Now That's Some Tasty Food!

Apple Dumplings

2012-05-23T17:29:00.001-07:00

I think by now, you all know how much I love dessert. So when I found this recipe, I just had to make it. The ingredients seem strange, but I guarantee it is delicious. You can't tell at all that there is Mountain Dew in the sauce. I think it would probably work just as well if you use any type of citrus soda, diet or regular. This is one of those simple recipes that you can bring to a potluck, and everyone will think you slaved all day. Your secret is safe with me ;) I hope you'll try this, I know you'll love it!

Apple Dumplings

Ingredients:

2 Granny Smith apples

2 cans refrigerated crescent roll dough

1 1/2 cup sugar (I like to use half brown/half white)

1 cup butter

1 tsp cinnamon

1 12 oz can Mountain Dew (I used diet)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Peel and core apples. Cut each apple into 8 slices. Unroll the crescent roll dough, and roll each apple slice in one dough triangle. Pinch together the edges to make a bundle. Grease a baking dish, and line up the little bundles. Combine sugar, butter and cinnamon in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat until sugar is melted and mixture is smooth. Pour this over the apple bundles. Pour the Mountain Dew over everything. Bake at 350 F for 35 to 45 minutes, until top is golden brown and crispy. Enjoy with fresh whipped cream or ice cream.

Tres Leches Cake

2012-05-21T09:46:00.001-07:00

Tres Leches cake is a sweet and delicious cake. It is made with, as you may have guessed, three milks. There are many recipes out there for this wonderful treat, most of which involve making the cake portion from scratch. That is wonderful, but in this recipe, I wanted to keep things simple. I purchased a box cake mix, and went from there. This is proof that you can make a stellar dessert, which will impress family and friends, without a lot of slave labor :)

Tres Leches Cake

Ingredients:

1 box cake mix, prepared following package directions.
1 cup half-and-half
1 can evaporated milk
1 can sweetened condensed milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla
sugar

Preparation:

Allow baked cake to cool for 30 minutes. Using a sharp knife, poke holes all over top of cake. (Literally all over. You don't want any surface area not covered by holes. This is how the milks soak into the cake) Let cake cool completely. Mix the half-and-half, condensed milk, and evaporated milk with a whisk. Pour over the cake, making sure to cover the whole surface of the cake. This is the hard part: cover and put cake in fridge for 8 hours, or over night. I promise it's worth it! An hour before serving, whip heavy cream and vanilla (using stand mixer or beaters) to stiff peaks, adding sugar for taste. (I added 4 Tbsp, as this doesn't need to be overly sweet. The cake is plenty sweet on it's own). Smooth whipped cream over surface of cake. Chill until ready to serve. Enjoy!

Poppy Seed Chicken

2012-05-20T15:38:00.001-07:00

Poppy seed chicken is the perfect comfort food. It is creamy and savory with a crunchy, buttery topping. This recipe is also incredibly easy to make, and a great way to use up left over chicken. Fantastic served with a green salad and corn-on-the-cob.

Poppy Seed Chicken

Ingredients:

5 cups chopped cooked chicken
1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups crushed buttery round crackers
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/2 cup butter, melted

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350. Place chicken chunks in 9x9 square baking dish. Mix together the sour cream and the soup. Pour over chicken. Combine crushed crackers, poppy seeds, and butter. Sprinkle over chicken and sauce. Bake for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Yummus Hummus!!

2012-05-20T14:52:00.001-07:00

Hummus is a Middle Eastern dip typically made from chickpeas, tahini, olive oil, garlic, and lemon juice. The recipe I make does not include the tahini, as it it both expensive and hard to find. It still tastes delicious! This particular recipe is very easy, and can be made using either dried (I did this, it takes longer) or canned chickpeas. You can use hummus as a spread on pita, dip veggies in it, or even chips! (I like it on tortilla chips)

Yummus Hummus!

Ingredients:

1-15 oz can chickpeas (drained, with 1/4 cup liquid reserved)**
1 clove garlic
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp ground red pepper
1/4-1/2 tsp salt
olive oil

Preparation:

Place chickpeas, garlic, lemon juice, cumin, pepper, and salt in a food processor. Blend together until smooth, adding reserved liquid. Add olive oil as needed to achieve desired consistency. Enjoy!

**If you are using dried chickpeas, follow package directions for soaking and cooking. Reserve 1/4 cup of cooking liquid to add to mixture while processing. Prepare hummus as directed above.

Spiced Strawberry Shortcake

2012-05-13T12:57:00.005-07:00

I love strawberry shortcake passionately. It is a fresh and simple dessert, and very easy to make. And if you do it right, it looks beautiful as well. My mom has made this terrific dessert for as long as I can remember, and it is perfect how she makes it. But knowing me, I just had to change it up. Adding a few simple spices really enhances the strawberries, and will impress your guests!

Spiced Strawberry Shortcake

Ingredients:

2 lbs fresh strawberries
1/2 cup white granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar (packed)
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
sugar to taste
store bought angel food cake

Preparation:

Cut green ends off of strawberries, preserving as much fruit as possible. Slice berries up any way you like (after I gut off the green, I lay them flat on that end and slice downward). Dump these into a bowl. Sprinkle sugars and spices over berries, and mix well. This will need to sit for at least a couple hours, and up to 5 or 6 hours max. Don't be worried if the berry/sugar mix seems too dry, when they sit, the juice comes out making a nice sauce. Put this bowl in the fridge, covered, until you are ready to assemble the dessert. Stir occasionally (every half-hour or so).

Once everybody's dinner has settled, get the strawberries and cream out of the fridge, and get the sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla ready to go. Pour the cream, vanilla, and cinnamon into a mixing bowl (or your Kitchenaid mixing bowl), and start whipping it up! Start slowly, and increase speed as the cream thickens. Your goal is to have relatively stiff peaks.Add sugar a tablespoon at a time as you mix, tasting it after it is mixed in. You want it to be sweet, but not too sweet, as the strawberries have a lot of sugar. Once the cream is whipped and sufficiently sweet, you are ready for assembly!

Slice the angel food cake into generous slices, and lay sideways on individual plates. Scoop a mound of strawberries on top of the cake. Drizzle some of the sauce from the bottom of the bowl on top. Top this off with a cloud of freshly whipped cream, and another slice of strawberry. Drizzle a little more of that yummy sauce around the edge of the plate, and voila! You have made an easy, inexpensive, and very impressive dessert!

Enjoy!

** I was just sitting here thinking (here comes trouble!), and I decided you could easily do this as a trifle as well. Just chop the cake into chunks instead of slices, and layer the cake chunks, strawberries, and whipped cream into a pretty glass bowl. This would be excellent at summer barbecues!

Multi-Colored Mini Almond Cupcakes with Lemon Frosting and Coconut

2012-05-01T13:03:00.001-07:00

We didn't have any dessert in the house, so I had to come up with a recipe to indulge my raging sweet tooth. Using the ingredients I already had in my kitchen, I came up with this beauty. It is multicolored because I knew my 3 year old would LOVE it! I suppose you could make it without adding any colors, but what fun would that be? Enjoy this recipe, it's *almost* like a tropical vacation!

Multi-Colored Mini Almond Cupcakes with Lemon Frosting and Coconut

Cake Ingredients:

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

6 tablespoons butter, softened

2 teaspoons almond extract

2 large eggs

2 large egg whites

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 cups buttermilk**

Cooking spray
Food coloring

Frosting Ingredients:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
3 3/4 cups powdered sugar
3 to 4 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons lemon juice
Food coloring

Topping:

Coconut (I colored mine with food coloring)

1/2 cup lemon curd (usually found next to the jelly/peanut butter in grocery stores)

*If you don't have buttermilk, you can substitute with 1 1/4 cups milk mixed with just over 1 tbsp lemon juice. Just let the milk/lemon juice combination sit for 5 minutes before using.

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare cake, place first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes).

Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife.

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk.

Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition. Divide batter into two smaller bowls. Add different colors of food coloring to each one until you have achieved the desired color.

Spoon batter into mini muffin pans coated with cooking spray, alternating colors in each cup. Sharply tap pan once on counter to remove air bubbles.

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pan 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pan.

Cool completely on wire rack.

Frosting Preparation:

Place the butter in a large bowl and blend with an electric mixer on low speed until fluffy, 30 seconds. Stop the maching and add the powdered sugar, 3 tablespoons milk and almond extract. Blend with mixer on low speed until the sugar is incorporated, 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute more. If frosting seems too thick, add one more tablespoon of milk and blend until smooth. Add food coloring until desired color.

Frost cupcakes with a smooth edge spatula, and then dip the tops in a bowl of coconut. Top with a dollop of lemon curd.

Five Spice Chicken, Crock-Pot Style

2012-04-30T14:14:00.000-07:00

Ever since I made that Five Spice Crock-Pot Roast, I have been trying to come up with another recipe using the same spice. With some minor changes, I adapted it to chicken, and I think it is going to be amazing! (It's cooking as I type). For me, the combination of tangy vinegar, sweet brown sugar, rich sesame oil, and flavorful five spice is just irresistible. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I enjoyed creating it!

Five Spice Crock-Pot Chicken

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts (about 1 - 1 1/2 lb)
1/2 cup rice vinegar
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup soy sauce
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp Chinese five spice
1 tsp sesame oil
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Place all ingredients except chicken in crock-pot. Whisk together well, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Add chicken. Cook on low heat for 5-6 hours, or on low heat for 2 1/2-3 hours. Serve with rice.

Bread Pudding with Chocolate Chips and Butterscotch Sauce

2012-04-28T12:39:00.000-07:00

My friend and coworker Melissa asked me for a recipe for bread pudding (when she came home from the market and found her loaf of bread smashed). I searched through my arsenal of cookbooks, and I do believe I have found a winner! It is from the Better Homes and Garden Limited 14th Edition New Cookbook (2008), and it is marked as a "Favorite". It is filled with all the good things that make up a wonderful bread pudding! The warm flavors of nutmeg and cinnamon combine with rich vanilla to make a delectable (and practical!) dessert. There isn't anything in this recipe that is unusual, you probably have everything on hand. I added 60% Cocoa chocolate chips in place of the raisins, and it is fabulous! I would recommend not using a 9x13 pan, as the bread pudding will be too thin. I think an 8x8 would work well. Hope you enjoy!

Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

4 cups dried white or cinnamon swirl bread cubes (6-7 slices)
1/3 cup raisins or dried cranberries or chocolate chips (optional)
2 eggs, slightly beaten
2 cups milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla
Butterscotch Sauce (recipe below)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a 1 1/2 qt casserole; set aside. In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs and raisins (or chocolate chips). In a separate bowl, combine eggs, milk, melted butter, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla. Stir into bread mixture. Pour into prepared casserole. Bake, uncovered, for 50-55 minutes, or until puffed out and a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool slightly. Serve with Butterscotch Sauce.

Butterscotch Sauce

Ingredients:

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup half-and-half or light cream
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Preparation:

In a medium saucepan, combine butter, half-and-half and sugars. Cook and stir over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes, or until mixture is slightly thickened and just comes to a full boil. Remove from heat, stir in vanilla. Serve warm over bread pudding.

Five Spice Crock-Pot Roast

2012-04-27T15:23:00.000-07:00

I love Asian food. Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Cantonese, Vietnamese... you get the point. I am forever trying to find ways to infuse my cooking with those wonderful flavors. Tonight, I decided to try out a new spice I picked up on whim: Chinese 5 Spice. I found it in the ethnic food department of my local market. The one I picked up is made of cinnamon, star anise, fennel, ginger, cloves, white pepper, and licorice root. (I know that's more than 5 spices, but that's what the jar says!) It is very potent, and recommended to be used sparingly. I hope you will take a journey with me to try out this new recipe!

Five Spice Crock-Pot Roast

Ingredients:

2-3 lb beef roast (I used a rump roast)
3/4 cup cider vinegar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 cup water
3 dashes Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp Chinese 5 spice
salt and pepper

Preparation:

Season all sides of roast with salt and pepper. Place roast in crock-pot. In a medium pan, combine vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, water, and Chinese 5 Spice. Bring to a boil, and then lower heat to simmer. Stir often, until brown sugar is dissolved. Allow to cool slightly (5-10 minutes), then pour over roast. Cook on low for 5-6 hours, or on high for 2.5-3 hours. Serve with rice and a green vegetable. Enjoy!!

Beefy Lentil Soup

2012-04-24T15:48:00.000-07:00

I don't recall ever having lentils, but on a whim, I bought a bag. After doing a little bit of research online, I figured out some approximate quantities, and made up a recipe of my own. It is full of veggies, beef, and of course, lentils. It's on the stove right now, smelling incredible!

Ingredients:

1 pound lean ground beef
1 1/2 cups dry lentils, rinsed
1 cup chopped carrots
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
1 can cream of mushroom soup (10.5 oz)

1 small can tomato paste (6 oz)

3 cups water
3 cups beef broth
3 cups tomato-vegetable juice cocktail
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce

2 bay leaves

1 teaspoon salt
ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:

Brown the ground beef, and drain well. In a large pot, add lentils, vegetables, soup, tomato paste, water, broth, juice, beef, and seasonings. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until lentils are soft. Enjoy!

Served with warm crusty bread

Pinto Beans and Cornbread

2012-04-23T19:01:00.002-07:00

Pinto beans with cornbread is one of those meals that reminds me of my childhood. I remember my mom making it: helping her sort out the rocks from the beans, rinsing and soaking them, and then waiting for what seemed like forever for them to be done. And cornbread. Mmmm cornbread! I don't know if my mom used a box mix, or made it from scratch, but it was good. For some reason the combination of the sweet salty taste of buttery cornbread and the savory richness of the pinto beans is just delectable! I added a little cumin to my beans to give them a kick, and really give it a "south-of-the-border" kind of feel. So, I hope you're hungry!

Pinto Beans

Ingredients:

1 16oz bag of dried pinto beans

Water

4 strips of bacon, chopped into 1" pieces

Salt, pepper, garlic powder, ground cumin

Preparation:

Sort any foreign objects out of dried beans. Rinse well. Put beans in a large pot, and fill with water until water level is 2" above beans. Add chopped bacon to pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover and lower heat to simmer for 2-3 hours, stirring occasionally. Once the beans are soft and the liquid is creamy, add 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, and 1 tsp cumin (adjust these to taste as necessary). Leave covered on low heat while you prepare and bake the cornbread.

Cornbread

Ingredients:

1 cup milk (I used evaporated milk)
6 tablespoons butter butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

1-2 Tbsp butter, melted (for pan)

Preparation:

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Beat milk and egg in a large bowl with a beater. Stir in melted butter and stir into wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Bake in a cast iron skillet or baking dish with extra melted butter in the bottom at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean.

Cut the cornbread into wedges, and serve with a big bowl of beans. Enjoy!!

Comeback Sauce

2012-04-23T13:38:00.001-07:00

I heard about Comeback Sauce on, you guessed it, Pinterest. Apparently, this sauce is so good, you'll keep "comin' back" for more. It's kind of a dip, kind of a dressing, and all kinds of delicious. It was originally created at a Greek restaurant, called The Rotisserie, in Jackson, MS. I went hunting for an awesome recipe, and found that just about every recipe I found was the same (or darn close to it). The base is mayonnaise and chili sauce with a few extras thrown in. It opens itself up to a bit of experimentation, so if you're feeling creative, try some different spice combos! The recipe that tastes good to me is this one:

Comeback Sauce

Ingredients:

1 cup mayonnaise (NOT salad dressing! I used Hellman's Real Mayonnaise)
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup chili sauce
1 tablespoon yellow mustard
1/4 teaspoon Frank's Red Hot sauce

1/4 cup olive oil

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
juice of one lemon

1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Preparation:

Mix all ingredients well and store in refrigerator for 8 hours, or overnight. It tastes MUCH better if the flavors can blend together. Use as a dip for veggies, salad dressing, with meat, or with pretty much anything!

I doubled the recipe, and it made 2 full pint jars

Blender Salsa!!

2012-04-23T13:18:00.005-07:00

I enjoy chips and salsa. A lot. Particularly the type of salsa that you get from Mexican restaurants. I have found a recipe that is very similar to that delicious sauce. Find the original recipe here. It is all full of tomatoes, cilantro, jalapenos and lime. YUM! And it's nice and smooth, so you can load up your chip without worrying about chunks (I don't like chunky salsa). Mmmm, salsa....

Blender Salsa

Ingredients:

1- 14 oz can diced tomatoes (I actually used roasted fresh tomatoes with olive oil and salt)
1- 10 oz can orginal Rotel
1/2 small onion, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
1/2-1 jalapeno, seeded or not (depends on how spicy you like it)
1 teaspoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
small to medium size handful of cilantro, washed
juice of 1 lime

Preparation:

Put all the ingredients in the base of a food processor or good blender and pulse to combine for 30 seconds or so until all the ingredients are finely chopped and salsa is desired consistency. Taste for seasoning and adjust to taste. Serve with chips or over tacos.

I doubled this recipe, and it made 4 pint jars. I stuck one in the fridge, and the other 3 in the freezer for later.

Dr. Pepper Roast

2012-04-22T10:12:00.000-07:00

I love pop. (Or soda, or coke, depending on what part of the country you hail from) I generally drink diet pop, whether it be Coke, Dr. Pepper, Mt. Dew, or store brand. It doesn't matter to me, as long as it's cold, carbonated, and caffeinated. I have tried different sauces and marinades that are labelled as including some type of pop or another, and they are usually pretty tasty. Something about that propietary blend of flavors just hits the spot. When I was browsing Pinterest (which, if you don't know by now, is easily my favorite website EVER!), I saw someone post a link to Dr. Pepper crock-pot roast. You can see where I found it here. So, of course, I had to try it! Super easy to put together, and you can pretty much forget about it for most of the day! It is in my crock-pot right now, filling my home with delicious smells, while I relax :)

Dr. Pepper Roast

Ingredients:

1 3-5 pound beef roast (I actually used a 2.5 pounder...)
1 can Dr Pepper
2 cups water
2 dashes Worcestershire sauce
salt and pepper
3 cloves garlic

Preparation:

Place beef roast in slow cooker.
Add in all other ingredients.
Cook for 7 hours on low or 3 1/2 hours on high.
Drain off juice and serve warm.

Fridge Soup

2012-04-21T16:31:00.004-07:00

After a day out, I don't feel much like cooking. So, in an attempt to simplify my cooking experience, I pretty much just threw everything from the fridge into a pot and called it soup! Fortunately, it turned out well :) This particular day had a beautiful variety of brightly colored veggies, but I'm pretty sure that if you throw most any veggies in a pot with broth and simmer, it will taste good. Oh, and I'm not sure if you know this about me, but I believe in butter. And cream. YUM! So, of course, both of those are included in this recipe. I suppose you could leave them out, but what fun would that be?? After the picture, the recipe.

Look at those beautiful veggies! There's a bit of steam blowing up, giving the picture a sort of ethereal feel :)

Fridge Soup

Ingredients:

1 Cup each of your favorite veggies, or whatever is in the fridge (I used red cabbage, carrots, celery, leeks, zucchini, and [1/2 cup] green onion)

5 cups strong broth or stock (chicken, beef, or veggie. Again, the idea is to use what you have)

1/2 - 3/4 Cup heavy cream (or half and half, regular milk, evaporated milk, soy milk)

3 Tbsp butter (or olive oil, vegetable oil) for sauteing the veggies (I used half butter, half olive oil)

2 Bay leaves

Salt and pepper

Any other seasonings you like!

Preparation:

Get the broth on to boil. Saute any vegetable you would like to saute (I usually saute everything, it cooks faster that way). Add veggies to pot, along with bay leaves, salt and pepper (and any other seasoning you are using). Simmer for a while (an hour or two, just use whatever time you have available). Remove the bay leaves and add the cream just before serving.

Fantastic served with crusty bread on a cold day!

Big Bowl Orange Chicken and Fried Rice

2012-04-20T18:49:00.002-07:00

Big Bowl is one of my absolute favorite restaurants, but unfortunately, it is far away and expensive. So, in my search through the InterWeb to find a knockoff, I found one better: the actual recipe! You can find it, and many others, here. My all-time favorite menu item is the Orange Chicken and Fried Rice. This recipe is definitely the best Asian food I have ever made, and comes very close to tasting like it's restaurant-made sister. Timing is important with these two items, as they both require constant attention while cooking. I made the orange sauce, then fried the chicken, and tossed the two together. I stuck that pan in a warm oven while I made the fried rice. And, the recipe calls for peanut oil, but all I had was vegetable oil and olive oil. After I used all my vegetable oil, I had to use about 1/4 cup olive oil. (It tasted fine) After reading this, I bet you're hungry, so here is the recipe!

Big Bowl Orange Chicken

Ingredients:

¾ pound chicken breast cut into 1 to 2" slices
1 egg, beaten
¼ cup flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
½ teaspoon salt

Sauce Ingredients:

2 tablespoons light soy sauce
¼ cup lemon juice
5 ½ tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons julienned scallion
3 tablespoons julienned ginger
8 slices red Fresno pepper, julienned
2 fresh water chestnuts, peeled and sliced
2 ¼ cups peanut oil
3 thin orange slices, peeled and cut into quarters
¼ cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon cornstarch mixed with ¼ cup water

Preparation:

Mix the chicken slices with the beaten egg, flour, cornstarch and salt. Let sit for 10 minutes and, rubbing with your fingers, work the chicken together with the flour mixture again---repeat in another 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the orange sauce. Combine the light soy sauce, lemon juice, sugar, and salt. In a wok or skillet, heat 2 cups of the peanut oil to 375 degrees. Keep it at that temperature while you cook the sauce.

Heat a skillet or saucepan to hot and add the remaining ¼ cup peanut oil**. When hot, add the scallion-ginger mixture. Cook, stirring rapidly, for about 15 seconds just to coat with oil. Add the orange slices and cook another 10 seconds. Add the soy-lemon-sugar and salt mixture along with the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Recombine the cornstarch-water mixture and add to the sauce. Allow to boil, thicken and clear, then turn off the heat.

Meanwhile, add the chicken to the oil and fry until crispy. Remove to drain. Immediately add the chicken to the sauce that you just made and toss briefly to coat. Serve with rice (recipe below).

**I wouldn't actually recommend heating the pan before you add the oil, unless you have cooked this way before. Adding oil to a very hot pan can cause splattering and possible burns. I put the oil in a cold pan and heated it, and I had no problems.

Chinese Fried Rice

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons peanut oil
2 eggs
4 Cups previously cooked Jasmine rice (from night before is best, so it will break apart more easily)
½ teaspoon mushroom soy
¾ teaspoon Kosher salt
¾ teaspoon cane sugar
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ Cup thin sliced scallion greens (adjust for taste)

Preparation:

Using your hands, break up the Jasmine rice as best you can to separate the grains.

Heat a wok or skillet over high heat. When hot, add the oil. When the oil is hot, add the egg and stir quickly to break up. Add rice and toss while breaking up any lumps with the back of a spatula; until rice grains are well coated with oil. Add mushroom soy and toss to distribute. Add sugar, salt and pepper and toss to distribute. Pull off heat and toss.

Yields 4 as a part of a larger meal

Mini Corn Dog Muffins

2012-04-20T18:00:00.002-07:00

I saw this idea on Pinterest, and immediately had to try it! They are the perfect bite for appetizers, a quick kid-friendly dinner, or as a snack. I like to make a bunch and then stick them in the fridge for my three-year-old. They are even delicious cold!

Mini Corn Dog Muffins

Ingredients:

1 recipe Cornbread batter (see below)
1 package Hot Dogs
Cooking Spray
Ketchup and Mustard for dipping

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a mini muffin pan with cooking spray. Prepare corn bread batter according to directions below. Cut hot dogs into 1"-2" pieces (I cut each dog into 6 pieces, using a total of 4 hot dogs) Spoon 1 tablespoon cornbread batter into each muffin cup. Press hot dog piece into each muffin cup until mostly covered by the batter. Repeat until all muffin cups are full. Bake at 400 for 15-17 minutes or until mini corn dog muffins are golden brown. Remove from oven and cool slightly before serving. Dip in ketchup and mustard.

Variation: You can also make full size corn dog muffins, just place 3 hot dog pieces into each regular muffin cup and bake for 18-20 minutes or until corn dog muffins are golden brown.

Cornbread

Ingredients:

1 cup milk
6 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 large egg
1 1/4 cups yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preparation:

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Beat milk and egg in a large bowl with a beater. Stir in melted butter and stir into wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Use batter for corn dog muffins as above (or for regular cornbread, bake in a cast iron skillet or baking dish with extra melted butter in the bottom at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean).

Monkey Bread

2012-04-19T16:21:00.003-07:00

When I heard about Monkey Bread, I knew I had to find a recipe for it. Caramelly rolls made from fridge biscuits? Yes, ma'am! As I hunted around the InterWeb, I found The Pioneer Woman. I guess a lot of people really like her recipes, so I thought I would give it a try. This recipe isn't actually hers, but a friend of hers. I guess I will try one of her own in the future. Anyways... I made a few changes to the recipe I found, but you can find the original here.

Monkey Bread

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
2 sticks of butter (1 cup)
Bundt Cake Pan (be sure it's a one piece pan, if it's two pieces, you will have burnt sugar and butter all over the bottom of the oven!)
2-3 teaspoons cinnamon
2 cans of Buttermilk Biscuits (the non-flaky ones)
1 cup Sugar

3/4 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

Preparation:

Preheat that oven to 350. Open up the cans of biscuits and cut each biscuit into quarters. Next, combine the 1 cup of regular sugar with 2-3 teaspoons of cinnamon in a one gallon ziploc bag. 3 teaspoons makes for a very cinamonny bread, so it's up to you on how much to use. Drop all of the biscuit quarters into the cinnamon-sugar mix, along with the nuts. Once all the biscuit quarters and the nuts are in the bag, seal it and give it a vigorous shake. This will get all those pieces nicely coated with the cinnamon-sugar. You might have some excess sugar left over and that’s okay. Spread these nuggets and nuts out evenly in your Bundt pan. Next, melt the two sticks of butter together with 1/2 cup of brown sugar. Stir together over a medium-high heat until the butter and brown sugar are fully combined. Once the brown sugar butter has become one color, you can pour it over the biscuits. Bake this for about 30-40 minutes until the crust is a deep brown on top. Allow this to cool for about 15-30 minutes before turning it over onto a plate. If it doesn’t slide right down onto the plate, give it a few taps until it comes out. Serve warm.

Beer Bread (knockoff of another very popular beer bread)

2012-04-19T15:30:00.000-07:00

Just about everyone I know has been to or hosted a sales/catalog party where there are lots of food samples. I have been to many, and hosted many. Almost every time the little booklets are passed around to purchase the full size version, I usually gasp at how expensive the stuff is! So, I went on a hunt to locate a (cheaper) knockoff of that delicious Beer Bread. Many different sites list the exact same recipe, so I can't give any real credit, since I have no idea who came up with this recipe.

Beer Bread (knockoff of another very popular beer bread recipe)

Ingredients:

3 cups self-rising flour**
1/2 cup granulated sugar
12 ounces beer (or really any carbonated beverage, like soda)
2 tablespoons melted butter

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Mix all ingredients except melted butter together-stirring just until blended. Pour into greased bread loaf pan. Spread melted butter over the top of the bread during the last 10 minutes of baking. Bake at 350°F for 1 hour.

** If you don't have self-rising flour, that's fine. It can easily be made with the following recipe:
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of salt

Mix well. You will need to triple this for the Beer Bread recipe.

Chocolate Mousse

2012-04-19T13:23:00.000-07:00

My husband got this recipe for me from a friend of his. The measurements are European, but American measuring cups have markings for mL, so it is easy to make. For the chocolate, I used semi-sweet baking chocolate, which I found in the baking aisle at the grocery store. The sugar is listed as caster sugar, which is basically superfine sugar. You can grind up regular white sugar in a food processor to make it finer. If you do this, make sure to measure after you grind it up. I have made this recipe with regular sugar, and it tasted just fine. So, if you skip that step, it's no big deal. Enjoy!

Chocolate Mousse

Ingredients:

400 grams dark chocolate
8 Tbsp caster sugar
8 eggs
500 mL heavy cream

Preparation:

Separate egg whites from yolks. Mix egg yolks with sugar in a small bowl. Beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Beat egg whites until stiff. Melt chocolate in microwave, stirring every 30 seconds or so, until smooth. Let chocolate cool slightly. Mix chocolate with egg yolk/sugar mixture. In a large bowl, fold together whipped cream and chocolate mixture. Once mixed, fold in egg white fluff until well mixed. Refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

Indonesian Beef Stew

2012-04-19T11:34:00.003-07:00

This is a wonderful crock-pot stew that I found in my Williams-Sonoma Slow Cooker Cookbook. The original recipe can be found here. I couldn't find unsweetened coconut at my local grocery store, so I used sweetened and omitted the brown sugar. Cumin and Coriander are not spices I had used before, so I had to purchase them. I was able to find smaller jars for less than $3 at Target. I figured I wasn't sure if I would use them frequently, so that was a small price to pay to try something new! As I was making this, I was thinking that this stew would be equally good (and cheaper) if I used chicken breast instead. Just a thought. Without further ado, here is the recipe!

Indonesian Beef Stew

Ingredients:

1/4 cup canola oil
3 lb. boneless beef chuck, cut into 2-inch cubes (I used the pre-cut "beef for stew" found in the meat section of the grocery)
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cups unsweetened shredded or flaked dried coconut (I used sweetened)
1 Tbs. firmly packed light brown sugar (I omitted this because of the sweetened coconut)
1 Tbs. ground coriander
1 1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. salt, plus more, to taste
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper, plus more, to taste
4 cups coconut milk
Steamed white rice for serving

Preparation:

In a large fry pan over medium-high heat, warm the oil. Add the beef and onion and cook, stirring frequently, until the meat is no longer red and the onion has softened, about 4 minutes. Sprinkle with the coconut, brown sugar (if using), coriander, cumin, the 1 tsp. salt and the 1 tsp. pepper. Continue sautéing until the meat and coconut are browned and the spices are fragrant, 5 to 7 minutes more. Transfer the mixture to a slow cooker.

Add the coconut milk to the fry pan, increase the heat to high and deglaze the pan, stirring to scrape up the browned bits from the pan bottom. Bring the coconut milk to a boil, then pour it into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or on low for 8 hours according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

Adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Ladle the stew over steamed rice and serve immediately. Serves 6 to 8.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Food Made Fast Series, Slow Cooker, by Norman Kolpas (Oxmoor House, 2007).

Tiramisu!

2012-04-18T18:46:00.004-07:00

I love dessert. Pretty much all kinds. Tiramisu is a delectable Italian dessert, generally made with Lady fingers, and filled with Mascarpone egg custard, coffee and rum. I made a few changes to a terrific recipe I found on Allrecipes.com. Find the original recipe here. I don't drink (and I have a 3 year old), so I omitted the rum. I also couldn't find Lady Fingers, so I found a super easy pound cake recipe, and used that instead. It is a very rich dessert, perfect following a lighter Italian meal. I know you are excited to find out how to make this delectable dessert, so I will get to it!

Tiramisu!

Ingredients:

6 egg yolks

3/4 cup white sugar

2/3 cup milk

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pound mascarpone cheese

1/2 - 3/4 cup strong brewed coffee, room temperature

2-4 tablespoons rum (I omitted this)

1 pan of Cake Mix Pound Cake (recipe below)

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until well blended. Whisk in milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Boil gently for 1 minute, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Cover tightly and chill in refrigerator 1 hour.

In a medium bowl, beat cream with vanilla until stiff peaks form. Whisk mascarpone into yolk mixture until smooth.In a small bowl, combine coffee and rum (if using).

Slice cooled cake in half lengthwise, and then slice into 1/2 inch thick pieces (about 1/2 inch x 1 inch x 4 inches in size) and drizzle with coffee. Arrange half of soaked cake pieces in bottom of a 9x13 inch dish. Spread half of mascarpone mixture over soaked cake, then half of whipped cream over that. Repeat layers and sprinkle with cocoa. Cover and refrigerate 4 to 6 hours, until set.

Cake Mix Pound Cake (original recipe here)

Ingredients:

1 package (18 ounces) white or yellow cake mix

1 package (4-serving size) vanilla instant pudding and pie filling mix

4 eggs

1 cup water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray one 13 x 9 pan with vegetable spray.
In large bowl, combine cake mix, pudding mix, eggs, water and oil; beat at medium speed with electric mixer for 2 minutes. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake 30-35 minutes for round pans; 35-40 minutes sheet pan. Cool in pans 10 minutes; remove from pans to cooling grid and cool completely.

Capellini with Olive Oil, Lemon, and Parsley

2012-04-18T18:29:00.004-07:00

This is another one of those recipes from a cookbook that I have had for a while, but never cooked from. As I leafed through the pages of my Williams-Sonoma Food Made Fast Pasta cookbook, this one caught my eye. It looked light, fresh, and pretty easy. And it was! Find the original recipe here. I topped it with shredded Parmesan, and served it with cheesy bread and a romaine salad. For dessert, I made Tiramisu with fresh baked pound cake (recipe in following post).

Capellini with Olive Oil, Lemon, and Parsley

Ingredients:

1/2 cup olive oil

4 large garlic cloves, minced

1 lemon, zested and juiced, with all of the zest and half of the juice reserved

1 tsp. plus 2 Tbs. salt, plus more, to taste

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

1 lb. cappellini or spaghettini (I used angel hair)

1/2 cup minced fresh flat-leaf parsley (I didn't use a full 1/2 cup, still tasted awesome)

Shredded Parmesan cheese

Directions:

In a large fry pan over low heat, warm the oil. Add the garlic and sauté until fragrant but not golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the lemon zest, the lemon juice and the 1 tsp. salt. Season with pepper. Transfer the sauce to a large serving bowl.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the 2 Tbs. salt and the pasta to the boiling water. Cook, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking, until al dente, according to the package instructions. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1/2 cup of the cooking water.

Add the pasta to the sauce along with the parsley and toss to combine. Add as much of the cooking water as needed to loosen the sauce. Season with salt and pepper, top with Parmesan cheese, and serve immediately. Serves 4.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Food Made Fast Series, Pasta, by Julia della Croce (Oxmoor House, 2006)

Sauerbraten

2012-04-18T15:53:00.005-07:00

So, I have a whole bunch of cookbooks which I have either received as gifts, or purchased for myself. Honestly, I often use one recipe from a book and then put it right back on the shelf. In this particular case, I got a beautiful Williams-Sonoma slow cooker cookbook from my mother. I made one recipe, and back to the shelf it went. However, since I haven't been able to work, I have been cooking a lot more. So, as I was flipping through the pages, I found a recipe for crock pot sauerbraten. I had never tried sauerbraten before, so I figured "What the heck?" The cookbook has a little side note that says traditional sauerbraten is marinated for a couple of days before cooking, so I did that. It definitely was worth the wait. Even my 3 year old son loved it, especially the cabbage! You can find the original recipe here. I served it with olive oil roasted red potatoes, but it is traditionally served with spaetzle or boiled potatoes. Without further ado, here is the recipe!

Sauerbraten

Ingredients:

Boneless beef chuck roast (3 1/2 - 4lbs)

Salt and fresh ground pepper

1 tsp ground ginger

2 yellow onions, chopped

1 cup beef broth

3/4 cup cider vinegar

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 bay leaf

1/2 head red cabbage, thinly shredded

12-16 gingersnap cookies, finely crushed (I used 16, and I used a food processor to crush them)

(Side note: As I type this, I realize I didn't use the onion when I made this. It was purely an accident on my part. So, I guess the lesson here is that if you don't particularly want onions, that's OK! It will taste delicious anyways!)

Preparation:

Boil the broth, vinegar, and brown sugar, stirring to dissolve sugar. Allow to cool to room temperature. Season the beef with salt, pepper, and ginger. Place beef in container and pour vinegar mixture over the top. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. If the roast is not completely covered, turn twice a day.

Transfer roast and liquid to crock pot. Add onions and bay leaf. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours, or low for 7 hours. Add the cabbage, pressing it down around the edges with a wooden spoon. Sprinkle cabbage with one teaspoon salt. Cover and continue cooking for one hour.

Remove and discard bay leaf. Transfer roast to cutting board, and transfer cabbage to serving bowl. Whisk crushed gingersnaps into liquid in the crock pot until thickened into gravy. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer gravy to serving dish/small pitcher. Slice meat across the grain. Either transfer to serving plate, or dish up individual servings. Serve with cabbage and gravy on top.

ENJOY!!

Credits: Williams-Sonoma Food Made Fast Slow Cooker

Lemonade Cake

2012-04-18T14:52:00.006-07:00

I saw this recipe on Pinterest, and of course, I had to try it. I made it for Easter and my son's 3rd birthday (by request from him), as well as one other time. Fortunately, it's pretty easy to make, and really delicious! I use extra fresh lemon juice (squeezed from the lemon I zested) in the frosting to thin it out a bit, and it also tarts it up. Additionally, I use lemon curd as the middle layer, instead of frosting, because that tarts it up some, too. You can find the original recipe here.

Lemonade Cake

Cake:

1 1/3 cups granulated sugar

6 tablespoons butter, softened

1 tablespoon grated lemon rind

3 tablespoons thawed lemonade concentrate

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 large eggs

2 large egg whites

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/4 cups buttermilk

Cooking spray

Frosting:

2 tablespoons butter, softened

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

2 teaspoons thawed lemonade concentrate

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

8 ounces cream cheese

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Filling:

1/2 cup lemon curd

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare cake, place first 5 ingredients in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 5 minutes).

Add eggs and egg whites, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife.

Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda; stir well with a whisk.

Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; beat well after each addition.

Pour batter into 2 (9-inch) round cake pans coated with cooking spray; sharply tap pans once on counter to remove air bubbles.

Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans.

Cool completely on wire rack.

To prepare frosting, place 2 tablespoons butter and the next 4 ingredients (2 tablespoons butter through cream cheese) in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until fluffy.

Add powdered sugar, and beat at low speed just until blended (do not overbeat).

Place 1 cake layer on a plate; spread with 1/2 cup lemon curd.

Top with remaining cake layer.

Spread frosting over top and sides of cake.

Store cake loosely covered in the refrigerator.

COOKING LIGHT 2002

This was the cake for my Teddy's 3rd Birthday!