I've been busy in the kitchen...

All last week we enjoyed Spring Break. Chris was out of school & Clay was off work and when we were home, I was in the kitchen taking pictures of all my food creations. We didn't plan our weekly menu, we just flew by the seat of our pants with meals. We went fishing and to the zoo in Manhattan. I got a new cameraand justifiably a hobby besides cooking. I made biscuits, a Asparagus & Goat Cheese quiche, some Choconut Pumpkin cookies, a broccoli salad, homemade orange rolls, Clay grilled the trout we caught and lots of other yummy stuff. The biscuits were a delicious recipe from King Arthur Flour. They were a bit time consuming but nonetheless exactly what I've been wanting along with a slice of country ham. The Choconut Pumpkin cookies were an experimental cookie that I found on another blog "Eating Bender" under the Lazy Chef tab and turned out awesome. I followed the recipe loosely, but used a whole can of pumpkin, 1/2 bag of chocolate chips, some coconut flakes, an egg, 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, 1 tbsp of butter, some vanilla extract, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 cup of brown sugar and a cup of quick oats and these melt in your mouth cookies were gone as soon as I got them out of the 350*oven. I baked them for about 17 minutes until set. They stayed moist and fluffy too! My Asparagus & Goat Cheese quiche is a staple in my Meatless Monday regime. Super simple to toss together and ready in less than an hour. This week I'm slowly getting back into our routine and finding some new recipes that may become our new favorites.

Fixing Duck

Mande and Nikki are more of the chefs/bakers than I will ever be. However, I have learned how to make a pretty good Zydeco gumbo. And tonight was the VERY first time I made the gumbo with out aid of my trusty recipe. Gumbo is one of those winter rarities I fix simply because it is so expensive to make. A big pot, if you don't have the majority of the ingredients at home, will cost about $50 to make. Thankfully, that pot of goodness will last a good long while. Whatever is not eaten is usually stored in several quart containers and frozen for later.

I kind of haphazardly came about the gumbo idea as I was wandering around the kitchen tonight trying to find something for dinner, much less just eat. I was in one of those moods where I wasn't really sure what would be good. While looking through the freezers, the fridges, the canned goods, I realized I had just about everything for gumbo. All that I was missing was a can of Rotel and kielbasa sausage. But I had everything else. I was so excited but a little worried. I'd never made gumbo without my trusty recipe. I was honestly really worried that it would taste horrible. I browned my chicken, started the rue, got the garlic, peeled some shrimp and poured the beer. Before I knew it, I was chugging along making one of like the five things I know how to make. By the time I was almost finished up making that pot of Cajun cuisine, I thought to myself, "Maybe we do have some sausage somewhere in the freezer." So back to the freezer I went. Moved the edamame to the side, moved a pint of Cherry Garcia out of the way and BAM! There it was. I could have sworn I heard angels singing. I went back over to check on my bubbling brew and then proceeded to thaw and fry up the sausage. My pot was about overflowing of all the ingredients so I had to remove a good bit of it to accommodate the added sausage. I added the sausage, stirred the gumbo around and let it simmer for another 10 mins.

Finally! It was finished. But worry crept over me even more. Let's just say if something looks like a duck, quacks like a duck, one would think it's a duck and not a platypus. Thankfully, I was eating duck. It was so good! It had been several months since I had last had it and what I had fixed tonight without my recipe was just as delish!!

Dinner with the Parents

So, my Mom called me this afternoon wanting to know if we wanted to come over for dinner. Of course, I said Yes! I don't think we have turned down dinner with them ever.

Grilling was the choice of cooking the salmon steaks, Citrus Shrimp and Londron Broil. Dad was the "Grillmaster" for dinner to night and it all turned out wonderful!

We kept the side dishes pretty simple. First was the Lemon-Basil Bow Ties that we have enjoyed on several occasions and some Pesto Pasta. The Lemon Basil Pasta, has been modified to be just whatever pasta shape we choose as well as more basil and lemon. The Pesto Pasta is just rotini noodles and store bought pesto. Both are very quick and very simple. The original recipe we used was from Food Network but I can't find their link for it, but the one above is what we have based our version off of. Unfortunately, because the amounts of lemon, garlic, basil and parmesan can vary each time it is made, it is short of impossible for me to get a "correct" recipe on here.

Mom said that she was going to pick up some strawberries on the way home and was going to get those little dessert cups for them to go in. Well, I told her not to get the dessert cups, that I would bring something to eat with the strawberries instead. I used the recipe for Basic Angel Food Cake on page 692 of The New All Purpose Joy of Cooking but instead of making a cake, I made cupcakes! I also added some lemon zest to the recipe. They were extremely good. The strawberries were just sliced and sprinkled with sugar and topped with some whipped cream. I think that making these cupcakes has turned me off of those dessert cups from now on!

Thanks Mom for the invite to dinner!!!

The Joy of Cooking

I have been fighting one of my weaknesses all week – buying a new cookbook. I have been fighting back really good with the help of a trip to the library this morning before I came into work. I picked up what I thought was the ORIGINAL Joy of Cooking, but when I looked closer it was The All New All Purpose Joy of Cooking. Which I really didn’t mind, it was just that I had no idea it has had several revisions done and this cookbook was copyrighted in 1997.
Several things caught my eye as I have flipped through the book so far. First off is the proper way to set a table. Guess what my kids are going to learn!!!! (insert evil mom laugh here). Next was in the recipe for sauces. I have learned, from page 46, that cheese sauce – like I make for our broccoli with cheese sauce has a proper name: Sauce Mornay. Never knew that. Also, page 127 informs me that fried eggs, really aren’t fried, they’re sautéed eggs! Never knew that either!
Looking at some of these recipes makes me happy that I don’t have to have much processed foods to prepare a dish. I am looking forward to making the Tomato Ketchup found on page 69 – that is as soon as I get ahold of 14 pounds of tomatoes! I am thinking that I may need to plant some since I want to try the Fresh Tomato Soup on page 97. After looking at the Red Onion Dip on page 145 I think we will have some of the Root Chips on page 144. I have barely made it 1/8 of the way through this cookbook and have a lot of ideas for next month’s menu. Right now, I am thinking of having Hors D’oeuvres for dinner one evening – as a meal. We’ll see what happens!
Oh, if any of our readers have a copy of Joy of Cooking (any verison) or any other cookbook they do not care for any longer, please let me know & I will be glad to take it off your hands!

Chicken and Goat Cheese Pizza

Tonight's dinner wasn't on the menu nor have I ever made it. I had completely forgot that Clay was spending the night in the field "playing Army men" as Chris (my oldest) calls it. I really wanted Clay to be here to try the Salmon Rosti, so I made a new dish with leftover goat cheese from Monday's souffle. The idea for dinner was inspired by an article in the April edition of Cooking Light magazine and a pizza I had in Salisbury, NC at "The Salty Caper" Woodfire pizza & bar. Now, I would love a Red Sin Cider to go with this pizza tonight, a concoction of Cheerwine & Original Sin Cider. (Heaven in a glass with a slice of Greek pizza) But, I'll make do with a MGD that some poor soul left in my fridge Saturday evening. My pizza starts with a simple Pillsbury Crescent Creations or regular crescent rolls with the seams pushed together & baked for 5-7 minutes at 375*. Then I topped it with some Hunt's Fire Roasted tomatoes with garlic (drained), roughly chopped Baby Bella mushrooms, green onions, olives & some grilled chicken breast. Then I topped that with the leftover goat cheese & threw it in the oven for 25 minutes. I enjoyed a quick & delicious dinner that my kids enjoyed as well. :D

Cheesy Baked Ziti

Tonight we had Cheesy Baked Ziti with some Italian bread topped with of course, my Whipped Garlic Spread. I just modified several recipes from AllRecipes.com to come up with my version.

This great dish is enough to serve 12 people nice portions or my family of 5 with plenty of leftovers. This freezes well also. With dinners like this, I look forward to my lunch the next day at work!

Meatless Mondays and Budget Shopping....

So much for the 5 day stretch of nice warm weather, because we woke up this morning to a blanket of snow covering the ground. However, the great part about when it snows here in Kansas, your day goes on as planned after the roads are plowed, of course. Clay went out to the field as planned to "play Army", Chris went to school and Ayden & I did our normal Monday ritual of grocery shopping for the week. We've started our weekly budget for groceries ($75), since we finally have our staple items (flour, sugar, spices, etc.) stocked in our cabinets and pantry. After shoveling the drive way, I started off with Ayden in tow towards the Commissary on post. Normally, I buy all of our meat, cheese, and canned items here. I haven't enjoyed their selection of produce this winter, but surprisingly it looked good today with the exception of tomatoes & bananas (which I needed.) So, I managed to get all of our items for this week's meals for a total of....wait for it....$44.80. You must think we're eating gruel, but we're not. We're eating pretty good this week. By eliminating 75% of processed foods out of our diets and shopping the perimeter of the store (produce, dairy & fresh meats) for the majority of our food, we're coming out on top budget wise. Granted, if I were still in NC and shopping at the Food Lion in downtown Tyro, I would have spent close to double and paid tax. On this week's menu we have lots of new recipes (marked with an *) to try out & I'm also implementing "Meatless Mondays", having fish 2 nights a week, cutting our portion sizes back to a reasonable serving size, less carbohydrates and more fruits & veggies.

Rummage Family Menu for the Week:

Sunday-Buffalo Mac 'n' Cheese & salad
(There is a ton of cheese in this, I end up splitting this recipe in 2 dishes and freezing the extra dish for another meal down the road.)
*Meatless Monday- Broccoli & Goat Cheese Souffle & salad
*Tuesday- Slow-Simmered Meat Sauce & noodles, salad and garlic bread
*Wednesday-Salmon Rosti & roasted green beans
Thursday-Black Bean Burgers (below) with Beautiful burger buns, chips & pickles
Friday- Grilled Chicken Salad
*Saturday- Broiled Whole Salmon Fillet & Crispy Topped Brussels Sprouts & Cauliflower Gratin

Homemade Quick Black Bean Burgers
Serve on a bun with a combination of hot sauce-spiked ketchup, spinach leaves, tomato slice, a slice of Monterey Jack cheese, avocado slices, Chipotle mayo or onion. Yield: 4 patties (serving size: 1 patty)
1 (2-ounce) hamburger bun, torn into pieces or 1 cup breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
1 (15.25-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 teaspoon grated lime rind
3/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 large egg white, lightly beaten

1. Place bun in a food processor; process 4 times or until crumbs measure about 1 cup. Transfer to a bowl.

2. Combine 1 tablespoon oil, garlic, and beans in processor; pulse 8 times or until beans make a thick paste. Scrape bean mixture into bowl with breadcrumbs. Stir in rind and remaining ingredients. With moistened hands, divide bean mixture into 4 equal portions (about 1/3 cup mixture per portion), shaping each into a 3-inch patty.

3. Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add patties to pan; reduce heat to medium, and cook 4 minutes or until bottom edges are browned. Carefully turn patties over; cook 3 minutes or until bottom edges are done.

Marie & Lorraine Came to Dinner Tonight!

Actually it was Marie's Blue Cheese Dressing and Quiche Lorraine that we dined on this evening for dinner. The menu was JC's Quiche Lorraine, from Vol.1, page 147 and a salad. The quiche was light and fluffy with the cream and eggs. Michael is now calling this "Egg Pie" for the fact he thinks it taste like a scrambled egg with bacon in it. Joey asked for the addition of cheese to it.I don't purchase Marie's Blue Cheese Dressing a lot because it is $2.99 a jar, so it was a "splurge" item for the grocery list this week. My kids love the stuff as much as I do, but they know it doesn't come home that often.
The salad was just iceberg lettuce, tomato, carrot, cheddar cheese, red onion, diced ham and some bacon that I didn't use for the quiche. I sprinkled some Salad Supreme Seasoning then tossed it all together.

A Little Help from Butcher's Twine

Dinner on Friday was completely mistimed on my end because I didn't read an important line in the ingredient list. I missed the part where the Simple Tomato Sauce on was suppose to be used WITH the meat in the oven. Whoops!

We enjoyed Braciole with some Rotini pasta and some Pillsbury French Loaf. The Simple Tomato Sauce is really nice and makes extra so, I was able to put it in the freezer. I had quite fun tying up the meat since I don't use recipes that often that require butchers twine. It's not pretty, but it worked!

This was only the second time we have enjoyed this dish, as the first time was January 11, 2004. It has sat in my "Recipes 3" collection since then. I decided when making this month's menu that we would visit it again. I fixed my mistake and we ate later than normal, but it was still delish.

Finally grilling out in almost 70 degree weather....

So far it's finally out of freezing temperatures here in Kansas. We are enjoying a 5 day stretch of low 60's and 70's. I'm so excited, because that means spring is on the way and Clay gets to break in our new Weber grill. Oh, how I love the smell of sunshine, charcoal and cut grass. And guess what? I am so blessed that we live in one of the older housing developments here at the Big Red One and because of that I have the privilege of using a vintage clothesline. I even got to hang out Ayden's blankies on the clothesline yesterday afternoon.
We've got a lot of fun grilling recipes to do this weekend. Tonight we are enjoying a Cooking Light recipe "Cilantro Lime Chicken & Avocado Salsa" served along side a nice heap of saffron rice and black beans. It has a super simple 3 minute marinade which consists of cilantro, lime juice & olive oil on the chicken and the salsa comes together in mere minutes. The saffron rice is the only thing that needs to be started ahead of the grill.
Tomorrow night we're hosting a grill & game night with some of the guys in Clay's company and their families. So far on the menu: Our Best Bites Baby Back Ribs, some BBQ chicken, baked beans (Bush's) and Chris' Lemon Cake otherwise known as Le Quatre Quarts with Creme du Citron. Chris is also talking me into making lemonade and I'm not talking about thawing a can from the freezer section or mixing up some Country Time powder. Last summer, Chris & I discovered a fresh squeezed lemonade that would rival any Chick-fil-a's $8.00 per gallon lemonade. Once again this recipe is from the wonderful ladies at Our Best Bites.com (Thanks Kate & Sara.).
Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade

Recipe by Our Best Bites

2 c. sugar

1 c. fresh lemon juice (about 5-6 large lemons)

1/4 c. fresh lime juice

1/2 c. loosely packed fresh mint leaves (optional)

8 1/2-10 1/2 c. water, divided

Ice cubes

Combine 2 1/2 c. water and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar has dissolved and then simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and cool about 20 minutes. Add lemon and lime juices to the sugar syrup. If desired, place mint leaves in a lidded pitcher or large, lidded storage bowl. Pour lemon-lime mixture into container. If not using mint, refrigerate. If using mint, allow to stand 1 hour and then strain mixture and store until ready to serve.

When ready to serve, mix lemonade base with 6-8 c. cold water. Start with 6 c. and then adjust according to your taste. 6 c. will be very sweet, 8 c. will border on watery. But I promise, however you like it, it will be delicious!

Happiness on Michael's Plate!

Tonight the menu actually showed Taco Salad but I read it wrong on Tuesday night so I made the Taco Salad last night and the Pineapple Chicken Kabobs/Pineapple Pork Kabobs tonight. The first time Imade these, I followed the orignial recipe from Mrs.Dash but found we liked the simpler version better. The "eyeballs" are actually the Easy Rolls I made Monday night but done in a mini-muffin pan. They were much better with the meal tonight than they were with the Beef Burgundy. Michael asked for his plate to be shown in the blog tonight.

For dessert I decided to get into my Betty Crockers Ultimate Cake Cookbook and see what I had on hand to make. The recipe I choose was the Gold Butterscotch Cake on page 37. I haven't cut into it yet, but the icing was more a cakey type custard instead of icing. It is possible at this point I won't make it again...

It's a Great Day at the Cape Hatteras KOA...

Ah, thinking of my summer in Rodanthe, NC back in 2001 has inspired dinner and brought back some wonderful memories. Here's a photo of me & my fellow Summershiners. Everyone is serious in the picture except for the Randy, our Activities Director & preacher, go figure. It's 34 degrees with an overcast here in Kansas today. So, to cope with a little spring fever, I'm making Baja Fish Tacos for dinner. This simple recipe is great for summer nights and ready in less than 30 minutes. Don't turn your nose up at fish & tacos in the same sentence, they are really good. When I lived at the beach years ago, a few of my older co-workers raved about Tuesday fish taco nights at their camper. I never joined them and I regret that, because as good as mine are, I would think that Skev & Bev's fish tacos were the bomb!

Yes, it's okay to play with your food. That's half the fun.

A Comforting Dinner

Our dinner tonight was one that we visit at least every month during the Fall and Winter. It is a great comfort food and is enjoyed by everyone at the table. The table was set tonight with Beef Burgundy, Mashed Potatoes, Dijon Apples and Easy Rolls.

The Easy Rolls are a Paula Deen recipe that I printed off in February 2004 and have never made. It was one that I pulled out of my "To Try" binder when I made my menu out for this month. They were definately easy and were pretty good. You couldn't taste the mayo in it but you could taste a hint of sugar. They will be made again, but maybe to be enjoyed with a cup of coffee.

The Beef Burgundy is from Rachel Ray's 30 Minute Meal that we have been enjoying since December 2003. I have changed it since that time & do not use pearl onions (I just thin slice whatever kind of onions I have on hand), most of the time there isn't mushrooms in it, I use about 7 strips of bacon, I use dried herbs and just mix them in and I stopped measuring the wine a LONG time ago. It is so good, I suggest you attempt it yourself and make it as she has it written and just change it to suit you and your family. I hope maybe one day to gather the courage to make the original Boeuf Bourguignon by the bestest Mrs. Julia Child.


Lastly, the Dijon Apples is just part of Baby Spinach Salad with Thyme and Dijon Vinaigrette with Crisp Swiss Cheese Crisps
recipe by Rachel Ray. I made this the same time we tried the Beef Burgundy back in December 2003, from the same episode. We learned that we didn't care for the spinach and cheese crisp but we REALLY loved the apples with the Dijon Vinaigrette, so we have lovingly changed it to Dijon Apples.

Roast Chicken with Pears

I recently discovered a two recipes on the internet called Roast Chicken and Pears. One had turnips and parsnips in the recipe and a nice honey glaze, the other had dried cranberries, turnips, parsnips and no glaze on top. So, what did I do? I combined the recipes and came up with a awesome meal. The first time I made it with the vegetable called for and decided that I didn't care for parsnips (a relative of the carrot) or turnips (think giant radish). The second go round was last night. I swapped the parsnips & turnip for a bag of Alexia Red Potatoes & Baby Bella mushrooms. I also think a few fingerling potatoes sliced in half along with a few carrots in-lieu of the parsnips and turnip would be good also. Oh and to top it off, I got a new Kuhn Rikon kitchen knife the other day. This is an awesome knife and my favorite color.It did an amazing job slicing my onion, pears and the excess fat off the chicken. The first time I made this I was a bit intimidated by the use of fresh pears in this dish. I like pears, you know the kind that come out of a can & topped with a dollop of mayo & sprinkled with cheddar cheese, but fresh ones were a bit out of my scope. However, there was this handy tip on the bottom of the original recipe for how to core the pear before slicing.

*Tip- Because pears are harvested well into fall, fresh ones should still be available in your local market. The popular Bosc pear will work well in this dish, but almost any pear you find in your market is fine. To tell if the pear is ripe, press the fruit gently with your thumb just below the stem; the flesh should yield slightly to pressure. To core the pears, cut them in half vertically, from stem to base. Use a spoon or a melon baller to scoop out the core with the seeds. Then, using a paring knife, make a v-shape notch to cut out the line of tough core fibers that runs from the stem to the base of the pear.

Roast Chicken with Pears

½ cup dried cranberries

1 red onion, peeled & cut into chunks

3 parsnips or carrots, peeled & cut into chunks

1 turnip or a few red potatoes, peeled & cut into chunks

4 Tbsp Red Wine Vinegar or Balsamic vinegar

5 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Tbsp Honey

2 tsp. thyme

2 Tbsp. parsley

Sea salt and ground pepper, to taste

2 lbs of fresh chicken pieces, I like to use thighs in this dish

3 Large Cooking Pears, peeled, cored and cut into wedges

Preheat oven to 375ºF. In a small bowl, soak the dried cranberries in 1 cup of hot tap water for about 10 minutes; then drain the cranberries. In a gallon size Ziploc bag, combine the drained cranberries, parsnips, turnip and red onion with 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, 3 tablespoons of vinegar, 1 teaspoon of the dried thyme, salt and pepper to taste. Shake bag to completely coat the vegetables and cranberries with the liquid ingredients and seasonings. Spread the mixture in an even layer on a large rimmed baking sheet or jelly roll pan and roast in the oven for 5 to 6 minutes until the fruit and vegetables are slightly softened.

Meanwhile, place the chicken pieces in the Ziploc bag and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil, 1 tablespoon of vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of dried thyme, parsley and salt and pepper to taste. Close the bag securely and mix ingredients by turning and shaking the bag to make sure the oil, vinegar and herbs are evenly distributed and coat the chicken pieces.

Place the chicken down the center of the dish or baking sheet and place the vegetables around it. Roast for 30 minutes. Meanwhile place the honey in a small bowl and whisk the remaining tablespoon of olive oil into it. After 30 minutes remove the dish from the oven and brush the honey mixture over the chicken. Place the pears around the chicken and return to the oven for an additional 35 minutes of roasting or until internal temperature of the chicken reaches 175ºF.

I hope that you try this simple yet, delicious dish. I enjoyed trying parsnips and turnips, but the good thing about many recipes is that they aren't set in stone and variations can be made and adjusted to your liking.

Mixing things up....

Okay, so you might have noticed that the blog isn't MtAoFaSC with my Sisters any more. No longer are we focusing on Julia and Paula or Mastering the Art of French and Southern Cooking. We're including all of the wonderful recipes we've ran across and made, but haven't blogged about. We're having Adventures in our Kitchens and we want you to join us for the fun. We enjoy cooking and this blog is a way for us to share all of our adventures in our kitchens as we prepare food for our families and friends. Here you'll find a random collection of recipes from the cookbooks straight off our kitchen shelves, internet recipes, other blogs, magazines and our friends.

It's been awhile since I've blogged. My family has recently moved to Kansas and we are adjusting to life in the Midwest. Last week, I finally dug all my cookbooks out of a moving box and found a home for them on a bookshelf in my dining room. I also got to sit down and peruse the cookbook given to me by my Mom & Dad for my birthday back in November.Heart of the Artichoke and other kitchen journeys by David Tanis, is a wonderful fresh take on meals and how simple they can be. There's maybe one recipe with artichokes in it, but the book's concept is to avoid processed foods and cook with fresh ingredients. Getting back to the heart of cooking and the ingredients; this is something that I am slowly doing in my own kitchen. I'm relying on less packaged foods and striving to buy more fresh foods. To help with my new mission, I ordered a few new cookbooks last week too. I got a copy of Our Best Bites cookbook, a blog that I follow and King Arthur Four Baker's Companion Cookbook. I need all the help I can get in the kitchen while baking and I know that this book will pay for itself with the knowledge that I gain from it. I made their Beautiful Burger Buns recipe that I had found online back in October and they were awesome. Here's the link to the post about them. So back to my kitchen adventure from last week. After reading the first story in Tanis' book, I set out to make Jalapeno Pancakes.
They were a cinch to whip up and even more delicious than I dreamed of. I topped with some warm syrup and a poached egg. (Yes, I can poach an egg now.) Now some maple syrup would have put these pancakes over the top, but sadly the Commissary on post was out and I had to settle for some Aunt Jemima's on them. Nonetheless, I enjoyed a simple and sinus clearing breakfast.

Cost of Convience

The basic point of this post is in regards to the cost of products. Tonight for dinner, we had Chicken Penne Pasta with Garlic Bread. While at the store and picking up the ingredients for the pasta dish, I notice some garlic bread near the end cap of the isle. There were six slices of bread spread with the whipped garlic spread for $2.99. Okay, not a big deal, right? Well, it was to me. So, I went to get a loaf of Italian bread from the deli. It was $1.79. A stick of butter is 75¢ and I have the garlic, parsely & minced onion in the cabinet. The loaf of bread made 14 slices. So I got the same thing that was being sold for $2.99 for $2.54 with 8more slices! Here is the recipe for the Whipped Garlic Spread and the orignial posting for when I decided to make it the first time.