A Feast for the Senses

3 Ingredient Roast That Will Knock Your Socks Off

2011-07-04T08:29:00.000-07:00

So would it help if I told you one of the ingredients is BACON. Truthfully, what isn't better with a little bacon.

Yesterday I needed to throw together a dinner main course that would feed a crowd and not require me to spend an inordinate amount of time in the kitchen - for this I dragged out my trusty crock-pot. I pulled out a roast from the freezer. Would you think less of me if I told you that I didn't know what type of roast it was...it was a beef roast for sure, but I'm lousy with knowing what type of cut it was. However, I do know that it was big!!

Putting together this roast couldn't have been any simpler. Here's the ingredient list (and I don't count salt& pepper, or olive oil, because those are pantry staples):

6 cloves of garlic
1 package bacon
1 Jar of Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce (Fischer & Wieser)

That's it!

So I first, defrosted the roast (I had less then 10 hours to cook this and so I wasn't about to wait for the crockpot to defrost and cook the roast). Once the roast was defrosted enough, I sprinkled salt and pepper (liberal on the pepper) on both sides of the roast.

Next, I peeled 6 cloves of garlic, diced them up and then drizzled a bit of olive oil on them (less than a tsp.) and sprinkled course salt on top of garlic. Then using the flat side of my knife I mashed and smeared my garlic. The goal is to make a kind of garlic paste. It's totally cool if it's kind of chunky. Once you're happy with the garlic paste, scrape it up and smear it on oneside of your roast.

I then put the roast in the crockpot, garlic side up.

Now the rest couldn't be any easier. I opened a package of bacon and layered the bacon across the surface of the roast to cover the entire thing. I had several extra pieces so I just stuffed them under the roast.

Finally, I opened a jar of Fischer & Wieser's Roasted Raspberry Chipotle Sauce and poured the whole thing over the bacon covered roast. That's It!

I turned the crockpot on high and left it for about 6-7 hours.

I got home from church last night about 5:30 and there was only one tiny little piece left for my dinner, because everyone else (all 6 adults & 8 children) had devoured it. I didn't eve get a chance to take a picture of the finished product. But I'm happy to report, the last piece that I had was AWESOME! The meat was perfectly tendered, and the bacon had just pretty much melted and flavored everything, and the sweetness from the sauce was a perfect compliment. In fact we all agreed these ingredients would also be perfect on a pork roast....hmmmm, the possibilities.

And once again I've proved that everything tastes better with bacon.

Random photos of favorites

2011-06-15T21:13:00.000-07:00

I've been telling myself for months that I need to get back to blogging. This food blog combines two of my very favorite past-times -- food and photography. There's no reason why I shouldn't be posting several times a week. Heavens knows I'm consuming enough food that I could be blogging about it for countless hours each day.

In my quest to get my food blog going again, I've decided just to go through some of my old food photos and share with you some of my favorites in hopes of garnering some inspiration. Interestingly enough, almost all my favorite food photos also include an interesting event, family activity, or friends. Food and folks really do go hand-in-hand. I've been thinking more and more about that relationship and may just have to do some ethnographic work around my family and food traditions...but that's a blog post for another time.

On to the good stuff...

These are Craigo's breadsticks, specifically from Craigo's Pizziaria in Rexburg, ID. I lived for these things while I was going to Ricks. And in the past few years when I went up to Rexburg to visit my sister I would drag her over there to order them. Cheezy goodness.

This is my Thanksgiving plate this past year. I have no problem with my food touching. All that matters is that it tastes good going down. This was the Thanksgiving that I was introduced to Aunt Char's TO DIE FOR dip. And I'm not exaggerating, I ended up putting it on everything - vegetables, turkey, my roll, jello -- you name it and it tasted better with the dip. Someday I'll get around to sharing the recipe.

Did you hear the choir of angels singing when you looked at this Butterscotch Christmas wreath? Cuz let me tell you, this Christmas dessert is DIVINE! I'm not kidding...my Christmas is not complete with out Judy Thompson's Butterscotch Christmas wreath. I hover near the front door starting about Dec. 10th waiting for the knock that heralds its arrival.

Ok, this little confection combines two of my favorite food items - peanut butter and my mom's homemade jam (doesn't really matter what flavor because I LOVE them all), in this case homemade blueberry jam. I came up with a peanut butter cupcake topped with blueberry jam and a delicious peanut butter frosting. Turned out FABULOUS! I'll have to post the recipe for that sometime too.

OK - the next two are both from Italy...what I, in my limited knowledge, believe to be the culinary mecca of the universe. I LOVE Italy and not just because of the beautiful art and architecture. I love Italy because the Italians invented the Caprese Salad and Gelato.

And for tonight, last, but not least is Hawaiian fried rice. This was a Sunday night staple in my house growing up. This particular batch was made by my Grandma Johnson in a good ol' electric fry pan. What makes it Hawaiian as opposed to Chinese is the SPAM. I LOVE SPAM. It's in my blood and good fried rice must have SPAM.

OK...now I'm inspired and hungry. :)

Planting This Years Harvest

2011-04-27T21:11:00.000-07:00

This post is an indirect path to food...actually it's a much more direct path to the actual food itself, but a round about way to the recipe from which I prepare my foods. Anyways, it's GARDEN TIME!

So you may or may not recall that I planted a few tomato plants in some containers last year (in about August). And with some very careful babying I nurtured those plants along through the entire winter and I have been enjoying the fruits of my labor, literally, for the past several months. However, in about February I noticed that the leaves on my sweet 100 plant were shriveling up and falling off. I took a portion of the plant into the local nursery and they told me my tomato plant had caught a virus...my response "are you kidding! Is this something I can treat by putting some vitamin C in the soil?!?!!" Their response, "Nope, just go home, enjoy what's left of the fruit and let your plant die a peaceful death." I felt like I had just pulled the proverbial plug on my plants.

So while my final plant is dying away (I just harvested 5 ripe tomatoes off of it today and the last of the tomatoes should be off by next week - the leaves have long since given up the ghost), I decided it was time to replant my new seedlings.

A few weeks ago I planted a few seeds -- Jubilee tomatoes, Red cherry tomatoes, jalapeno, cilantro and basil. The seedlings have been growing well (except that I killed all of the cilantro when I left the seed tray out in the sun for way too long (who knew an hour in the sun could do so much damage). Obviously the cilantro seedlings were way too woosy for me. So the surviving seedlings were in desperate need of replanting. Last Saturday was the day. Here's what happened.

Here are my desperate seedlings who need a new home.

I got a bunch of buckets from a friend:

I had to drill holes in all the buckets (and wouldn't you know that the whole time I did it all I could think about was that stoopid song "There's a whole in my bucket, dear Liza, dear Liza....":

Then a little dirt, a little plant food, and voila -- a container garden filled with a tomato plants. I've got about 5 Red Cherry Tomato plants, 8 Jubilee Tomato plants, 3 jalapeno plants, 2 cilantro plants, and about 6 more basil plants waiting to eventually be replanted. In addition to the onions, full grown basil plants and the Oregano and Rosemary plants.

Here are the jalapenos that were replanted in my handy-dandy radio flyer wagon:

Now here's a quick tour of the other things that I have growing...

beautiful and positively delicious basil (and a bit of Greek Oregano)

cliantro for my fresh salsa

red onions (also for my fresh salsa)

And last, but not least, my jalapeno plant

Some day all of these scrumptious plants will bear fruit that I will harvest and turn into delightful eats. In the meantime I will spend my time watering, watering, and watering some more in this very dry desert climate.

Strawberry season is coming

2011-03-03T19:38:00.000-08:00

I may be a little anxious, but I know strawberry season is coming. Ok so it's like 4 months away, but soon is all relative.

In anticipation of strawberry season I wanted to share with you my very favorite way to eat, consume, dispatch, devour,and otherwise partake of this luscious red berry.

I don't think this "recipe" actually has a name. If it does I'm not aware of it. There are only 3 ingredients - no measuring required.

strawberries
sour cream (if you're feeling "good", you can even use the no-fat kind)
brown sugar

Now please note that you may be tempted to use something sweet, like yogurt, instead of sour cream - resist the temptation. Sour cream is very important in this recipe.

I told you that there is no measuring required in this recipe but there are a few steps.
1. make sure your strawberries are washed and DRIED

2. dip your strawberry in the sour cream

3. press the sour cream covered strawberry in brown sugar

4. enjoy

It really is absolutely amazing how fantastic this tastes. I've surprised so many people with this when I use it for dessert. It's so unassuming, fresh, and perfectly delicious.

I bet you can't wait for strawberry season now, can ya!?!

Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day - Part I

2011-02-09T19:20:00.000-08:00

OK - I've done it. I've started the great bread experiment. I'm actually about 4 weeks into. If you're wondering about which "bread experiment" I'm alluding to I refer you back to my early post.

I made my first batch of dough a few weeks ago.

It was as simple to make as the book stated. Just dump in all the ingredients, mix it with a spoon till everything was incorporated and then put a lid on it.

In hindsight I think I didn't add enough flour - user error in counting. And I tried a new brand of yeasty and it was VERY "yeasty".

Following the directions of the book, after the dough sat in my fridge over night, I formed it into a shape and using my new pizza peel and old-seasoned stone I baked my first loaf.

Drum roll please............................ Tada!

I know, pitiful, huh?!?

It definitely wasn't much to look at, but it tasted fantastic. And just in case you couldn't tell how oddly shaped it was here's the loaf from another angle.

I made 2 more loaves later during the week from the same batch of dough. Judging when the loaf is done is still kind of tricky for me. I'm so worried about burning it or over cooking it, that I tend to take it out too early. I found that I have to bake my bread at least 15-20 minutes longer than it says to in the book.

So the last batch of bread I made from the dough turned out much better, see for yourself:

The bread taste was pretty much consistently the same - great, but the crumb was much improved. The first loaf was a little dense and moist, this loaf had more air pockets.

Another batch of dough is sitting in my fridge right now. I haven't had the guts to try one of the flavored recipes yet, because i still think I've got a lot to improve on with these plain loaves. Once I get them down, I'll go crazy.

One thing I didn't think of though when I started this...I don't usually eat this much bread and I hate to say it but I may be reaching my consumption limit. I've got to hurry up and perfect this recipe so I can start giving the bread away.

Delicious Homemade Pizza

2011-02-05T08:40:00.000-08:00

I just can't own a new pizza peel and not make homemade pizza. Last week I had a hankering for pizza and so I invited a few friends over for my culinary experimentation - and I scored BIG!

FIRST IMPORTANT STEP

In order to get that perfect authentic pizza crust, I would argue that you need to bake your pizza on a stone. I've tried the pan method and I don't feel like you can get the same rustic crust color and texture from a pan as compared to a stone. Besides that, I think every kitchen should have a good stone, because sooooo many things taste better cooked on a stone.

Anyways, back to the important first step -- stick your stone in the oven, second from the bottom tier, and get it heating up. I turned my oven up to 400 degrees and let my stone heat up for a good 20 minutes - which is about the amount of time it takes to put everything together. ;o)

The Dough

The pizza dough was from a friend of my mom. After putting all the ingredients together I set the bowl aside to rise while I made the pizza sauce.

1/4c. water with 1 tsp. sugar
*warm water and sugar in microwave until warm, then add
1 TBS. yeast

add yesty-water to
2 1/4 C. flour
1tsp. salt
1 TBS sugar
3/4 c. warm milk

Set dough aside to rise.

The Sauce
And I'm going to do ya'll a huge favor and introduce you to Cento Tomatoes.

This is the secret to a perfect tomato sauce. I swear to you that Cento tomatoes are distinctly different canned tomatoes. Now I'm not a spokes person for Cento, but I am someone who has tried a lot of canned tomatoes. It was obvious from the moment that I peeled back the can lid that these tomatoes were different:

there was actually a smell of ripe tomatoes that proceed the first glimpse of the contents of the can
the color of the tomatoes was a deep red, not the regular sickly red with spots of yellow and green
when I stuck my finger into the can and tasted the crushed tomatoes they were delightfully tomatoey in taste without an overpowering acidity.

With tomatoes like this I really didn't have to do much to make a yummy pizza sauce. I diced and sauteed a half of a sweet onion and about 2 cloves of crushed garlic in 2 TBS of olive oil. Once the onions were translucent I dumped 1 28 oz can of crushed Cento tomatoes into the pot, added some dried oregano, basil, and a pinch of rosemary and let it hangout on the stove top on low while I went back to play with my dough.

Shaping the Pizza

Seeing as I make a big enough mess in the kitchen with out throwing dough around, I just stuck to rolling out a hunk of dough on a floured counter top.Thin crust pizza is my favorite (it's the whole dough to toppings ratio thing) and so I probably rolled my dough out more than most people.
I sprinkled the top of my pizza peel with corn meal and then flopped my dough onto the pizza peel. Transferring the pizza dough from my peel to the super-duper hot stone in the oven required a little shaking and jiggling (the pizza peel, not me). And here's where the fun began:

I let the pizza dough in the oven for 2 minutes, then air bubbled begsn to form and in some cases made my pizza dough look like a big pillow. After two minutes, I opened the oven, and using a fork, I popped all the air bubbles.
After about another 3 minutes I used my peel and pulled out the dough (it smells FABULOUS by this point)
I covered the top with a light spreading of the tomato sauce (too much sauce can kill the pizza) and added slices of fresh mozzarella and thin slices of Genoa Salami
I flipped the oven to broil and popped the pizza back onto the stone for a final back of 4-8 minutes

After that, you pull that pizza out and indulge in warm-cheezy-yeasty-salty Italian perfection.

I've been to Italy and tasted authentic pizza from Rome, Florence, and the hill country of Tuscany, and I'd say that this comes pretty ding-dang close.

This is a photo of my favorite pizza in Rome (this is one unforgettable creation)

What do you think?

Butternut squash turns into a lasagna casserole

2011-01-20T20:13:00.000-08:00

This post really is for my own benefit. I love to experiment in the kitchen, create new recipes, etc. So one of my problems is that I don't write anything down so when I go back to recreate it I often can't remember what I did -- a symptom of age I assure you.
So tonight's experiment in the kitchen turned out F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S *said in a sing-songy voice*! I'm now going to capture the recipe here so I won't forget. You're welcome to try it too and then send me your feedback.
**Side note - My dad and I are the true foodies in the family. When I create new dishes he and I sit down and analyze them while we're eating. Comments surrounding this dish included - "Maybe try some italian sausage next time"..."The squash is cut up in just the right size"...."Good thing I didn't add the cabbage to the casserole. The cabbage flavor would have overwhelmed the squash" (we had steamed cabbage as a side dish). We usually end up analyzing most meals we eat together.**

Back to the casserole. I've decided to call tonight's creation Butternut Lasagna Casserole. I got 3 smallish butternut squashes in my Bountiful Basket this week and so I needed to use them up. I first thought about doing a vegetable lasagna, which lead me to thinking about one of my favorite new sauces. One that actually comes in a jar:

Dave's Gourmet Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce. I've only seen it at Costco, but I really haven't looked too many other places. This stuff is delicious. There are definite roasted red pepper undertones that add an element of heat, while the sauce is smooth and slightly sweet because of the butternut squash. I just loooove this stuff.

So here's what I came up with tonight...

Butternut Lasagna Casserole
3 small butternut squashes
2-4 TBS olive oil
1 whole sweet onion
3 chicken breasts
1 box of pasta
1 - 15oz container of ricotta cheese
1 egg, beaten
1/3 c. grated Parmesan
1 tsp of herb de Provence
1/2 tsp dried basil
1 jar of Dave's Gourmet Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce
1/2 c. of grated mozzarella to top the casserole

These are pretty general directions:

1. I boiled the chicken in chicken broth and added 3 bay leaves to water. Once the chicken was cooked I shredded it and set it aside.
2. I cut the skin off the butternut squash, scrapped out the seeds and then diced up the squash into 1/2 inch cubes.
3. I sauteed the butternut squash in a pan with 1-2 TBS of oil just until the edges of each cube started to turn transparent and some of the squares started to get a bit toasted. I didn't want to cook the squash all the way, because I didn't want them to get to squishy in the casserole. I removed the squash from the pan and set it aside.
4. I sliced up the onion into thin slices and sauteed the onions in another TBS or so of olive oil.
5. I boiled the pasta till just before al dente.
6. In a small bowl I combined the ricotta cheese with the beaten egg and Parmesan, and herbs.
7. In my 9x13 pan I combined the pasta, chicken, cooked squash and onions, and the pasta sauce. Once everything was thoroughly combined I spread the cheese mixture over the top and tossed it lightly in with the rest of the ingredients. I wasn't going for a homogeneous mixture, rather I was looking for pockets of cheese amidst the other ingredients.
8. I put the dish in a 350 degree oven for 30 minutes, after 25 minutes I pulled out the casserole, sprinkled the top with the grated mozzarella to melt over the top, and put it back in the oven for the final 5 minutes.

I call it a casserole, because I just mixed everything up. I prefer to cook my ingredients separately before combing, because I find that this allows each element to develop its own flavor and characteristics which is preserved when combined with the other ingredients. In the end, they all work harmoniously together to create a more complex and richer flavor.

For example, some would say just cook all your vegetables together, but if you did this then the sweet butternut squash would end of assuming the overpowering flavor of the onions and they would become lost by the time you bite in to the casserole after baking. By cooking them separately you can enjoy the sweetness of the butternut, coated by the sweet and spicy pasta sauce followed by a burst of salty creaminess found in the ricotta mixture -- a harmony of flavor.

So on a scale of 1-5, 5 being the best...I'd give this recipe a 4. Next time I might try improving the flavor profile of the chicken..hmmm...I've got to think about that some more. Give this recipe a try and let me know what you think.

Any suggestions??

Pizza Peel and Tomatoes

2011-01-19T15:54:00.000-08:00

Yahoo! Two great things on my porch when I got home from work today. 1) a whole "harvest" of new tomatoes were ready to be picked and 2) my new pizza peel.

The tomatoes I'll be eating tonight (haven't yet decided how). I sure wish I had a fresh loaf of bread, because there are very few things in life that are as good as a homemade tomato sandwich with fresh bread, mayo, big slices of fresh warm tomatoes straight from the garden and bit of salt and pepper - delicious!

However, the new pizza peel does bring me one step closer to the fresh bread. I'm now just waiting on my "bucket", in which I'll mix my dough. Maybe tomorrow it will be waiting for my on my porch.

Artisan Bread in Five MInutes a Day - ready to start

2011-01-17T16:10:00.000-08:00

Ok - so I finished reading the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day book. I'm ready to start! I ordered a 6 qt container and a pizza peel today on Amazon and it should arrive here by Thursday or Friday. I think tomorrow night I'll make the dough and then start baking on Thursday.

I've been impressed by the science behind Hertzberg and Francois's book. I like to know "why" things work, especially when it comes to cooking & baking. When I know why then I can figure out "how" when changes need to be made.

I'm really excited!! I'll take pictures and let you know how it goes.

Pulla - Finnish Sweet Bread

2011-01-15T10:14:00.000-08:00

I have this AMAZINGLY talented friend. He does everything from remodeling his home and ~~refurbishing~~ rebuilding old pianos to computer programing, sewing and cooking. Your all around renaissance man. And every year at Christmas time Chaz makes this delectable bread called Pulla. He learned to make it will serving a mission for our church in Finland. He picked up some tips and tricks to making this Finnish delight from a local.

Apparently in Finland Pulla is consumed like Americans consume doughnuts or pastries. Pulla is a mildly sweet bread, flavored with cardamom, that is eaten with coffee or hot chocolate. I had to borrow this photo of Pulla bread from wikipedia because unfortunately I have to confess, I don't have any pictures to show you of a finished Pulla. "Why?" you ask, well, darn it, i ate it all this year before I remembered I hadn't taken a final picture. Aggghh!!!!!

So anyways, below are the step by step instructions. I've been bugging Chaz to have me over when he actually makes the bread so I can learn and this year our schedules finally lined up. THANKS CHAZ!!

First, here is the recipe

Pulla or Finnish Sweet Bread

2.5 c milk
1.5 sticks butter
2 packets yeast
2/3 c sugar
2 Tblsp cardamon
2 eggs
6-7 cups flour

Step 1: Warm the milk and melt the butter in it. (First I should preface this entire recipe with the fact that Chaz has a teeny-tiny kitchen and he is in the midst of doing a whole house remodel - i.e. knocking down walls, ceilings and a roof -- and he still finds the time and means for baking up batch after batch of delicious bread for everyone during the holiday season.)

Step 2: mix together the eggs, the yeast, and the sugar.

I had to show you that eggs don't get much fresher than this. Chaz has his own chicken coop and gets fresh eggs daily. (What did I tell you about him being a renaissance man - it's enough to give a woman a complex)

Step 3: crush the cardamom (usually comes in small seeds).

Chaz gave me a quick course in Cardamom 101 - normally cardamom is a very black pungent seed that comes from a pod found on a plant that is indigenous to India. For some reason the seeds that we get from our stores here in the states seem to be less potent and grayer in color - leading one to believe that they're much less fresh than cardamom which can be found in Finland. So Chaz actually uses a bit more cardamom than the recipe calls for, when he's baking here in the states, because the cardamom is less potent.

You'll need to crush/grind the cardamom seeds. If you've got a spice grinder, that will work great. Mortar and pestle will also work. If you don't have either of those, you can do as Chaz does and just use your blender - unique, but effective.

You can add the ground cardamom to the egg and sugar mixture.

Step 4: Once the butter has completed melted and the milk is starting to scald, temper the egg/yeast/sugar mixture with some of the heated milk/butter mixture. Once tempered, add the all of milk mixture to the egg mixture

Step 5: add 1-2 cups of flour to the wet mixture, this just helps things get started (the yeast becomes active)

Step 6: (if waiting can be considered a step) You now set the dough aside to rise for 20-30 minutes.

Chaz taught me another technique for rising dough - he fills up his sink with warm water and then just sets the bowl in the warm water = warm, moist environment for raising the dough.

Step 7: after it has risen and bubbled a little, you add the rest of the flour. The dough should remain relatively tacky. Shape it into a ball and let it rest in the bowl to rise more.

Here's the dough after it has had time to rest and the yeast has started to do its job.

After adding the remaining flour the dough is being set back into the bath of warm water to have time to rise a second time.

In between rising times, Chaz taught me how to use a nail gun as he had to frame out his new garage door -- fun, fun, fun!

Step 8: after this second chance to rise, your dough is ready to work. You will need to knead it for 3-5 minutes. Kneading will help develop the glutton.

Please note Chaz's amazing bread board. This beautiful kitchen tool is sooo well seasoned and loved that he didn't even need any flour on it. It's been perfectly oiled and used over the years. You can't buy tools like this...and if he's not careful, next time I'm over I may try to slip it into my jacket and make off with it.

Step 9: shape the dough - your choice.

To make the braid, Chaz first rolls out ropes of dough.

Then he lays 3 ropes out and crosses them to begin his braiding.

Finally, after braiding he tucks the ends under the braid.

Step 10: break an egg in to a bowl, mix, and apply an egg wash to the top of the formed bread. Sprinkle with course sugar.

Now Chaz swears that the best sugar for sprinkling on top of Pulla can only be found in Finland - he has to stock up when he goes to Finland. But you can probably settle for a general coarse sugar.

Step 11: Bake at 350degrees for 20-30 minutes.

Step 12: Enjoy. (for pictures of what the final product looks like, refer to the top) Soooooorrrryyyy! I just couldn't wait to eat it, forget taking pictures of it.

The recipe for Pulla in its entirety:

Pulla or Finnish Sweet Bread

2.5 c milk
1.5 sticks butter
2 packets yeast
2/3 c sugar
2 Tblsp cardamon
2 eggs
6-7 cups flour

Warm milk, with butter in it. Mix eggs, sugar, and yeast. Crush and
add cardamon. Pour in warm milk (warm to touch, not hot). Mix in 1-2
c flour. Let sit for 15-30 min.

Mix in rest of flour slowly mixing well.

Let raise for 25-30 min. Shape and cover with egg wash before baking for shiny look. Sprinkle with coarse sugar and bake. 350 degrees 20-30 min.

A new adventure into bread making

2011-01-09T18:51:00.000-08:00

I've decided that I need something new, culinarily speaking, to jump start the new year. Several of the food bloggers I follow have mentioned a great book called "Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day", by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. It sounded very interesting. I stink at making bread. Don't ask me why. For my last birthday in October I asked my best friend to come over and give me a a basic bread lesson...she makes amazing loaves of bread (see for yourself below).

She did a great job teaching me, but I'm still struggling to make my bread as light as hers.

I've just started reading my new book. As I begin to experiment, I'll be sure to let you know how things go. Wish me luck!

Merry Christmas 2010

2010-12-24T20:00:00.000-08:00

This evening we had the family together for our traditional Christmas Eve celebration. We have pizza every Christmas Eve. I'm not sure when this tradition started. We've done it as far back as I can remember.

Then I put together our evening program around the reading of the Christmas story. We took turns reading and then stopped to sing Christmas carols in between the readings. It was probably my favorite part of the night.

After that the mayhem ensued as the munchkins opened up their presents.

However, I want to remember that the best part of the evening was listening to my family sing Silent Night around me, as I was playing the piano.

I wish you and your family a very beautiful Christmas. I leave you with these very poignant words:

Christmas is not a day or a season, but a condition of heart and mind.
If we love our neighbors as ourselves;
if in our riches we are poor in spirit and in our poverty we are rich in grace;
if our charity vaunteth not itself, but suffereth long and is kind;
if when our brother asks for a loaf, we give ourselves instead;if each day dawns in opportunity and sets in achievement, however small—
then every day is Christ’s day and Christmas is always near.

In Charles L. Wallis, ed., Words of Life (1966), 33

Simply Fabulous Chocolate Orange Scones

2010-12-18T14:44:00.000-08:00

So I went to Crackers for breakfast with some friends last week. I ordered their cranberry orange scone and it was absolutely delicious - not too dry, not to sweet, and just the right amount of orange and cranberries. I figured that I could give recreating the recipe a try. However, rather than cranberries I thought that I would make it with my favorite pairing for orange...chocolate!

The best chocolate chips in the world are Ghiradelli's "Double Chocolate Bittersweet Chips". You can get them from Costco. America's Test Kitchen even rated them the best chips. Great deep chocolate taste without that weird waxy underpinning that you often get in low-grade chocolate chips.

I pulled a "Simple Scone" recipe from USA WEEKENDcolumnist Pam Anderson on Allrecipes.com. Pretty basic. Then I "meganized" it...

Here is the recipe for Simple Scrumptious Orange Chocolate Scones.

I'm happy to report that I'm not the only one that though they were delicious. I took them into work and they were a HIT!!! I shared some with my dad and he reported (via text) "that breakfast scone was the absolutely most delicious and heavenly pastry I have ever had. Bravo". So this recipe is a keeper.

Thanksgiving's Good Eats - everything's better with garlic

2010-11-27T17:49:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is about family and food, and more food, and more food. This year we gathered with my dad's family at my uncle's house. There were roughly 50 of us. Everyone is given a food assignment so no one person has to make all the food. I was assigned 15 lbs of potatoes. I was disinclined to bring just a bunch of plain, forgettable mashed potatoes. And when I posted my assignment on Facebook I got all kinds of helpful suggestions, several of which (from my Hawaiian family members) included, "ditch the potatoes and bring rice."

However, I decided to stick with tradition, but add my own little twist. I roasted garlic and added it to PW's recipe for Creamy Mashed Potatoes (note: I only used about half the cream cheese she recommended because it was getting a little too thin for my tastes.) I added about 7 cloves of roasted garlic to 5 lbs of potatoes. It turned our *FABULOUS*. It was finger licking good...literally. The crockpot with my garlic mashed potatoes was wiped clean. Here's a shot of the garlic, just before I wrapped it up and roasted it. Sorry I didn't get one of the mashed potatoes, they went fast. I would highly recommend this little trick.

Roasted Green Chilis and Chili Rellenos Casserole

2010-08-21T19:57:00.000-07:00

The fresh produce co-op that I've been a part of for the past 2 1/2 years had green chilies and tomatoes for sale in last week's offering. I love green chilies and can't stand paying $2 for a tiny 2 oz jar. So I ordered a 25lb bag of green chilies and 25lbs of tomatoes.

I guess I didn't realize how much 25lbs really is. It was a WHOLE LOT of chilies, as you can tell.

I did a little research on how to roast chilies and Focus New Mexico's page had the best set of directions. I'll let you read them for yourself. However, I am going to share photos of how my chilies looked along the way and a few of the "Note to self..." moments that I had.

"Note to self number 1 ... leave the chilies whole. Don't try to clean them out." I cleaned out all but the chilies in this photo. I definitely wouldn't do that again. I thought it would save me a step at the end, but I found it was easier to "gut" the chilies after they were soft from roasting, then it was to cut them open and carve out their guts while they were still fresh.

"Note to self number 2 ... the blacker the better." Roast the whole darn pepper. The parts that didn't turn black were harder to peel.

"Note to self number 3 ... don't overestimate how long it will take to blacken the chili." I found that the chilies roasted a whole lot faster than I was expecting (I did burn a whole batch *opps*)

So all the labor paid off in the form of a DELICIOUS Chili Rellenos Casserole. It was soooooo wonderful, with the fresh roasted chilies. I usually use canned chilies, so if you're not willing to slave over a hot grill (it was 110 degrees outside while I was roasting), then canned chilies will also work.

Chile Rellenos Casserole
by The Mesquite Tree

15 oz can whole green chilies

1lb Monterrey Jack cheese

12 eggs
2 TBS flour

4 TBS butter

12-oz can evaporated milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9"x11" pan. Remove seeds from green chilies. Slice cheese into 1/4" slices. Layer chilies, then cheese in casserole dish. Sprinkle flour and butter on top, then add another layer of chilies and cheese.

In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs and milk with wire whisk; pour over casserole.

Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Serve with salsa.

*I'll save you the pain and agony and not post the nutritional information for a serving of this casserole...you're welcome!

Peanut Beef Stir-Fry -- Monochromatic Goodness

2010-08-09T18:24:00.000-07:00

I was looking for something different. I'm tired of the same-old-same old. So I started thinking about stir-fry on the way home from work. Once I got home I browsed through one of my favorite recipe sites -- allrecipes.com -- and found a recipe for Peanut Beef Stir-Fry. Now the recipe didn't have any pictures, and I usually avoid any recipes without pictures, but it had a bunch of great reviews. I love peanut butter and so I decided to give it a try.

The recipe was super simple. I made a few substitutions, because I can't stand celery -- it's a whole stringy texture thing -- and I had a red pepper that I needed to use.

The finish product smelled amazing; however, it was very monochromatic - brown beef, with brown sauce and just a splash of color from the red peppers. To liven up the plate I steamed a few pea pods. Fortunately the Peanut Beef Stir-Fry tasted anything but monochromatic. I loved the subtle peanut/nutty flavor with the saltyness of the soy sauce. The peppers added just a small bite of sweetness. You've really got to try this recipe.

Peanut Beef Stir-Fry
by Rita Reifenstein
allrecipes.com

5 tsp cornstarch

1-14.5oz can beef broth

2 TBS soy sauce

3 TBS peanut butter (the original recipe calls for 2 but I added another, yum)

1/2 tsp sugar

1 lb. boneless beef sirloin steak, thinly sliced (I used "stir fry beef")

1 c. sliced onions

1 c. red bell pepper (the original recipe calls for celery, yuck)

2 tsp. minced garlic (the original recipe calls for 1 tsp, not enough)

2 TBS sesame oil (the original recipe calls for vegetable oil)

1/4 tsp. sesame seed oil (the original recipe doesn't call for this, but I liked the additional enhanced nut flavor)

In a bowl, combine the cornstarch, broth, soy sauce, peanut butter, sugar and sesame seed oil until smooth (I found it helped that I nuked the beef broth for a bit first, because it helped melt the peanut butter); set aside.

In a large skillet or wok, stir-fry the beef, onion, peppers, and garlic in oil for 5-8 minutes or until meat is no longer pink.

Stir the broth mixture and add to the pan. Bring to boil; cook and stir for 2-3 minutes or until sauce thickens.

Serve and enjoy!

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

2010-06-13T18:51:00.000-07:00

So my sister-in-law brought over some cookies a few months ago for a family dinner. This unassuming cookies looked like every other chocolate chip cookie I had ever eaten and so I casually helped myself to one after dinner. OH MY GOSH!! There was something absolutely unequivocally different about these cookies. There was nothing run-of-the-mill about these chocolate chip cookies.

"How can there possibly be anything that different about a chocolate chip cookie?" You ask.

"They're all pretty much the same." You Say.

I say, Nay, Nay.

These are not like any chocolate chip cookie you have ever eaten. They are warm and carmely tasting. The cookie itself actually stands out as the star, almost over-shadowing the chocolate.

I made a batch again today and decide that I just couldn't keep this recipe to myself any longer. The recipe actually comes from America's Test Kitchen. You may have seen this show on your local PBS station. It's a pretty darn good show.

Anyways, here's the pictures to entice you to try the recipe. Please note, these take more time to make and involve many more steps than your traditional c.c. cookie recipe. But it's worth it in the end.

I made small little cookies this time around, because I had to feed a bunch of people. However, I think these would be even better in the form of GIANT cookies.

These delicious bits of golden goodness bring back my conviction that chocolate chip cookies may be the best thing that ever happened to my mouth.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever by America's Test Kitchen - Recipe

Bolognese & Homemade Pasta

2010-04-25T20:57:00.000-07:00

OK, so it's been FOREVER since I've posted. It's not that I haven't been cooking, it's just that I haven't been taking the time to record the experience. However, I decided to come back with a big splash... Pastor Ryan's Bolognese. I got this recipe from one of my favorite blogs -- Pioneer Woman. It is an AMAZING recipe and it makes a ton.

Tuesday night I made it and also made some homemade pasta to serve it over. The combination was killer. The freshness of homemade pasta is so refreshing and really supported the robustness of the Bolognese sauce. Friday, I recycled the leftover sauce into lasagna, yum.

Enjoy!

Ryan’s Bolognese

1 1/2 cups grated carrots
1 large red onion, diced
1/2 cup olive oil
2 pounds ground beef (I used 1 lb ground beef and 1 lb sausage - delicious)
2 tablespoons oregano flakes
2 tablespoons dried basil flakes
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 to 2 cups red wine (I don't drink wine so I used beef broth instead and it works great)
2 tablespoons Worcestershire
salt
pepper
2 28-ounce cans whole tomatoes
1 cup milk
Fresh Parmesan cheese

Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or skillet over medium heat. Add grated carrots and onions and cook for a few minutes. Make a well in the center of the mixture, then add in the ground beef. Cook for a few minutes until brown, gradually stirring it into the carrot mixture.

Throw in oregano and basil. Use fresh if you have it; if you don’t, it’s fine. When the meat is browned and combined with other ingredients, make another well. Add tomato paste and let it heat. Add garlic and stir to combine. Make a well in the center of the mixture and add red wine. Stir together. Add Worcestershire and stir. Add canned tomatoes.

Finally, pour in milk, stir, and let simmer for 30 minutes to 2 hours—however long you need.
Serve with pasta and a generous sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Halloween Treats - Cinna-Bun Carmel Corn

2009-10-22T17:05:00.000-07:00

I found this awesome recipe for cinnamon candy popcorn - ya know that stuff the Harry & David's makes called Moose Munch that tastes wickedly good but they charge ya like $8 for a quarter-cup.

Well, while cruising my favorite recipe photo site (admit it, you eat with your eyes first, if there isn't a great picture with the recipe you won't try it) Taste Spotting, I saw a recipe for the popcorn. The "Our Best Bites" site calls it "Cinnamon Carmel Corn with Pecans and White Chocolate" -- I call it freakin' delicious.

So rather than post the recipe, I'm going to send you on over to Our Best Bites and just show you the pictures of the finished popcorn that I made today. I won't tell you the bowl is not empty, cuz it's not...I swear! ;)

I did add a small Halloween flair -- just before I drizzled the white chocolate on the cooled popcorn I tossed in Halloween m&m's and I also drizzled semi-sweet chocolate along with the white chocolate. Strictly for aesthetic reasons! ;)

You've got to make yourself some this year. I'm planning on serving up several other Halloween dishes in the next week, so I'll be sure to take pictures and post them.

Magical Lemon-Blueberry Bundt Cake

2009-09-15T06:10:00.000-07:00

I have been remiss. I realized this morning that I have failed to share one of my absolute favorite recipes with you. I have people at work clamoring for this on a weekly basis. It is a truly divine concoction and, I hate to break it to you....but it's low-fat. Eeekkk! Doesn't that equate to "NO TASTE"? Not in this delicious Lemon-Blueberry Bundt Cake from Cooking Light. Here you go...

Lemon-Blueberry Bundt Cake
Cooking Light Magazine

Cake:
Cooking spray
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
3 C. all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 ¾ c. granulated sugar
¼ C. butter, softened
1 Tbsp. grated lemon rind (zest)
4 large eggs
½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 16-oz container fat-free sour cream
2 cups fresh blueberries
Glaze:
1 C. powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
To prepare cake, coat a 12-cup bundt pan with cooking spray; dust with 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar. Set aside.
Lightly spook flour into dry measure cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.
Place 1 ¾ C. granulated sugar, butter, and lemon zest in a large bowl, beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 2 minutes). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition (about 4 minutes total). Beat in vanilla and sour cream. Add flour mixture; beat at medium speed just until combined. Gently fold in blueberries.
Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 15 minutes on a wire rack, remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.
To prepare glaze, combine powdered sugar and lemon juice, stirring well with a whisk. Drizzle over cooled cake. Yield’s 16 servings.

Enjoy!

Bright Raspberry Crumb Topped Muffins

2009-08-15T12:27:00.001-07:00

I got 2 1/2 pints of fresh raspberries in my bountiful basket last week. I've been trying to come up with something to do with them before they went bad. Finally, I came across a raspberry muffin recipe that had some great potential. I did a bit of tweaking and they turned out pretty darn fabulous. They muffins are not overly sweet and the brightness of the berries perfectly highlighted, so very fresh tasting.

Bright Raspberry Crumb Topped Muffins

1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. white sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 c. yogurt (I used a single serving of peach no-fat yogurt and it was perfect. I might try lemon next time.)
1/2 c. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. fresh raspberries

Crumb Topping
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. quick-oats
3 TBS brown sugar
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
3 TBS cold butter

1. In mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg.
2. In small bowl mix yogurt, milk, and vanilla.
3. Combine dry ingredients (except for Crumb Toppings).
4. Combine dry ingredients; stir into creamed mixture alternatively with wet mixture just until moistened. Gently fold in raspberries.
5. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full.
6. Combine crumb topping ingredients, cut in butter till mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle crumb topping over muffins.
7. Bake muffins at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes or until muffins test done.
8. Remove from pan and cool on rack.

Enjoy!!!

Fresh Salsa

2009-08-15T12:13:00.000-07:00

My very favorite salsa has been and will always be my Aunt Jan's homemade salsa. It's summer time and I got a huge box of tomatoes a few weeks ago and summer tomatoes equal salsa in my book. Here's the fabulous recipe. Keep in mind that you can kick-up the heat as much as you want...the heat valve is the jalapeno.

Fresh Salsa
4-5 Roma tomatoes, diced
1-14.5oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 of a jalapeno pepper (seeded and deveined)
1 whole onion, diced
cilantro, as desired and chopped
juice of 1 lime
2 cloves of fresh garlic
salt & pepper to taste

Add onions, garlic, and jalapeno to a food processor and chop finely. Add Roma tomatoes, can crushed tomatoes, pulse a few times to combine. Pour into a bowl. Squeeze in lime juice and toss in chopped cilantro. Mix and add salt and pepper to taste.

Makes about 40oz.

Dutch Oven - Breakfast Pizza & Carmel Pecan French Toast

2009-08-04T20:25:00.000-07:00

I'm back! The past few months have been a little busy and it's been a struggle to find time to actually cook anything, take pictures of it, and then post about it. It's been all I can do just to find something to heat up from the freezer.
Anyways, I've got a few things stored up and will finally be posting them. First, I went camping this weekend and did some dutch oven cooking with my family. My mom and dad have always loved to dutch oven cook and so they've taught us all to appreciate a good meal cooked in cast iron over hot coals.
My contribution to the family dutch oven breakfast was "Breakfast Pizza". Here's the recipe:

Dutch Oven Breakfast Pizza

1 can crescent rolls
1 lb sausage; browned & drained
1 c. thawed frozen hash brons
1 green onion; sliced
3/4 c. shredded cheddar cheese
4 eggs; beaten
3 TBS milk
1 TBS flour/bisquick
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
3 TBS. parmesan cheese

Unroll the crescent rolls. Line the bottom of a 12" dutch oven with a layer of flattened crescent rolls. Sprinkle evenly with sausage, hash browns, green onion, and cheddar cheese. In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, milk, flour/bisquick, salt and pepper. Pour egg mixture evenly over top of pizza. Sprinkle with parmesan cheese.

Cover and bake using 8 briquettes on the bottom and 12 briquettes on the top for 20-30 minutes, until eggs are set.

RECIPE NOTES:

I found that I actually used 1 1/2 cans crescent rolls in order to thoroughly cover the bottom of the dutch oven.
You really need to use name brand -- Pillsbury -- crescent rolls. I tried the recipe the first time with cheap generic crescent rolls and it totally bombed (just ask my dad).
I made two dutch ovens of pizza. The first was plain, just the recipe above. The second was a "mexican" style pizza. I added a can of green chilis and browned the sausage with taco seasoning. You could definitely add churizo and some red and yellow peppers and it would be great topped with cilantro or fresh salsa.

My brother and his adorable wife, Ellie, made Caramel Pecan French Toast. It was DELICIOUS. And here is their fabulous recipe:

Dutch Oven - Carmel Pecan French Toast

12" dutch oven-6 servings

3/4 cups butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1 cup chopped pecans
8 large eggs
1-1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 loaf French bread, cut in 1" slices

Place slices of bread in large casserole bowl. Mix eggs, vanilla, milk, and cinnamon, beating well. Pour egg mixture over bread and allow it to soak in. Melt butter in dutch oven, stir in brown sugar and cook long enough for sugar to dissolve.

Add pecans covering bottom evenly. Place bread slices in dutch oven, pouring remaining egg mixture over bread.

8 coals on bottom/ 12 top coals. Cover and bake medium to medium-low heat for 30-40 minutes, adding top coals after 15 minutes. Bake until toast is firm and brown.

This is so good, no syrup is needed... enjoy.
Chris http://forums.idos.org/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=21551

Quiche - 5 Ways

2009-05-17T10:32:00.000-07:00

So for Mother's Day I made dinner for the whole family. I decided, for my mother, I would make QUICHE and because of my brothers I made 5 of them. Don't ask...
I used the every fabulous Jamie Oliver Pie Crust recipe, made the dough Saturday night, and then just rolled it out on Sunday.

The general quiche filling recipe is as follows:
4 eggs (I used 2 eggs and 2 servings egg substitute)
2 C. milk (I use skim milk and it always turns out just fine. This time I used about 1 1/2 C. skim milk and 1/2 C. cream).
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. sugar

mix together; pour into unbaked pie shell. Bake @ 425 degrees for 15 min. and then reduce oven to 300 degrees and back for another 30-40 minutes.

Some things I've learned (the hard way) about making quiche.

Always put your empty pie shells, with whatever extras you want, on the baking rack first, THEN pour in the egg mixture. Slide the baking rack back into the oven and then bake.
You will want to cook your vegetable al dente before adding them (unless you like crunchy vegetables in your quiches) and saute all your onions and peppers.
There is such thing as "too much stuff", don't go over board on the fillings, you want room for the eggs.
Don't fill the egg mixture all the way up to the top of the crust, eggs get poofy when they are baked and will spill over the top.
MOST IMPORTANTLY, put your pie pan on a baking sheet before you put it on the baking rack in your oven. This way overfill with be caught by the baking sheet and not burn to the bottom of your oven.

Here are the pictures.Broccoli (it was actually CauliBroccoli) and bacon.It took me forever to bake all the quiches cuz I could only bake them 2 at a time cuz my oven is so small. Agghh! I dream of a larger kitchen someday, with tons and tons of counter space, a double oven AND warming oven, a side by side refrigerator and a seperate stand alone freezer, a stove with a pasta spout and 6 burners -- sigh!!

Anyways, back to reality...
Here's what I mean by putting them on the oven rack before I add the egg mixture.
You can see just how level my oven rack is (NOT).
Here's the finished product.

Ham, Bacon (isn't that redundant) and Swiss.
Green chili and cheddar cheese. This was the favorite.
Here they are all lined up, waiting to be served at mom and dad's. I made little name plates to tell everyone what was in each. I ended up making -- chili & cheddar cheese, ham & swiss, bacon & cheddar cheese, broccoli & bacon, bacon & ham & swiss.They tasted even better than they looked.

Apple Cinnamon Swirl Bread

2009-05-08T16:56:00.000-07:00

One of my friends at work requested my Apple Cinnamon Swirl Bread recipe, so I'm throwing it up here. I got the original recipe from a recipe posted by Sharon Walker on Allrecipes.com and then I added my own personal twist.

Apple Cinnamon Swirl Bread
Makes 1 Loaf

1/4 C. butter, softened
1 C. granulated sugar
1 egg
2 C. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 C. buttermilk (I don't have this very often, instead I use 1 C. skim milk with 1 TBS. lemon juice or vinegar)
1 C. diced apples (if you cut them too small they all but disappear, too big and they becoming an eating obstacle)

1 TBS ground cinamon
1/3 C. granulated sugar

1. In a large mixing bowl beat the butter, sugar and egg until well blended. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add to the egg mixture alternately with buttermilk. Mix in the diced apples. In a small separate bowl combine cinnamon and sugar, set aside.

2. Pour half of the batter into the a well greased loaf pan. Sprinkle a very generous layer of cinnamon sugar over the batter. Pour the remaining batter in, sprinkle a small amount of cinnamon sugar over the very top.
3. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

The Best Darn Pie Crust In The Whole World

2009-05-06T20:30:00.001-07:00

I saw Jamie Oliver make this quick pie crust during one of his fabulous tv episodes (Jamie at Home). If you want to watch any of his episodes, come on over, I've got most of his shows on DVR. It looked pretty simple so I decided to give it a try. And it had me at "hello". I've never liked anything other than graham cracker crusts on my dessert, but this stuff is so amazing that I could probably eat it baked in a pie shell with a little whipped cream. :)
The great things about this crust is that it can be both savory and sweet, it really is easy to make, and it tastes better than any crust I've ever had.

Here you go, try it for yourself.

Pie Crust
(based on Jamie Oliver's recipe)

2C flour
1/2C powdered sugar
1C butter, cut into small cubes
zest of 1 lemon
2 large free-range or organic eggs, beaten
a splash of milk
flour, for dusting

• Sieve the flour from a height on to a clean work surface and sieve the icing sugar over the top. I was making this pie crust for a chicken pot pie so I omitted the powdered sugar because I wanted a savory pie crust, and I did add about an extra 1/4 C. of flour instead.
• Using your hands, work the cubes of butter into the flour and sugar by rubbing your thumbs against your fingers until you end up with a fine, crumbly mixture.
• This is the point where you can spike the mixture with interesting flavors, so mix in your lemon zest. Again, because it was a savory pie crust I decided to spike it with rosemary and garlic powder. I added about 1/2 tsp of garlic powder and 1 tsp of rosemary. I crushed the rosemary first so I wouldn't get chunks of "woody leaves" in my bite of pie.

Here's a shot of the "spike" from a pie crust I made for pocket apple pies. I spiked it with the lemon zest and a little powdered ginger. This crust also has the powdered sugar in it.• Add the eggs and milk to the mixture and gently work it together till you have a ball of dough. Flour it lightly. Don’t work the pastry too much at this stage or it will become elastic and chewy, not crumbly and short.• Flour your work surface and place the dough on top. Pat it into a flat round, flour it lightly, wrap it in clingfilm (saranwrap) and put it into the fridge to rest for at least half an hour.

So here is the prep for the chicken pot pies I made. You can see the lovely flecks of herbs in the pie crust when I roll it out.
I had enough leftover stuffing (chicken and veges) and pie crust that I made an extra dish. And I assure you that it tasted as good as it looked.
Here's the sweet crust. I used it for mini apple pies.It really doesn't get much better than this perfect pie crust...hmmm the homemade pasta I made on Sunday was pretty darn good, but I'll save that for another post.

You've got to try these -- Beautiful Breakfast Muffins

2009-04-26T11:58:00.000-07:00

I need to make something that would use up some apples and muffins. I didn't have any syrup for pancakes, so it had to be muffins. I added a little bit of this, and a little bit of that, and next thing you know I had warm and yummy apple, cinnamon, and banana goodness. And boy did I hit a home run with these!! These delicious bites of breakfast joy have made my top 10 list, so you've got to try them.

Beautiful Breakfast Muffins
3/4 c. white sugar
1/3 C. packed brown sugar
1/4 C. melted butter
2 TBS fat-free sour cream
1 egg, lightly beaten
3 bananas mashed
1 apple diced

1 1/2C. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

cinnamon sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease muffin cups or line with muffin papers. (I used my mini-loaf pans.)
2. Beat together all wet ingredients (except for apple). Mix together all dry ingredients.
3. Combine dry mixture with wet mixture. Stir until moist (don't over mix). Fold in apple pieces.
4. Fill each of the muffin cups 1/2 full. Then sprinkle a generous layer of cinnamon sugar in each muffin cup. Then fill each of the muffin cups with the remaining dough. Top each of the muffins with a quick sprinkle of cinnamon sugar.
5. Bake for 18-20 in 375 degree oven, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Sweet and Sour Beef -- it's a simple staple

2009-04-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

Fry's had their lean hamburger on sale for $1.77 a lb, so of course I had to take advantage of the sale. And one of my favorite things to make with hamburger is the quick and simple dish of Sweet and Sour Beef. Most people have all the ingredients in their cabinet. Here's the recipe:

Sweet & Sour Beef
1 lb. ground beef
1 chopped medium onion
1/3 c. brown sugar
2 TBS. cornstarch
1/4 c. cider vinegar
3 TBS. soy sauce
1 can of pineapple tidbits - drained, and juice reserved
cooked rice

Brown and sautee beef and onions.
Combine sugar, cornstarch, cider vinegar, soy sauce. Add enough water to the reserved juice to make one cup and add the combination to the sugar mixture.

Pour over beef.
Heat to boiling, reduce heat. Stir in pineapple and heat thru.Cook stirring occasionally til thickened.

Serve over rice.(This is one of my favorite kitchen appliances...my rice cooker. Actually, I inherited it from my mother. She bought this when we were living in Hawaii, over 30 years ago, and it is still THE VERY BEST RICE COOKER around. She bought herself a new one and gave me this one, and I think she may be thinking twice about her decision, too bad!).

Deliciously simple.

A Bunch of Yummy

2009-04-08T19:09:00.000-07:00

OK - I haven't posted in ages, but it's not because I haven't been cooking. It's actually because I've been too busy to even sit down and upload the photos. It's about all I can do to remember to take pictures of the food. So tonights post is the down-and-dirty on what's been going on in my kitchen. I'm only going to post a few recipes, but if you want one in particular that I haven't posted, you're welcome to email me and I'll send it to you. So here we go...

My new favoritest way to eat broccoli. In fact, I don't know that I'll ever eat it any other way again. It's Ina Gartner recipe (Barefoot Contessa) and IT ROCKS!!!!

ROASTED BROCCOLI

4 to 5 pounds broccoli
4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
Good olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons julienned fresh basil leaves (about 12 leaves)

Cut up the broccoli, toss with olive oil and garlic slices, put on baking sheet. Bake in 425 degree oven (yes, I know that's hot) for about 15 min, just until barely fork tender. Take out of oven and immediately squeeze lemon juice on the broccoli. Toss with pine nuts and put in serving bowl/platter/plate. Add parmesan and basil just before serving. YUM YUM YUM (BTW, just did some broccoli like this last night and added it to orzo pasta with tomatoes, yellow peppers, artichoke hearts, olives, and fresh parmesan...again, fabulous.)

Tropical Cupcakes -- I had to whip up a birthday treat for one of my bosses last week. In scavenging through my cupboard all I could find was an old box of coconut cake mix. "Coconut?", you ask. "Yes," Coconut. Don't ask me where I got it or how old it was. I was desperate. Fortunately I found a way to "kick-it-up" a notch. I added chopped pineapple to the cake mix and then made coconut cream cheese frosting and then toasted coconut to add to the top. Tada! Tropical Cupcakes.

Oh, yum, kitty litter! On April Fool's day I took this delicious "Kitty Litter Cake" in to work. It was a HUGE hit. Several people stood around it and dared each other to take the first bite. After waiting till the sacrificial lamb declared it, they all dug in. You can find the recipe all over the internet. I would also recommend making it the night before you serve it and allow it to sit in your fridge over night. I think it helped the cake meld together.

Several years ago while at BYU I started a tradition of making crepes on General Conference morning. This year I invited a few of my friends over to join me. And let me tell you...They were the BEST DARN CREPES I've ever made. The toppings were amazing.

Crepes
8 eggs
2 1/2 c. flour
3 1/3c. milk
2 2/3 TBS sugar
1 1/3 tsp salt
1 TBS oil

Wisk all together and cook in pan. Hint: Crepes are supposed to be VERY thin. I usually pour little less than 1/4 in a pan and then swirl the pan around until the crepe batter essentially stops running because it's baking up. If you get it thin enough in the pan you only have to cook it on one side, because it will cook all the way through.

Lemon Cream -- this lemon cream was truly what set all of these crepes apart from the others.

1 c. cream cheese
1 c. confectioners sugar
1 TBS lemon zest
1/2 c. lemon juice
1/4 ts. lemon extract

cream it all together. We spread a little down the center of the crepe and added fresh strawberries, rolled them up and then topped them with homemade chocolate sauce. Aggghhh!! They were fabulous!

And finally a delicious soup/stew, or as I like to call it a "stoup". I got the recipe from Better Homes And Garden magazine and it was the perfect stoup for the crockpot. I deviated from the recipe a little because I was too cheap to by pork shoulder, and I used healthy turkey sausage instead of polish sausage, but it was still DELICIOUS and tasted just a great the 2nd and 3rd day. If you want the recipe let me know and I'll email it to you.

Slow Cooker Holiday Pork Stew - Better Homes and Garden

Mac-n-Cheese-Sans-Yellow-Powder

2009-03-22T11:54:00.001-07:00

I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with the rest of the delicious Irish White Sharp Cheddar Cheese I had. I bought it from Costco and so of course I end up with a GIANT chunk of cheese. Sooooo, what to do with cheese....why, Macaroni-n-Cheese of course!!! So here's a delicious version of Mac-N-Cheese-sans-yellow-powder from Martha Stewart. I did a little adjustment to use up all my sharp Irish cheddar and it turned out FABULOUS. To keep from eating the entire casserole dish all by myself (very, very tempting), I'll take it over to my mom's for Sunday family dinner. You should give it a try for your own Sunday dinner.

Macaroni and Cheese
by Martha Stewart

1 lb elbow pasta, cooked and drained
4 TBS butter
1 medium onion, chopped fine
1/4 c. all-purpose flour
4 C. milk
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
1 1/4 C. shredded yellow cheddar cheese
1 1/4 C. shredded white cheddar cheese
8 ouces ham, diced
2 slices white bread

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook pasta, and drain -- set aside. Meanwhile, in a 5 qt heavy pot, melt butter of medium heat. Add onion, cook, stirring occasionally until softened, 3-5 minutes (I chopped the onions supper fine, because I know some little kiddies who turn up their noses at onions; however, they are needed for flavor. When I cut them so fine, they all but disappear in the cheese sauce, but still add the yum factor.) Whisk in flour to coat onion. In a slow steady stream, whisk in milk until there are no lumps.
2. Cook whisking often, until mixture is thick and bubbly and coats the back of a wooden spoon, approx. 6-8 min. Stir in cayenne, if using, and 1 C. of yellow cheddar and 1 C. white cheddar (I just added 2 cups of white). Season with 1 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. pepper.3. Toss pasta with cheese mixture; fold in ham (I didn't add any but I think it would also be delicious with cooked broccoli florets). Transfer to 9"x13" baking dish. Set aside.4. In a food processor (I used my hand stick blender and I used a frozen whole wheat hamburger bun - cuz I just don't have any white bread) and pulse the 2 bread slices until fine bread crumbs form. Toss together with remaining 1/4 C. each of white and yellow cheddar, add 1/4 tsp. salt. Top pasta with breadcrumb mixture. Bake until top is golden, about 30 minutes.

A Nod to the Irish

2009-03-16T18:31:00.000-07:00

I'm not even Irish but I love an excuse to cook with potatoes! Last year for St. Patrick's Day I was visiting my sister in ID. We had a little St. Patrick's Day celebration with the kids, made some decorations, and discovered the most delicious Irish Soda Bread Recipe. As it is that time of year again, I dug up the recipe and it's still FABULOUS.

My dinner tonight consisted of the FABULOUS Irish Soda Bread with a bowl of homemade potato soup, which turned out delicious too. Here are the recipe which you can use for your own Irish celebration.

Potato Soup
serves 4-6

5 peeled and diced golden potatoes
1/2 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, diced
1TBS olive oil
2 C. chicken broth
1/2 tsp dried herbs, your choice (I'd suggest herbes de provence or thyme)
2 tsp. salt (you may need more depending on your preference)
1 C. sour cream
1 tsp chopped fresh dill

Sautee chopped onions and garlic in olive oil. Add potatoes, allow them to brown/cook for about 3-4 minutes. Add chicken broth and then enough water to make sure that the potatoes are completely covered. Put the lid on and allow potatoes cook at a low boil for about 8-10 minutes (check them with a fork for doneness). Reduce the heat to low. Using an immersion blender CAREFULLY puree up the soup. Did I mention that you should be CAREFUL when you do this cuz its HOT!!!!
After it's blended to your desired consistency (I like lumps in mine), add the dry herbs and salt. Simmer for about another 5 minutes, stiring periodically. Just before serving stir in the sour cream and chopped dill.
I served mine with shredded white cheddar on top as a garnish.

Now along side my Irish Potato Soup I had 2 slices of the FABULOUS Irish Soda Bread. You'll definitely want to try this one out.

Irish Soda Bread
by: Arlene Costello/Agnes Walters -- allrecipes.com
Makes 2 loves

4 C. all-purpose flour
1 C. white sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 pint sour cream
1 C. raisins

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease 2 loaf pans. Mix flour, sugar, soda, baking powder, and salt. Add the eggs, sour cream, and raisins and mix until just combined. Distribute batter evenly between the two pans. Bake loaves at 325 degrees for 50-60 minutes.Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Orange Scones with Chocolate Chips

2009-03-12T20:00:00.000-07:00

I LOVE to bake. I Love to eat baked goods. And in order to keep from growing to roughly the size of a house I've learned to bake goods, eat a few and then share the rest with others. Yum for everyone. Tuesday morning I tried a new recipe and took it to work, where it was promptly inhaled by my fellow workers. In fact it happened so quickly that I didn't even see it happen. All I saw was the empty tray after I came back from turning on my computer. So I'm pretty sure this recipe is a keeper. You'll want to give this a try.

PS -- I made these early, early Tuesday morning in my really small dark kitchen, so the pictures aren't the best, sorry.

Orange Scones with Chocolate Chips

Scones:
2 C. flour + 1/4 C. flour
3 TBS sugar
3 tsp baking powder
3 TBS orange zest
1/2 tsp salt
1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/4 C. milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, orange zest, salt, and chocolate chips (by hand). Pour in milk. Mix well. Dough will be sticky -- I added about another 1/4 c. flour to make it at least a little less sticky. Divide the dough into 2 sections and put it onto a greased cookie sheet -- I put it on my baking stone and it did just fine. Bake 10-12 min.Slice into wedges and let cool, just a bit, before adding the glaze.

Glaze:
1 C. powdered sugar
2-3 TBS orange juice
Mix together until a thin icing consistency and pour over warm scone.A plate of delicious scones...devoured in a matter of moments. I think I'm going to have to make some more.
Here's a recipe "card" for you. Just click on the image and then print off the larger version.

Tart Tzatziki Recipe Adds Some Pizzaz to A Turkey Sandwich

2009-03-09T19:33:00.000-07:00

I love Greek food. I'm by no means an expert on Greek food. In fact my experience is pretty much limited to My Big Fat Greek Restaurant and two Greek Festivals held here in AZ. However, what I have had is delicious. I've pretty much mastered the hummus (if you want a killer hummus recipe check out my Megan's Corner blog) and so I wanted to tackle another favorite of mine -- Tzatziki. For those of you who are not familiar with this tart, cool, and refreshing Greek cucumber dip here is your chance. It really is darn simple to make and it can be paired with sooooo many things -- crackers, vegetables, pita bread, as a hamburger or turkey burger condiment, or sandwich spread.

First, because it's a "dip" there is a lot of flexibility in the proportions, so everything I have in this recipe is an approximation and can be adjusted according to your taste's. Here's the recipe:

Tzatziki
1 cup seeded & shredded cucumber
12 oz Greek yogurt (some times hard to find, look in the organic section or foreign cheese section of your grocery store)
6 oz sour cream
2 cloves crushed garlic (warning...I love garlic)
3 TBS finely chopped dill
juice from 1/2 a lemon
salt and pepper to taste

Seed, peel and shred your cucumber.You have to squeeze some of the water out of the cucumber so put your shredded cucumber in a paper towel and squeeze it out over the sink -- you'll be surprised at how much water comes out of it -- you don't have to squeeze it bone dry, just take some of the water out.Then mix the cucumber with all of the other ingredients. And you're done. The flavor will intensify as it sits.Tonight I spread the tzatziki on some whole wheat greek flat bread added sliced turkey, tomatoes, cucumber slices (I know...redundant), lettuce, and avacado. It was AWESOME!
If you would like this recipe for yourself, I've made a quick recipe card. Just click on the thumbnail below and then print off the larger image.

Bountiful beauties

2009-03-08T08:00:00.000-07:00

Every other Saturday I go to the park around the corner from my house and pick up my Bountiful Basket. I've posted about this before on my other blog, but I decided to share it again, because this weeks food choices will revolve around the contents of this basket. Bountiful Basket is a food co-op that always delivers on Saturday mornings. On the 1st and 3rd Saturday it's organic produce and on the 2nd and 4th Sunday it's regular produce. I have to order the Wednesday before a Saturday pick-up. I usually get the regular basket. I have tried the organic basket, but found the regular basket to be more robust, and the produce just seemed to be "happier" -- I guess its all those chemicals and pesticides. :)

So here is a shot of this week's basket...Now this week I did get the "oriental package". For about $6.00 extra (just the plain basket costs $15), I got the bok choi, mushrooms, peas, ginger, garlic and green onions. So I'm going to have to figure out how to cook bok choi. And I have a confession to make...I hate mushrooms. I don't know if I'm going to use them this week, in the name of experimentation. I may just take them over to my mother; she loves 'em. Oh, also I didn't add to the picture the head of lettuce, and to bunches of collard greens, also another ingredient I'm not really familiar with -- more experimentation.

So for my first use of the basket beauties...Apple, cinnamon and raisin oatmeal.
I'm sure you can figure out exactly how to make this delicious breakfast treat all of by yourself, but just in case you want a little help...

Oatmeal
diced apples
raisins
cinnamon (if you haven't tried Costco's Kirkland brand, you are TOTALLY missing out).
brown sugar
milk

Enjoy! I'm still thinking of ways to consume all the rest of my bountiful beauties. Stay tuned to see what makes its way to the menu.

A Delicious Beginning

2009-03-07T13:52:00.000-08:00

I love food -- the way it looks, the way it smells, the way it feels, the way it sounds, and the way it tastes! The variety is limitless. This blog is dedicated to my culinary adventures. I'm determined to improve my cooking "skills". I figure its similar to a fisherman changing his bait to get the best fish in the river. I'm fishing for a husband, so I'm improving the bait. :) Take what you will from my food mishaps and success. Hopefully along with a few inspiring recipes, I'll share some mouthwatering food photos, and food for thought.

"One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop what ever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating." -- William Wright