barbeque sauce. This is also a great way to use up left over vegetables, I will often add asparagus or green beans from a previous meal. Some of the vegetables we like in our sandwiches are tomatoes, onions, asparagus, green beans and artichoke hearts. My boys have tendency to leave out the veggies completely. As for cheese, well we could go on all day, there is cheddar, jack, Muenster, Bree, Havarti, Parmesan, Asiago....well you get the idea.

After assemble your sandwich place it in a hot panini press and allow it to grill for 3 to 5 minutes, until the cheese is melted and the bread is nicely toasted. If you don't have a panini press no problem you can still make these wonderful sandwiches. Take your assembled sandwich and place it in a skillet. Place a second skillet on top of the sandwich and weigh it down with a couple cans of soup, this will press the sandwich together. Cook the sandwich until toasted on about 2 or 3 minutes, remove soup cans and top skillet, flip sandwich over and replace top skillet and cans. I have had some people tell me they have wrapped a brick in foil and used that to press the sandwich while it cooks in a skillet. The idea is to use something heavy enough to press the sandwich but also be safe around heat. Also if you have a George Foreman grill those will work also, just watch as you close the grill that the top of your sandwich is not pushed off. I have used a silicone spatula to hold the sides in place as I closed the lid.

As you can see there are few rules to making a panini, and that is half the fun. Here is one of my favorite combinations.

I used sourdough Dijon, cheddar, deli slice turkey breast, asparagus, roasted marinated red peppers and Asiago cheese.

Ryan took a different route with Dijon mustard, Bree and ham on sourdough.....

Great now I want one with Bree, pears slices and caramelized onions.

Anyway, moving on, I decided to throw together a salad with some left over cucumbers also.

I used about 1-1/2 cups diced cucumbers, about 1 cup diced tomatoes, hand full (or two, I love this stuff) feta cheese, 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar, 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.

What could be better?

Pita

2010-04-20T13:08:00.000-07:00

I have become frustrated with the lack of quality and freshness of store bought pita. It was too hard, to dry, too old, too bland, etc. I was haunted by faint memories of being a child in Israel and the fresh pita that was available. So, I decided that it was time to take things into my own hands and made the bread myself. I know this may sound a little crazy (those of you who know me are not shocked by this I am sure) but it is really quite simple. In fact, when my daughter saw how simple it is she commmented "That's all?'

Once the children tasted the freshly baked bread there was no going back. They now know there is nothing better. My oldest even commented on Facebook that there is nothing better than homemade hummus and pita.

Pita

2 teaspoons regular dry yeast

2.5 cups lukewarm water
5-6 cups all-purpose flour (See note)
1 tablespoon table salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions:

In a large messuring cup, dissolve yeast in warm water, and stir in one cup of flour and let sit for about 15-20 minutes. It will be grow and become bubbly. This is your sponge. Add olive oil gently.

Place remaining flour and salt in the Cuisinart (using the dough blade) and pulse about 20 times or run on the dough setting for about 20 seconds. With machine running pour in liquid ingredients and allow to mix and knead for about 90 seconds. Dough should cleanly pull away from the side of the bowl. It should be soft and elastic. Place dough in a clean and lightly oiled bowl, turn dough over so oiled side is up, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled, about 90 minutes.

Preheat oven to 450°. Heat pizza stone or baking sheet in oven.

Punch dough down, and divide into 12- 14 pieces, and roll into balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough to 1/8″ thick, about depth of a thick flour tortilla.

Place 2 or 3 pieces of rolled out dough onto heated stone/sheet and bake for 3 to 4 minutes, until bread has fully ballooned. If your bread doesn’t balloon, That is okay, it will be just fine.

Keep baked pita wrapped in a clean kitchen towel to keep warm while the rest of the bread baked.

Directions to make by hand or in stand up mixer:

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water, and stir in one cup of flour and let sit for about 15-20 minutes. Add salt, olive oil, and flour in 1 cup increments to the sponge, stirring until the dough is too stiff to stir. Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes, or knead in a Kitchen Aid with a dough hook for about 6 to 8 minutes. Place dough in a clean and lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled, about 90 minutes. Proceed as directed above.

Note: Hummus recipe can be found HERE

Risotto with Asparagus, Garlic and Lemon

2010-04-08T11:48:00.000-07:00

I rarely use a recipe found in a magazine, let alone one that is part of an advertisement in a magazine. With that said, when I saw this I thought "this looks great!" I was right.

Risotto takes a little patience but it is definitely worth it. You need to babysit it and stir quite a bit but please don't let that stop you from giving it a try. Have all of your ingredients cut, minced, measured and ready to go. Being prepared will help you get this done perfectly. For those of you who prefer not to cook with alcohol, substitute with more broth. Vegetarians can use vegetable broth although the flavor will be a little different.

SPRING RISOTTO WITH ASPARAGUS, LEMON & GARLIC
(From Gallo Family Recipes)

6 cups chicken stock
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup yellow onion – minced (I used my cuisinart and pulsed the life out of it)
2 cups Arborio Rice
1 cup white wine
1/2 pound asparagus- cut into 1-inch lengths (I cut them slightly longer)
1 tablespoon parsley – minced
1 teaspoon garlic – minced
1 teaspoon lemon zest
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese – grated

Directions

Heat the chicken stock and hold warm over medium heat. Heat a pot large enough to accommodate all of the ingredients on medium high and add the olive oil and onions, sauté until translucent and add garlic. Add the rice and stir with a wooden spoon to toast the rice for 2-3 minutes, add the wine and continue to stir. When all of the wine is absorbed by the rice, add the hot chicken stock in 1/3rd increments and stir. Only add the next 1/3rd of stock when the previous 1/3rd is absorbed by the rice and keep giving the rice a light stir. When the last 1/3rd of stock is almost absorbed add the asparagus, parsley, and lemon zest, keep stirring. Once the stock is absorbed remove the pot from heat and add the butter and Parmesan cheese and give it one last stir. Garnish with additional lemon zest, cheese, and parsley if you like.

Yield: 4-6 servings

Soft Yogurt Rolls

2010-04-05T16:34:00.000-07:00

I love good rolls and have been wanting to make some that would be good for sandwiches but could be done as a dinner rolls also. A few weeks ago I decided to try making yogurt rolls. They came out perfectly. They are firm enough for a sandwich or even a burger but are also nice and soft. The kids really loved them. In fact, I had to make a second batch because the first was nearly gone in less than 24 hours. I made ten rolls as the recipe describes but if you wanted dinner rolls cut the dough into 20 to 30 pieces depending on the size roll you prefer.

Soft Yogurt Rolls

4 - 5 cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp active dry yeast

3 tbsp agave syrup (or honey)

1 cup water, warm (100-110F)

1 cup non-fat greek yogurt

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 1/2 tsp salt

In a large mixing bowl, combine 1/2 cup flour, the active dry yeast, the honey and the warm water. Stir well and let sit for 10 minutes, until slightly foamy.

Stir in yogurt, vegetable oil, salt and 2 cups of the remaining flour. Gradually stir in more flour until you have a soft dough that sticks together pulls away from the sides of the bowl (This can all be done in a stand mixer with the dough-hook attached, or your Quisinart as well). Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead, adding additional flour if necessary to prevent sticking, until dough is smooth and elastic, or about 5 minutes. Place in a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Turn risen dough out of bowl and onto a lightly floured surface. Gently deflate, pressing into a rectangle. Divide dough into 10 even pieces with a board scraper or a pizza cutter. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpad.

Shape each piece into a round roll, pinching the edges together and pulling one side of the dough “tight” across the top. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.

Once all rolls have been formed, press down firmly on each one to flatten. Preheat oven to 375F.

Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise for 25 - 30 minutes.

Bake for about 20 minutes, until rolls are deep golden on the top and the bottom. Cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container. Makes 10 rolls.

I have seen this recipe many place online but am not sure of it's origins. Please let me know if you know who deserves credit.

Teen Cooking: Episode 3: Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken

2010-03-27T23:09:00.000-07:00

Now I realize that a young man who turns 20 in 4 months (YIKES!) may not be a teen by some peoples definition. Well, I am going to do my best to ignore that (he CAN'T be that old) and include him under the "Teen Cooking" title anyway.

Ryan was hesitant to participate in my new adventure for them and did his best to explain to me that with all the work he had for his college courses he just didn't have time. But in spite of his efforts he found himself assigned to cook dinner this last Tuesday. Good Try! He wasn't sure what he was going to make so I gave him a half dozen ideas and his sister helped him decided by giving her opinion.

Ryan decided to make Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken. He had a few questions but did very well. He was smart to remember there was a good amount of left over steamed rice from the night before so he warmed that up, steamed some green beans in the microwave and toasted some prepared garlic bread. Once again one of my children proves that they are more capable than they may want the world to realize. It turned out great. The chicken breast was moist and everyone loved it.

Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken

6 tsp unpacked Brown Sugar
3 Skinless Chicken Breast halves
2 cloves Garlic, minced
3 tbsp Butter
Salt & Pepper to taste

Season chicken with salt and pepper

Melt the butter in a frying pan. Good the garlic in the butter, until lightly golden. Add chicken breasts to garlic and butter and cook thoroughly, turning chicken over half way through. When chicken is fully cooked add brown sugar on top of each breast, cook one minute longer. Cover chicken with a lid. Allow the brown sugar to melt into the chicken (about 5 minutes).

I am not sure where I found this recipe so if it is yours please claim it, I am happy to give credit.

Teens Cooking: Episode 2: Noodle Soup with Beef and Tofu

2010-03-27T22:40:00.000-07:00

Two days after episode 1 Tara took a turn. Tara decided to take a different approach.

Tara has done some cooking in the last few years and has been introduced to many different Asian foods. She decided to do something easy but very good. Seeing as she did this off the top of her head there is not really a recipe to share but you should be able to get the gist of it.

She started with 12 cups of water in a pot. When the water began to simmer she added beef bouillon cubes, and some garlic and onion powder. In the meantime she cut up some cabbage, beef and firm tofu. Once the broth was boiling she added the beef. About 5 minutes later she added a package of long noodles. When the Noodles were about half cooked the tofu was added. The last 3 minutes cabbage was added.

Tara prepared a dipping sauce made of Hoisin sauce, soy sauce and Sriracha (aka Rooster sauce, an Asian hot sauce). She instructed us to eat the beef and tofu by taking them from our bowl and dipping them in the sauce. It was simple but good and was enjoyed by all.

Teens cooking: Edisode 1: Mac n' Cheese

2010-03-18T00:11:00.000-07:00

A week ago I told my children that each of them needed to plan and prepare two dinners a month. I have done this in an effort to teach them the skills they will need when they leave home but also in hopes that they will appreciate the efforts of others.

When I discussed with Nathan what he would be preparing he decided to make baked macaroni and cheese with diced ham and vegetables on the side. I asked him if he wanted to make the macaroni I make periodically or the new recipe Tara brought home from her culinary class. He decided to use the recipe Tara brought home. I told him I would make sure we had everything he needed and that I would be there to guide and help him seeing as this is the first time he has ever prepared a meal.

When I got home from work yesterday I called Nathan to the kitchen and told hm it was time to start preparing dinner. I told him to read recipe the recipe all the way through first and then he could begin. I looked at me and asked where to box of macaroni and cheese was. I had to remind him that he said he would make baked macaroni and cheese that the box mix is not the going to be used. Once he realized I wasn't kidding (did he really think I would agree to this, silly boy) he got to work.

The first thing we realized was that Tara doesn't always write down all the measurements and directions. I am sure this doesn't shock those of you who know my princess. I asked her a few questions and told Nathan not to worry about it I could help him wing it when needed.

Nathan did an excellent job and everyone LOVED dinner. He set his mind to getting it done and was good about following directions and being patient. After pulling it out of the oven he steamed some broccoli and cauliflower in the microwave and announced that dinner was ready. Both Ryan and Tara made sure they told him how good it was and they all laughed at me when I started taking pictures.

One dinner down, many to go. Can't wait to see what they come up with in the future.

Macaroni and Cheese with Ham

12 oz package of dry macaroni
6 oz ham steak, cubed
2 Tbls. olive oil
1/2 onion, diced
4 cups heavy cream
2 cups finely shredded mild cheddar cheese
1/2 panko breadcrumbs
2 Tbls. melted butter
1-1/2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp. Dijon mustard
1 tsp. paprika, divided
1 tsp. Tabasco
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Bring a pot of water to a boil, add some salt and the macaroni, cook 8-9 minutes until al dente; rinse with cold water, drain and reserve.

In a small bowl combine breadcrumbs, parsley, paprika and melted butter. Set aside.

Add olive oil to a skillet and cook ham for about 4 or 5 minutes over medium heat. Removed ham from pan and drain on a paper towel. Add onions to the skillet (if needed add a very small amount of additional olive oil to the pan first) and cook over medium heat until soft. Add cream to the pan and stir until mixed. Turn heat to low and add the cheddar cheese a handful at a time, stirring constantly until all the cheese is melted. Add mustard, paprika and Tabasco stirring to mix well. Add the ham to the cheese sauce. Remove from heat.

Combine the cooked macaroni and cheese sauce and transfer to a two quart oven proof pan. Top Macaroni with breadcrumb mixture.

Bake for 15-20 minutes until the breadcrumbs have browned and the cheese sauce is bubbling. Removed from oven and allow to cool sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Lavender Rice Pudding

2010-03-16T22:41:00.000-07:00

It has been a little while since I have posted. I know, I am bad. I have several things I would like to share with you and hope to post them all in the next few days.

First - Lavender Rice Pudding. Oh my gosh! Or as a very cute toddler says Oh By Dosh!

I have recently seen many blog posts about rice pudding. Many people have a little something different they like to do with it, but it basically comes down to rice, milk/cream and sugar. For about a week I thought about making rice pudding and decided I wanted to infuse it with Lavender. The kids thought I was crazy, nothing new, but ~~teased me relentlessly~~ humored me as usual. In the end they were very happy with the results. I did cook it a little longer that I would have liked so it was slightly less creamy than how I usually prefer, but it was still very, very good. Slightly sweet, creamy with a hint of lavender. YUM!

Lavender Rice Pudding

1-1/2 cups water
3/4 short grain rice (I used long grain because it is what I had and it worked great)
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups nonfat milk
2 cups heavy cream
3 Tbls. loose herbal lavender tea (3 tea bags should do if you don't have loose tea)
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbl. vanilla paste (1-1/2 tsp. real vanilla extract)

Cook rice, salt and water over low heat, covered, until water is absorbed.

Meanwhile combine milk and heavy cream in sauce pan, add tea, heat on medium until heated through but not simmering. Remove from heat and allow tea to infuse for about 10 to 12 minutes.

Strain milk through a fine sieve if you used loose tea.

Add sugar, infused milk/cream and vanilla to the cooked rice. Cook over a medium fire, uncovered, stirring occasionally until rice is soft and mixture has thickened a little, about 25 minutes. Stop cooking right before you think it is done, it will thicken upon standing.
(Can you see the vanilla bean seeds? They are small, and let's face it, I need a better camera, but they are definitely there)
Divide into small bowls or serving bowl and serve warm or cold (I prefer warm). If by some chance your family/friends/stranger who knocked on your door when he smelled this cooking don't eat it all, store it in the refrigerator with plastic wrap pressed against the pudding in order to prevent a 'skin' from forming.

Hummus

2010-02-26T21:18:00.000-08:00

Growing up in Israel I refused to eat Hummus. I told my parents I hated it and that I would never eat it. Well as I got older I ate my words. I love Hummus! And my children have grown up eating and loving it also.

For those of you who don't know, Hummus is a Middle Eastern food made of Garbanzo beans (chickpeas), sesame seed paste (Tahiti), garlic, lemon juice, olive oil and salt. It is most often eaten as a dip and scooped with pita (a flat bread).

It is high in iron and vitamin C, and also has significant amounts of folate and vitamin B6. The Garbanzo beans make it a good source of protein and dietary fiber; the Tahiti consists mostly of sesame seeds, which are an excellent source of the amino acid methionine, complementing the proteins in the Garbanzo beans. Depending on the recipe, hummus carries varying amounts of monounsaturated fat. Hummus is useful in vegetarian and vegan diets and like other combinations of grains and legumes, when eaten with bread it serves as a complete protein.

Okay, enough of that. Let's be honest, it doesn't matter what it is made of or how good it is for you, if it doesn't taste good we aren't going to eat it. This is not the case with Hummus. There is a basic recipe ,but it can be changed in many ways to suit your personal taste. I love it to have a lemony-garlicky (are these words?) taste. Feel free to use more or less garlic and lemon, add sun dried tomatoes or roasted peppers. Garnish with your choice of chopped tomato, cucumber, cilantro, parsley, caramelized onions, whole Garbanzo beans, pine nuts, olive oil, paprika and cumin.

Hummus

1 - 15.5 oz. can garbanzo beans, drained, reserve liquid

1/4 cup reserved liquid from garbanzo beans

3 Tablespoons lemon juice (adjust if needed to your liking)

1-1/2 tablespoons tahini

3 cloves garlic, crushed (I threw in whole cloves in the Cuisinart while it was empty and running)

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

Drain garbanzo beans and set aside liquid from can. Combine remaining ingredients in food processor (or blender). Add 1/4 cup of liquid from garbanzo beans. Process for 3-5 minutes (stop and scrape down sides after 2 minutes) until thoroughly mixed and smooth.

Place in a bowl and create a shallow well in the center of hummus or a shallow trench through the hummus. Add 1 - 2 tablespoons of olive oil. I usually sprinkle with paprika or cumin.

Cover and refrigerate.

Nathan and I made some quick sandwiches. Warm your pita bread, spread it with Hummus, add sliced tomatoes, thinly sliced red onion and feta cheese (we wanted cucumber slices also but unfortunately we were out). Fold up and enjoy.

Note: Pita recipe can be found HERE

Pizza

2010-02-16T16:32:00.000-08:00

My kids have found that using the Cuisinart makes things fun. Ryan wanted to make some pizza so I thought it was time for him to learn to do it on his own, he is 19 after all.

A few days before Valentine's day I told Ryan that if he made the dough (recipe from Cuisinart) we could have pizza for dinner that night. He did well and learned a few things along the way. For example, if you have the liquid in the food processor and are adding the flour mixture while the machine is running you will have flour in places you did not expect. All in all he did well, cleaned up his mess and the dough turned out perfect.

Nathan made a heart shaped pizza (he started eating before I got a picture) with pepperoni, salomi, chicken and olives. Ryan decided to make a buffalo chicken pizza with crumbled blue cheese and blue cheese dressing added after baking. They did discover that if you make a really thick crust it will be much more filling. Live and learn. =)

Ryan's Pizza

Nathan's Pizza

Making Pizza dough is quick, easy and taste so much better than delivery. The best part is that you can put what ever you like on it. Ground beef and cheddar for a cheese burger pizza (I have teenage boys can you tell), chicken and left over asparagus with Alfredo sauce, tomatoes with onions and feta cheese, the possibilities are only limited by your imagination.

Ingredients

1 package active dry yeast (2-1/4 tsp. active dry yeast)

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

2/3 cup warm water (105 to 115°F.)

1-2/3 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour

¾ teaspoons salt

¾ teaspoon extra virgin olive oil.

Instructions

In a 2-cup liquid measure, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Let stand until foamy, about 3 to 5 minutes. Insert metal blade in work bowl and add flour and salt. With machine running, pour liquid through small feed tube as fast as flour absorbs it. Process until dough cleans sides of work bowl and forms a ball. Then process for 30 seconds to knead dough. Dough may be slightly sticky. Coat dough evenly with olive oil; transfer to a large greased bowl, turning dough to cover with oil, cover bowl with plastic wrap (or use a plastic food storage bag and seal the top). Let rise in a warm place for about 45 minutes. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and punch down. Roll into desired crust sizes and place on baking sheets lightly sprayed with vegetable oil cooking spray. Top with your favorite toppings and bake at 500 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until baked through.

If you are making dough by hand sift flour and other dry ingredients together. Add the liquid yeast mixture and mix until combined. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead dough for about 5 minutes. Place dough into large greased bowl or plastic bag as described above. Let rise in warm place for about 45 minutes. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and punch down. Roll into desired crust sizes and place on baking pans lightly sprayed with vegetable oil cooking spray. Top with your favorite toppings and bake at 500 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until baked through.

Almond Milk (Soy Milk)

2010-02-15T20:34:00.000-08:00

I have had to cut out a lot of dairy from my diet due to my asthma. It seems to be giving me more and more trouble lately so I do what I can to eliminate anything that may contribute to the problem. I have been buying almond and soy milk and find that it is about $3 for half a gallon. Add teens drinking it also and it really starts to add up. I decided to look into getting a soy milk maker and discovered it is much cheaper to make it. Commercial soy, almond and rice milks have additives to thicken, flavor and preserve the milk. By making my own I would be able to control what goes into it.

The machine arrived quickly and I got started. We decided to make almond milk first. Soak one cup of almonds in water for 12 hours. Rinse the almonds before using. Add water and almonds to the machine and turn it on. In 20 minutes it was ready. I strained the milk through a fine sieve twice and then once through a gold coffee filter, if you don't already have one of these use cheese cloth, it works great. I then added 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and just under 1/4 cup agave syrup. My taste testers (Nathan and Tara)gave it a thumbs up. The next batch I made with sugar instead of the syrup because Ryan said he preferred not to taste the syrup. A sugar substitute can also be used, I need to go to Costco to stock up.

I have since make several batches of almond milk and some soy milk. For the the soy milk I used 3 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and scant 1/4 cup sugar to flavor the milk.

These milks are good both hot or cold and if you cook with them don't add flavor or sweetener. I think I may eventually make yogurt (hopefully Greek strained) with the soy milk.

These milks can all be done at home without the machine but I decided that due to time constraints and my wonderful arthritis this was the best path for me.

Making almond milk without machine.
Making soy milk without machine

Note: I used the SoyaPower Plus which can be purchased HERE. I recieved the machine in less than a week! We LOVE this machine. It is fast and easy to make all kinds of milk and best of all clean up is very easy.

Valentine's Day

2010-02-15T19:57:00.000-08:00

I have always gotten the kids something for Valentine's day. This year I got the boys gourmet caramel apples and a shirt and for Tara a box of chocolate covered strawberries and a gift card.

Nathan Gave me a hug and kiss, which for my 14 year old is a huge gift because he doesn't give those away so freely these days.....go figure. Tara got up and made breakfast for her brothers. She made hash browns, over easy eggs and toast. As she was sitting down to eat she said 'Happy Valentine's this is my gift because I am a broke witch', my daughter the comedian.

Ryan ordered flowers for a girl he has been dating the last few months and had them delivered. After she got off work they met and spent some time together walking around the mall and eating.

Tara went to her boyfriend, Leroy's, house (yes new bf) and delivered the card and cupcakes she made. He gave her a cute necklace which she loved.

We had a pleasant day and watched a movie together in the evening.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's day!

French Toast

2010-02-15T16:03:00.000-08:00

On Saturday, I got up and decided to make french toast with the last half loaf of the Challah bread.

French toast my not seem exciting but it sure can make me happy. I usually use only one egg (I have an egg sensitivity so I don't make it very eggy) to about one cup of milk, add a few dashes of cinnamon, a pinch of nutmeg and about a teaspoon of brown sugar. Most of the time instead of using milk I will use half and half or mix milk with flavored non-dairy coffee creamer. It may not seem like much but it adds a little something special.

I got a little carried away with the syrup but I dealt with it. :) Berries and nuts are great on top also but I didn't think ahead and dove right in.

The kids decided I didn't make enough so next time I will have to keep that in mind.

Hot out of the pan with butter melted on top.

The Cuisinart and Challah Bread

2010-02-09T21:02:00.000-08:00

I have to say, I love my Cuisinart! I love to have fresh bread, and although I have a bread maker it is just not the same as doing it by hand, OK.......mostly by hand.

I decided to make a Challah bread. Challah is a Jewish egg bread that is braided and is usually eaten on the Sabbath or holidays. My version is slightly sweet and flavored with vanilla paste.

The Cuisinart does the mixing and initial kneading which means it takes about 7 minutes to put this together. Nathan found he likes to punch the dough down after it rises and 'punch and fold' it (his 14 year old boy version of kneading). With a Cuisinart and a helper it just as easy as using a bread machine, although kneading is a great way to work of some aggression.

This can be made completely by hand and really is not hard at all. Just be patient, it is worth the wait.

Vanilla Challah Bread

2 tsp. active dry yeast
1/2 C. & 1 tsp. sugar, divided
3/4 C. warm water
1 T vanilla paste (or vanilla extract)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
5 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp. salt
1/2 C. butter, cut into 1 inch pieces

Vanilla egg wash

1 large egg yolk
1 tsp. vanilla paste or extract
1/2 tsp. sugar
Mix all to combine well.

Dissolve the yeast and 1 tsp. sugar in warm water in a large measuring cup. Let sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add beaten eggs and 1 tablespoon of vanilla paste, stir gently to combine.

Insert dough blade into the large work bowl of Cuisinart. Add flour, 1/2 cup sugar, salt and butter and process on the dough speed about 15 seconds(or pulse until butter is incorporated - 5 or 6 times). With the machine running on dough speed, add liquid through the feed tube as fast as the flour absorbs it. Once the dough cleans the sides of the work bowl and forms a ball, process for 45 seconds to knead dough. Dough should be smooth and elastic, if needed add a little flour (if sticky) or water (if too dry) and process until combined. (If you are doing this in a mixer or by hand combine wet and dry ingredients and mix until combined. Knead on a floured surface for about 5 minutes until smooth and elastic.)

Place dough in a large greased glass bowl, turning dough to grease the entire surface, cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise until the dough has doubled, about 2 hours. If you would like you can allow dough to rise overnight (or all day) in the refrigerator (cold rise) and continue the next day (this works well in hot weather, allowing you to bake when it is coolest). For a lighter loaf punch down dough and knead for a few minutes and allow to rise again until double in a greased bowl.

Once risen, punch dough down and divide into two equal parts. Divide each half into three equal parts. Allow to rest, covered, for 5 minutes. Roll each piece into a long rope. Braid the three strands loosely into two separate loaves, tuck the very ends under each end of the loaf. Place on two separate lightly greased baking sheets or line each with parchment paper. Cover with plastic wrap until doubled in size, about one hour.

Preheat over to 400.

Brush loaves with vanilla egg wash. Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Bread should sound hollow when tapped. Cool on wire rack.

Makes 2 one pound loaves.
(Recipe adapted from Cuisinart Elite Edition booklet)

*Note: Vanilla bean paste is a convenient, easy-to-use replacement for whole vanilla beans. Since you can see the vanilla bean seeds, it adds a gourmet appearance, in addition to delicious flavor. It can be found in gourmet food stores, Trader Joe's (holiday season only) and can be purchased online.

Mediterranean Salad with Quinoa

2010-01-27T09:12:00.000-08:00

I haven't been feeling well and therefore have not done much cooking recently. I decided I wanted a Mediterranean salad with orzo but when I went to Trader Joe's they didn't have any in stock. Since I was not willing to go anywhere else I decided I would use Quinoa. I served it warm but it is good cold, in fact I think the flavors come together more if you let it sit for a while, but it worked out well with my garlic lemon chicken and fresh green beans (Ryan & Krystal snapped the beans).

Tara cut most of the vegetables for me. Nathan decided it was not for him (shocking right? Mr. picky) but everyone else liked it. In fact some went back for more several times.

MEDITERRANEAN SALAD WITH QUINOA

2 Cups Quinoa (or 16 ounces orzo)
1/4 cup olive oil
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup Kalamata olives, chopped
1 cup grape tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 cup diced seedless cucumber
1 cup marinated artichoke hearts, drained then chopped
3/4 cup feta cheese
handful chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves
freshly ground black pepper to taste
sea salt to taste

Cook Quinoa as instructed on package (be sure you rinse it well before cooking) or prepare Orzo in salted water. Put hot Quinoa into large bowl.

While Quinoa is cooking combine the olive oil, red wine vinegar, lemon zest and lemon juice in a small bowl. Pour dressing over hot Quinoa and toss well, let sit for about 5 minutes.

Add the olives, tomatoes, onion, cucumber, artichokes and feta cheese toss, mixing well. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Can be served hot, cold or at room temperature.

From Food

Chocolate Bottom Pumpkin Bars

2010-01-26T23:44:00.000-08:00

I saw this recipe for Chocolate bottom banana bars on Just-cook-already.blogspot.com

They look so good but I am allergic to bananas. I don't mind making banana bread for the kids and friends but I would rather make something I can try. I decided to try using solid pack pumpkin, not pumpkin pie mix, but pure 100% pumpkin puree (Libby's is the brand I use).

I made a 9 x 13 pan and cut them at about 6 p.m. by 9:30 there were only 6 pieces left! The kids, their friends and I love these. Now if you remember I really like pumpkin and Chocolate together as seen in my Perfect Chocolate chip cookies but these are quicker, easier and wonderful!

I used mini chocolate chip cookies because that is what Ryan brought home from the market. They all decided they liked the way the minis looked but I think I would like to use the regular semi-sweet chips most of the time.

Here is how I modified the "Just Cook Already" recipe. I thank them for sharing I hope they will forgive me for changing a few things.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups pumpkin puree
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. fresh ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup baking cocoa
1 cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used minis this time)

Instructions:
1. In mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add egg, vanilla, pumpkin, cinnamon and nutmeg, beating thoroughly.

2. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to creamed mixture and mix well.

3. Divide batter in half. Add the cocoa to one portion of the batter. Spread that portion in the bottom of a greased 9 x 13-inch baking dish (I lined pan with parchment paper). Spoon remaining batter on top, swirling gently with butter knife if desired, and sprinkle with chocolate chips.

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until batter tests done with a toothpick or fork. Cool and cut into 24 squares.

From Food

Party Cheesy Bread!

2010-01-26T23:31:00.000-08:00

This is a winner!

I saw this recipe and had to try it. It has all the my family's favorites. While it was baking Nathan came out of his room and asked "What is that heavenly smell?"

It takes a few minutes to put together but you will love the results. Give it a try.

PARTY CHEESY BREAD
1/2 c. butter, melted
2 T. lemon juice
2 T. Dijon Mustard
1-1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. celery salt
1 round loaf sourdough bread (1 pound)
1 lb. Monterey Jack cheese, cut into thins slices

In a small bowl, combine the first six ingredients; set aside.

From Goodies

Cut bread diagonally into 1 inch slices to within 1/2 inch of bottom of loaf. Repeat cuts in opposite direction.

From Goodies

Arrange cheese slices in cuts.

From Goodies

Drizzle butter mixture over bread.

From Goodies

Wrap loaf in foil; place on a baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes. Uncover; bake 10 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

From Goodies

Christmas Day

2010-01-26T23:15:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day was nice and quiet around my home. As usual we had breakfast before gifts. This year Tara chose and decided on Belgian waffles with mixed berries and whipped cream with turkey bacon on the side. The kids opened their gifts, had some fun with each other and made a mess as usual.

Luis and Alma came over about 10 a.m. and we all exchanged gifts. Nathan left with them since is was Luis' weekend. Tara went to help a friend move that evening so it was just Ryan and I. It was nice to have a quiet day at home.

Christmas Eve

2010-01-26T22:38:00.000-08:00

This year we all got together at my Dad's on Christmas Eve. Amy made a wonderful dinner and thankfully shared her salad and dressing recipe with me.

Adam and Marie decided that they were giving their Christmas away this year. They told Sebastian he would get one gift worth $50 or less. At first I am sure he was not thrilled with the idea but he seemed to really enjoy the experience. They adopted a family for Christmas (Marie's uncle, his wife and 13 year old son). This family struggles more than most and really do their best to provide for their son. They only have the bus for transportation and from what I understand no luxuries at home.

Saturday before Christmas Adam, Marie and Sebastian all volunteered at a food bank for the whole day. When they were done the people who ran the food bank gave them about 10 bags of food. They took it directly to this family and spent some time with them. Sebastian noticed that the son didn't have any video games (and that is a tragedy to some) and he wanted to do something for him. Monday before Christmas they delivered Christmas to the family and invited them to join us for Christmas Eve dinner. They have no other family locally and typically spent holidays alone.

I asked Adam if we should get a gift for the son but he said not to worry about it that they had taken care of everything. I had made my usual spread of goodies and prepared a gift package of these goodies for this family just like the I do for the rest of the my family.

During our gift exchange the son was given a gift and when he opened it he was PSP games. He is such a nice kid. He thanked everyone and got up and gave hugs while looking a little shocked to get a gift at all, after all they had already received gifts earlier in the week. Adam asked him if he had a PSP and when the boy said no Adam told him he was really sorry and that he would make sure he was able to exchange it for something else he really wanted. The boy said it was okay, he liked his gift. Then the second came around and once again a PSP game and movie! The boy again thanked everyone and told Adam not to worry about it. The final gift of the night turned out to be for this boy. At this point all of us who know Adam well knew what was about to happen. The boy opened a box and and when Nathan asked him what it was he said 'a Disney box'. The kids asked him what was inside. He opened the box and quietly said 'cords' and then dug deeper and found a PSP (with a case). The boy was speechless and about to cry. It was so wonderful to see someone so incredibly grateful. I am happy my children were able to see this and participate. I think they all learned a good lesson. Here is the secret to it all. That PSP as well as all the games were Sebastian's. He takes VERY good care of his things and they were like new. AND it was his idea. HE wanted to give this to the boy. I am very proud of my nephew. Adam, Marie and Sebastian did a wonderful thing.

Ryan had to work but joined us at the end of the night. All the kids (and Adam) played Rock Bank for about an hour and a half before we all headed home.

The Christmas spirit was felt by all.

Winter Concert

2010-01-26T22:30:00.001-08:00

One night after the play closed Tara participated in the winter concert at school. All the choirs, bands, orchestras and the new drum lines played. It was a long but good program. All the kids in the audience loved the new drum lines. They really were very good.

Tara is in Advanced Choir. They performed a few songs and I decided I really need to get a video camera, at least I got one picture. It is hard to see but she is the fifth from the right (only blond) in the back row.

From Winter Concert SGHS 2009

Yerma!

2010-01-26T22:05:00.000-08:00

Tara was in the fall play at school. The theater was set up as a 'theater in the round'. The title of the play was "Yerma" about a woman who desperately wanted a child but her husband would not give her one. It was originally set in Spain about a 100 years ago, but the students decided they wanted to make a statement about the treatment of women in the Middle East in current times so the location was changed. I am not a huge fan of this play and felt that the location change may not have been wise, especially because the characters still referred to the Arroyo and had Latin names just to name a few of the things that bothered me. My father has decided that anytime he sees a bad movie he will now to refer to it as a "Yerma", although he thought Tara did her part well.

In spite of the problems the play had (some of the actors could not sing) they did their best. I being the UNBIASED parent (cough) I think Tara was one of the best (she can sing and act). Like I said.....totally, completely unbiased.

Tara hated this play and hated her costume. I told her she looked beautiful, in fact she should wear the costume everyday so she is covered up properly. Tara disagrees.

Here are a few pictures from the play.

Chicken Corn Chowder

2009-12-08T20:27:00.000-08:00

It finally feels like winter. Okay, so here in Southern California we really don't have to much of a winter, but I would like to at least need a sweater. Yesterday it was cold and rainy so I decided it was a perfect night for a warm, hearty, filling and comforting soup.

I thought about what I had at home and decided on Chicken Corn Chowder and fresh baked beer bread.

I got home threw together some beer bread with fresh Rosemary, Parmesan cheese and garlic and got to work on my chowder. The chowder was done about 10 minutes before the bread so I put a lid on it and it was perfect when the bread was ready to cut.

This chowder is relatively quick and easy. And, it is great way to use some of your left over rotisserie chicken.

CHICKEN CORN CHOWDER

4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 onion, diced
2 to 3 ribs celery, peeled and diced
2 to 3 potatoes, peeled and diced (I used 3 small)
2 tablespoons chopped parsley, or 1 tsp. dried parsley
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped or 1 teaspoon dried, optional
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup milk or light cream (I used 1/2 C. half & half with 1/2 C. nonfat milk)
2 cups chicken broth
2 cups cooked chicken, diced or shredded
salt to taste
fresh ground pepper to taste
1 cup corn kernels (fresh, frozen, or canned), optional

Heat vegetable oil in a large pot and stir in the onion and celery, continuing to stir for about 5 minutes. Stir in the potatoes. Cover and cook over low heat for about 10 minutes,Stirring occasionally. Stir in the herbs. Mix the flour with milk to make a thin paste, then add the milk and broth to the soup pot and bring to a boil. Simmer until the vegetables are tender but not mushy. Stir in the chicken and optional corn, and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper to taste. Cook gently 5 minutes; serve hot.

Note: This works really well with left over turkey also.

Beer Bread....So Easy

2009-12-06T22:45:00.000-08:00

The doctor Nathan has been seeing for ten years is retiring. Nathan decided he wanted to take something to the doctor on his last visit, which was yesterday (Saturday). Friday night I remembered that this is what he wanted to do and having been sick I didn't have a lot of energy to do something big. So, I asked Nathan if beer bread would be alright and he said yes.

On the way home from picking up Tara at play rehearsal I stopped to pick up some beer. Now for those of us not used to doing this it was a little strange to walk into 7-11 and have them put my purchase in a paper bag. I had to laugh at the way it looked. I decided that the next time I made this I would do my buying at the grocery store, at least that way I wasn't walking to my truck looking like a hobo. Aaahhh, my Bishop would be so proud...hahaha.

Anyway, beer bread is great. It is quick, easy and doesn't taste like beer. The yeast and other grains in it give it great flavor and the best part is that the basic bread only takes five ingredients. Oh! and ..... there is no need to let it rise.

I made two loaves, one for the doctor and one for my family. I decided to make Dill Cheddar Beer Bread. It took all of an hour to put together and bake and tasted great!

Give it a try, it makes a nice gift and people will think you spent much longer in the kitchen than you really did.

Basic Beer Bread

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon baking powder
12 oz. beer (You may use non-alcoholic beer if you prefer)

Optional glaze: 1 egg & 2 teaspoons water, beaten

Heat oven to 375°. Combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, herbs and cheese if you are using them, in a large mixing bowl. Slowly stir in beer and mix just until combined. Batter will be thick. Spread in a greased 8-inch loaf pan, brush with egg glaze if desired, and bake until golden brown and a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.

Cool in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and cool 10 more minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: The glaze gives it a beautiful golden color and makes for great presentation.

Flavor variations:

Dill & Cheddar: Add 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill (or 2 teaspoons dried) and 1 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese.

Garlic & Herb: Add 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, and 2 minced garlic cloves (or 1 teaspoon garlic flakes) to the basic mix. For fresh herbs, use 1 chopped Tablespoon of each.

Dill & Chive: Add 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh dill (or 2 teaspoons dried dill) and 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives to the basic mix.

From Food

Thanksgiving and Candied Yams

2009-11-26T22:36:00.000-08:00

We spent Thanksgiving at my Dad's and Amy's house. Lisha, Junior, Adam, Marie, Sebastian, Cindy and Jackson were all there. Grandpa W joined as well as a few of Dad's friends. After dinner we were able to talk to Jared on the phone and hear about he and his family were doing, it was really nice to catch up.

There are those in my family (and others I am sure) who believe it is not really Thanksgiving until the candied yams are ready. In fact I know one person who likes a little yams with her marshmallows. I have been asked many times how I do the yams and finally had the forethought to take some pictures as I went.

Here is the thing about my candied yams, I just do them. I have the basics down but there is no measuring in any way, shape or form. Trial and error is the best way to figure it out. How bad can it be with yams, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, maple syrup and marshmallows. Give it a try, it is definitely worth it.

Peel, wash and slice the yams (I used 12).

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the sliced yams. Cook until just barely fork tender. You want them to hold their shape, not fall apart (they will be really mushy that way), but definitely cooked through. Drain the yams and run cold water over them to stop the cooking. Spray a baking pan (I used a 10 x 15 inch pan) with cooking spray. Lay one layer of yams on the bottom of the pan and dot with very small dots of butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon and grate fresh nutmeg very sparingly over the layer. You should only taste a hint of the nutmeg when eating the yams.

If you like nuts throw them on, I used chopped pecans but almonds or walnuts work well also.

Using your hand sprinkle dark brown sugar over the yams, how much you use depends on how sweet you like them. Then very thinly pour real maple syrup over the yams.

Repeat this for as many layers as you have yams.
Starting my second layer:

And the third layer:

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 - 45 minutes until butter and sugar are bubbling on the bottom of the pan.

Top with marshmallows and bake until puffy and light golden brown (watch them close).

Enjoy!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Apple Cake

2009-11-26T22:07:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I have been really bad about updating this blog. Between work, family and planning Young Women in Excellence I have been a little busy. But enough with the excuses! Here we go.......

For Young Women in Excellence we did a garden party (sorta of) theme. One of the desserts we served was an apple cake. I really like this cake. It is not to sweet and full of apples. I made one for family and friends and one for the program.

This cake takes time to make and bake but it is definitely worth it.

Apple Cake

6 apples, I used Braeburn apples
1 tablespoon cinnamon
5 tablespoons sugar

2 3/4 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup orange juice
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a tube pan. Peel, core and chop apples into chunks. Toss with cinnamon and sugar and set aside.

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, orange juice, sugar and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ones, then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.

Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Spread half of apples over it. Pour the remaining batter over the apples and arrange the remaining apples on top. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a tester comes out clean.

Another Birthday!

2009-09-23T13:51:00.000-07:00

Tara had another birthday (we will ignore the fact that did also) and is 17!

Tara decided she wanted to go to Red Robin for her birthday and that she wanted a tres leches cake (three milk cake). I can deal with that, no cooking or baking. I do not make tres leches cakes, at least not yet. I found a very nice cake at a local Mexican bakery with fruit and oreos on top, it was the perfect size for our little get together.

Dad, Amy, Lisha, Junior, Adam, Marie, Sebastian, Luis, Alma and Kristina all joined us at Red Robin.

The server did a great job of catering to all our needs and when it was time to sing Happy Birthday all the servers made a lot of noise, sang a song and did a perfect job of embarrassing Tara.

Dad and Amy gave her some pretty earrings and a matching ring, Lisha and Junior gave her a gift card to Target, Luis and Alma Gave her money and Adam and family did also. Adam put his own spin on the gift giving. He used a dinner napkin, drew pictures and wrote a message on the napkin and tucked the money in the napkin. He told Tara that he could spend $5 on a card or give her $5 more, she decided she liked the way he thinks. Adam of course pointed out that his card had the added bonus of being able to be used as toilet paper in an emergency, leave it to Adam.

Ryan gave her a gift card to Forever 21 with $21 dollars loaded on it and her boy friend Alex gave her a gift card to Forever 21 also, and a new pair of Adidas earlier in the week.

When I asked Tara what she wanted for her birthday she told me cash. Well, there is no way I was going to make it that easy. I knew she had been looking for "Parties and Potions" (the fourth book in a series she likes) and none of the local book stores had it in stock. I ordered it on Amazon and had it delivered to the office. When I went to the bank I asked them for 100 singles and went home and got to work. I put a single dollar bill between the pages about every two or three pages, ten singles in the cover page and rolled up the last five singles into a tube and then tied a small bow around them. I wrapped the book in a wide ribbon, had to keep it closed somehow, and tied a big bow. I tucked the five dollar roll under the big ribbon, put it all in a large Victoria's Secret box with loads of tissue paper to fill it and wrapped the box in one of Tara's favorite papers.

Tara was worried about opening my gift. She was afraid I would do something to make her cry (with joy) or would do something really embarrassing (like I would EVER do that ....hehehe). She carefully unwrapped the box and opened the lid. Now if you know anything about my daughter this next part will not surprise you in any way. She immediately sees the roll of bills and pulls it out and says "Oh Money!" and then there is a pause. Thirty seconds later she realized there was actually something else in the box and said 'and a book!' She took the book out to show everyone and didn't notice anything else. Lisha asked her what book it was because the ribbon was covering the title. As she goes to show Lisha the book, she sees the ten bills placed in the cover page of the book. Without untying the bow she pulls the bills out and says 'more money.' All of a sudden she notices that the book it actually fuller than it should be and unties the bow. As she turns to the middle of the book she starts to see all the money. Needless to say she thought I was crazy and asked how long it took me to do it. In the end she was very happy and had a great birthday.

Thank you everyone for making Tara's birthday so nice!

It is hard to believe that my baby girl is almost an adult. Love you honey!

Tomatoes

2009-08-18T10:26:00.000-07:00

All of a sudden had a lot of tomatoes. I had purchased some from the produce people and a day later was lucky to receive another bag full as a gift from someones garden. Nathan and I love tomatoes, we will eat them alone as a snack. Tara will eat them on or in her food but not alone. And Ryan, well, he will eat them but they are not his favorite.

I decided I could not let them go to waste and set about making as many things as possible using tomatoes. One thing I thought would be a nice change and kind of fun was a tomato and cheese tart on filo dough. Being that my head has hurt for four days now it was a slow process but I just couldn't let it go.

The kids and Monte all loved it. I didn't think to get a picture of the tart when it came out of the oven, but it looked great. I did finally take a picture as I put what little was left on plate.

From Goodies

(I really need to stop using my cell phone camera)

Last night I made Bruschetta which the boys put away pretty quickly, so I have used up about half of the tomatoes.

It does take some time to make the tart because of the filo dough but it is definitely worth it. Be sure to slice the tomato and onion very thin so your crust doesn't get soggy.

Filo Tomato Tart

Ingredients
7 sheets filo dough, thawed
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
7 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, divided
1 cup very thinly sliced onion
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
6 Roma tomatoes, cut into 1/8-in.-thick slices
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
Salt (optional, I didn't use)
freshly ground black pepper (optional, I didn't use)

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 375°. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray paper with cooking-oil spray (or brush lightly with vegetable oil). Lay 1 sheet filo on paper and brush lightly with a little melted butter. Sprinkle all over with 1 tbsp. Parmesan. Repeat layering 5 more times (with filo, butter, and Parmesan), pressing each sheet firmly so it sticks to sheet below. Lay the last filo sheet on top, brush with remaining melted butter, and sprinkle on remaining 1 tbsp. Parmesan.
2. Scatter onion across filo, top with mozzarella, and arrange tomato slices in a single layer, overlapping slightly. Sprinkle with thyme and salt and pepper to taste.
3. Bake until filo is golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes. Cool 10 minutes, then serve.

Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

2009-08-13T13:40:00.000-07:00

This last weekend was pretty relaxed. Payton came to visit from Idaho on the 1st and went to girls camp with Tara.
The girls together in June:

The girls got home from camp on Friday afternoon. I can't believe it was Tara's 6th year already. Both girls came home, napped and of course went out, after all we must not deny the boys the pleasure of our company. Ryan hung out with a friend and Nathan spent the weekend at their father's house.

Ryan, his friend Chris, Tara and Payton went to Six Flags on Saturday. Towards the end of the day Ryan and Chris where stuck on one of the roller coaster for a while but got off safe. They all had a great time and stayed until the park closed.

Sunday after church Tara and Payton had plans, of course, in an effort to make the most the few days they had left together. (Payton went home on Tuesday the 11th)

I made about 7 dozen peanut butter blossom cookies that evening. These are one of the kids favorite cookies. They love the Hershey's kiss on top of the peanut butter cookie.
The original recipe was the Pillsbury Bake Off winner in 1957. Since then different versions have appeared in many cookbooks, including "The Joy of Cooking."

This is the recipe I use.

Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies

When making these cookies always make sure you have the kisses unwrapped before you take the cookies out of the oven. Quickly put a kiss on each cookie before the cookie crusts up.

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup vegetable solid shortening
1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup creamy peanut butter
2 large eggs
4 Tablespoons whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup sugar for rolling
60-70 Hershey Kisses, unwrapped

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with vegetable oil.
3. In a large bowl, blend flour, salt and baking soda together and set aside.
4. Beat shortening and white and brown sugar on high together.
5. Add eggs one at a time beating after each one. Mix in milk and vanilla and scrape down sides of bowl. Add peanut butter and beat again, scraping one more time.
6. On low speed, add flour, salt and baking soda one cup at a time until the dough is mixed well and no dry spots remain. Give the bowl a final scrape.
7. With a cookie scoop or Tablespoon, measure out balls of dough, then roll in sugar.8. Place peanut butter cookie dough on the prepared baking sheets and bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and firm around the edges. Don't over bake.
9. While the cookies are still on pans, and immediately out of the oven, place one unwrapped Hershey Kiss in the center, pressing the Kiss down just a little so that it gets stuck partially in the cookie. Don't press too hard!
10. Remove to wire racks and cool completely before storing in an air-tight container.
11. Makes 70 deliciously warm and chewy Peanut Butter Blossom Cookies!

It buckles!

2009-08-03T11:07:00.000-07:00

So I was looking in the refrigerator the other day and noticed the kids were not eating the nectarines as quickly as I thought they would. I decided to use them in something baked and change things up a little so the kids interest in the fruit would be renewed. I thought about it for a few hours and looked through my recipes and decided to make Buckle.

Buckle is a coffee cake with fruit and a crumble topping. It is called buckle because the cake buckles arounds the fruit.

I had some blackberries also so I went to work. The nectarines were sweet and juicy, I sliced them up and prepared the batter. I love fresh ground nugmet so I use it a little heavily, and I choose almond extract instead of vanilla. The result was great! Moist, sweet and a little spicy.

Of course I took pictues (the kids think I am insane).

NECTARINE BLACKBERRY BUCKLE CAKE

For the Batter:

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 stick (4 Tbls.) of butter, softened
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk (I used evaporated milk)
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, preferably freshly ground
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon Almond or vanilla extract
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen (I used some that I froze recently and put them in frozen)
1 cup nectarines, sliced

For the Streusel:

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
5-1/2 tablespoons butter, softened

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease and line, with parchment paper, a nine inch square pan or grease and flour either a nine inch square or a round pan.

First make the batter. Cream together the butter and sugar. Then add the egg and mix at medium speed for about one minute. Add all of your dry ingredients and mix well. Mix in the milk and the almond extract. Scrape down the bowl while you are mixing these together.

Now make the streusel. In a medium bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, cinnamon, almond extract and salt. Add your butter, mixing until you have medium sized crumbs.

Spread about half of the batter in your prepared pan. Then layer the nectarine slices on top of the batter. Fold the blackberries into the remaining batter, and place dollops of the batter on top of the nectarines. Then sprinkle the streusel over the batter.

Bake the buckle for 45-50 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool the cake in the pan.

ENJOY!

A good day

2009-07-19T23:58:00.001-07:00

In May Nathan turned fourteen and shortly after was interviewed by the Bishop in preparation for becoming a Teacher. At the end of the interview Bishop asked Nathan if he wanted his grandfather to ordain him. Nathan asked if his brother could do it and the Bishop told him absolutely.

My father instructed Ryan as to what needed to be said and Ryan spent this week preparing.

Today Dad, Amy, Sebastian, Grandma W and Grandpa W came to our ward. After Sacrament meeting we all met in the Bishops office and Ryan, along with Dad and Bishop, ordained Nathan as a Teacher in the Aaronic priesthood. Ryan did very well and he even got in a little blessing for his brother. I am very proud of him. It is so nice to see him turning into such a good man (as I pat myself on the back).

The best part is.......(drum roll).......I didn't cry! I am sure the kids are thankful.

Ryan's Birthday celebration

2009-07-19T22:24:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday the 21st my oldest son, Ryan will be 19. About two weeks ago I asked Ryan what he wanted to do for his birthday and he said that he wanted to go to dinner with the family at BJ's Restaurant.

Ryan wanted a pen tablet for his laptop to use with his graphic designs. He has been looking at the different types for months and finally decided on the Bamboo by Wacom. Once I knew exactly what he wanted I ordered it and had it sent to the office. As you know I have this habit of playing tricks on the kids, so having it delivered to the office was important to that he would not know I had gotten him something. I recruited Tara and Nathan and we allowed Ryan to hear a conversation with us discussing his gift and the fact that he could return it if he didn't like it. He said something and Nathan told him that he didn't think he would like what I got but at least Mom said he could exchange it.

Tara and I went to the mall Friday and bought Ryan a shirt at Pacsun to give him as his gift, after all I needed to have a something to give him to convince him he wasn't getting the tablet. I packed the shirt into a small slightly feminine box and made sure he saw that is all we were taking with us to the restaurant. Tara thankfully carries very large purses and was able to just fit the real gift in her purse to keep it hidden.

Dad, Amy, Lisha, Junior, Monte, Adam, Marie and Sebastian met us at the restaurant and we had a good time talking and enjoying each others company. The waiter brought us Ryan a Pazookie (big warm cookie with ice cream on top) and we sang Happy Birthday. Ryan then opened his gifts. He got some really cute cards from Monte and Adam and Marie, Dad and Amy gave him a Brookstone in door remote control helicopter (I think Dad wants one too), Lisha & Junior gave him a shirt and of course it my "gift' was the shirt. After opening all his gifts he thank us all and being the good son didn't show any disappointment in not getting what he really wanted.

We sat and talked for a few minutes and I casually placed the other gift in front of Ryan. He then knew mom was up to something. Needless to say he was very happy.

Here are some pictures of our evening.