When isn't a Picture Worth A Thousand Words?

When you have all TEN THOUSAND of your taste buds telling you that you must make what your eyes see!

I had this very thing happen to me the other night when I was reviewing my daily recipe emails.  The recipe popped up on one of them (I think it was Recipe.com)  and I after I saw the pic, I KNEW I had to make it.  The recipe and ingredients were pretty simple to find and execute.  (The lemon curd should be found with the jams & jellies at your local grocery store. I was at Whole Foods last night, so I picked mine up there.)


The recipe comes from the blog From Cupboard to Cupboard. I haven't had time to sit down and look through her other post and such, but it is on my to do list. The recipe is here for the Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes.  My recipe made 36 cupcakes.  I forgot to check my supply of powdered sugar before I began (yeah, I know...) so I only had 1.5lbs of the white stuff instead of the 2 it called for. But hey - it worked for a first try.  


The Taste Testers came to the kitchen to give their opinions.  Emma and Michael I knew would love them, but Joey was the one that I knew would give me his honest opinion.  Only because he does not like strawberries.   He called them "yodol-li-he-whooo good".  I informed him that they had strawberries in it and he told me they did not. So, I guess, I'll let him be in denial for a while longer.

Buffalo Turkey Burgers

It's spring break, it's raining and I'm craving a burger off the grill. Problem solved, I revert back to one of my favorite spring/summer go to recipes-a simple Buffalo Turkey Burger that I adapted from an old Rachael Ray recipe. I'm guilty of posting on Facebook what I'm cooking for dinner and tonight I saved a few friends from "trolling on Pinterest" for dinner ideas. However, this yummy burger left them wanting the recipe right then and there. 

Pinched for time and busy cooking, I snapped a pic of the recipe from my cookbook I made one year, tagged my friend and posted it to my timeline, so she could make it for dinner too. I cooked the patties on my new grill pan, then brushed them with Texas Pete Wing Sauce and a quarter of a slice of Pepper Jack cheese. I put the grill pan in the warm oven for a few minutes to let the cheese melt and the buns toast.

Then I served the burgers on toasted whole wheat buns, topped with light ranch dressing, lettuce and tomatoes alongside some fries. Add a Blue Moon beer and you've got yourself a pretty tasty dinner without a lot of effort! Enjoy!

Ma'am, do you have any bombs in your car?

Why, yes. Yes, I do! 

It's the famous question at the gates at any military installation when you're lucky enough to have your vehicle randomly selected and searched before entering. Luckily, enough I transported these bombs to a few friends on post without detection from the MP's (aka Military Police).

BOOM!

Irish CarBomb Cupcakes, a Guinness based chocolate cake with a chocolate ganache infused with Irish Whiskey piped into the middle and then topped with a vanilla buttercream icing that's been spiked with Bailey's Irish Cream.

Apparently, I stumbled upon the most wonderful thing according to my husband. Irish Car Bombs are his favorite bar drink and finding it made into a dessert put the icing on the cupcake for him. I've got to give all the credit to the Brown Eyed Baker for these sinful treats. In honor of St. Patty's Day, these cupcakes were a hit with everyone.

A few change ups in my version, I used an entire 12 oz bottle of Guinness Extra Stout,  ran out of sour cream and ended up using some light vanilla yogurt in addition to the remaining light sour cream I had in the container. I also cut the salt to 1/4 tsp because I used a cup of salted butter for the cupcake batter. 

I used Ghiradelli 60% Cacao bittersweet chocolate chips for the ganache, made the icing as called for with a ton of butter, Baileys and powdered sugar, well worth it in the end. These are going to be my new go to dessert recipe for special occasions. Enjoy! 

Irish Car Bomb Cupcakes 

via Brown Eyed Baker

Yield: 24 cupcakes

Prep Time: 40 minutes | Bake Time: 17 minutes

For the Cupcakes:
1 cup Guinness stout
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
¾ cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons baking soda
¾ teaspoons salt
2 eggs
2/3 cup sour cream

For the Whiskey Ganache Filling:
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate
2/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2 teaspoons Irish whiskey

For the Baileys Frosting:
2 cups unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups powdered sugar
6 tablespoons Baileys Irish Cream

1. To Make the Cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 24 cupcake cups with liners. Bring the Guinness and butter to a simmer in a heavy, medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the cocoa powder and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.

2. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a large bowl to combine. Using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sour cream on medium speed until combined. Add the Guinness-chocolate mixture to the egg mixture and beat just to combine. Reduce the speed to low, add the flour mixture and beat briefly. Using a rubber spatula, fold the batter until completely combined. Divide the batter among the cupcake liners. Bake until a thin knife inserted into the center comes out clean, about 17 minutes. Cool the cupcakes on a rack.

3. To Make the Whiskey Ganache Filling: Finely chop the chocolate and transfer it to a heatproof bowl. Heat the cream until simmering and pour it over the chocolate. Let it sit for one minute and then, using a rubber spatula, stir it from the center outward until smooth. Add the butter and whiskey and stir until combined. Let the ganache cool until thick but still soft enough to be piped.

4. To Fill the Cupcakes: Using a 1-inch round cookie cutter (or the bottom of a large decorating tip), cut the centers out of the cooled cupcakes, going about two-thirds of the way down. Transfer the ganache to a piping back with a wide tip and fill the holes in each cupcake to the top.

5. To Make the Baileys Frosting: Using the whisk attachment of a stand mixer, whip the butter on medium-high speed for 5 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Reduce the speed to medium-low and gradually add the powdered sugar until all of it is incorporated. Add the Baileys, increase the speed to medium-high and whip for another 2 to 3 minutes, until it is light and fluffy.

6. Using your favorite decorating tip, or an offset spatula, frost the cupcakes and decorate with sprinkles, if desired. Store the cupcakes in an airtight container.

(Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

Hello?????? Whew, thought you left me!!!!

I know you think I dropped off the face of the Earth since I haven’t posted in a very long time. I promise I am still here, just busier than what our past has ever been. My  family has become extremely busy with our 3 teens playing 3 different sports, so we may or may not have dinner at the same time. 

We did a Super Bowl party.  I didn't remember to take any pictures once we were done, but I did get one of Emma and Gracie finishing up the Ham Delights.  Jules made some pork and chicken Lumpias.  They were awesome.

Sometime in the past weeks, I made my Mom's Russian Beef.  This is really good on a cooler day.  We had it with some Italian Bread and a small salad. The bread was used to sop up the gravy the stew makes.

On March 4th, I made Steak Sammies and Fingerling Salt and Vinegar Potatoes.  The Steak Sammies began their creation after I watched an episode of Semi Homemade with Sandra Lee.  I took the idea and ran with it and created my own version September 4, 2005 and we have been loving them sense. To build the Steak Sammie, I pan fry up a minute steak or other thin type of steak that I sprinkle with some McCormick’s Montreal Seasoning. I place the cooked meat on either a potato roll or sliced Italian bread and top it with some caramelized onions and mushrooms and a smear of my Homemade Blue Cheese Dressing.

I am not sure who gave me the  Fingerling Salt and Vinegar Potatoes that was in my “To Try” recipe book but we gave it a shot.  They were okay, not something that I would make again. My family loves salt and vinegar potato chips, so that is why I wanted to try the recipe. The vinegar hits you in the back of the throat and is really overpowering.  I did use a 2lb bag of white, red and purple potatoes (shown in pic) only because I thought they were cool when I found them in the store.  I kinda hated that because we didn’t eat all of them and they were wasted.  Next time I will make something similar to them the next time I make Steak Sammies.

Yesterday morning I was asked to make sausage biscuits (again).  Back in January I found a recipe for making homemade sausage because all of the nitrates and other things found in commercially prepared sausage.  I have tweeted the recipe and came up with one that I use for sausage biscuits and my awesome sausage bread.  So, here is my recipe for Homemade Breakfast Sausage.

Last night, I made Onion Lovers Grilled Steak Kabobs with Crumbled Blue Cheese and Golden Butter-Crisped Spuds.  There is nothing that I will change to the kabobs. They were AWESOME!!!!  The potatoes matched well with the flavor from the meat, however, the next time we make them, we will cut the potatoes thinner.  This is because the ones that were thinner had a better butter crust than the thicker ones. Other than that, this meal will be done many more times.  (Sorry, no pic on this one b/c we were hungry and I forgot to grab my camera.)

Revamping some old favorites....

Dinner tonight came from little inspiration other than a bag of thawed chicken thighs and a container of Buitoni spinach tortellini from the refrigerated case at the store. I decided to revamp a few of our old favorites and put my new grill pan to good use.  

~Tonight's Menu~

Roast Chicken

Broiled Tomatoes

Lemon-Spinach Tortellini

Mixed Salad Greens with a oil & red wine vinaigrette

Sounds like I needed a few extra hands to help with dinner, but I did fine on my own. I marinated the chicken thighs in EVOO, honey and balsamic vinegar and a few spices, the same as I would for Roast Chicken and Pears. I omitted the remaining ingredients (craisins, pears, parsnips, etc.) arranged the thighs on my grill pan and cooked at 375* for about 40 minutes.  To make a Paula Deen favorite of mine, broiled tomatoes a bit healthier, I cut some Roma tomatoes in rounds, arranged them on a glass pie plate sprayed with non-stick spray and sprinkled salt, pepper & Italian seasoning over top and some fresh Parmesan cheese and cooked alongside the chicken about halfway through. 

This is about the time I sent my husband to the Class Six to pick me up the bottle of wine with the horses on it. He thinks I'm crazy asking for  a bottle of something called "Hot to Trot", but he came through. See? Having 14 Hands helping you in the kitchen isn't a bad thing. Check their website out at www.14hands.com and get a bottle shipped directly to you. The red blend was a great accompaniment to dinner tonight. So, I popped the cork, poured a glass and kept on cooking. 

I had thought about make one of my favorite dishes, tortellini spinach bake in a lemony-cream sauce from Our Best Bites, but forgot mozzarella cheese while at the store today. So I decided to make lemon-basil bowties that we love, but with fresh spinach tortellini and used fresh spinach in place of the fresh basil. I rounded out dinner with a huge salad of mixed greens, Roma tomato slices, sliced onion, sliced green pepper and topped with a classic oil and red wine vinaigrette. The vinaigrette is loosely based from an old cookbook that my Momma has called "Mama D's Homestyle Italian Cooking". There's a recipe in there for a tomato, onion and green pepper salad with a simple dressing/vinaigrette. It is so good, so I decided to add some mixed salad greens to it tonight and drizzled some oil and red wine vinegar on top. 

Tomato, Onion & Pepper Salad 

~from Mama D's Homestyle Italian Cooking

2 lg. tomatoes, sliced

1 lg. onion, sliced & separated into rings

1 lg. green pepper, seeded & sliced

salt & pepper to taste

1 tsp. basil

pinch of oregano

1 clove of garlic, minced

2 Tbsp of Parmesan cheese, grated

1/4 cup oil

Place tomato slices on a platter. Arrange onion rings on top. Garnish with green pepper slices. Sprinkle with basil, salt, pepper, oregano, garlic and cheese. Pour oil slowly over all. 

I hope tonight's dinner gives you all a little inspiration to revamp some of your old favorites. Enjoy. 

Whoa!! Where did we go???

Wow! Almost an entire 2 months have passed without a single blog entry. Where have we been and what were we doing? 

Well, I can only speak for myself, but I abandoned my kitchen for the month of February. The husband was away for some training and I fed my children pb&j's and take out for a month. YIKES! Not really, but I didn't cook and I mean dirty up 5 or 6 pots or pans with a full blown meal. We kept things simple around here and had cereal or sandwiches for dinner or I grabbed a protein shake and bowl of popcorn. Not the most nutritionally complete meal idea, but it saved on dishes. Who am I kidding! We ate off paper plates while the husband was gone. Pitiful as it may sound, it was nice to have some time off from cooking, but here I am back and revamping some recipes and making them a bit more "diet friendly". Yep, you read that right. The dreaded 4 letter word is back in my vocabulary. Last night's dinner was simple and easy enough on the waistline. We enjoyed a Chicken Cordon Bleu, steamed brown rice, some braised brussels sprouts from MtAoFC Vol. 1 page 451 and dinner was delicious. 

Other big news, I finally got my dutch oven, a cast-iron grill pan and panini press. 

I'm in LOVE with them both. I went with the Lodge brand in lieu of Le Creuset for a fraction of the price and both perform equally in the kitchen. The real test for the dutch oven is when I make Beef Burgundy again. Hopefully, we'll be back in our kitchens cooking and blogging again. Tonight we're having a salad of mixed greens and a Asparagus, green onion and goat cheese quiche. This recipe is great to double and make an extra to pop in the freezer for a night where you don't have much time to cook. 

Until next time....

Breakfast Thanks to Food Network

Last weekend, while watching Food Network, I found several recipes that I wanted to try. Well, since I had to work yesterday, today was the day to try those.
Everything was a huge hit with my ever hungry teenagers and husband.
To begin, I made the Dutch Baby, from Ten Dollar Dinners with Melissa D'Arabian that prompted several cannibal jokes, then the Homemade Sausage  Patties. To finish the plate off, I made a egg and cheese omelet with the directions from the Omelette for a Crowd by none other than the Lady herself, Ms. Paula Deen.
The Dutch Baby was really good as it was and was better with some maple syrup. The sausage was "peculiar tasting" as described by Joey, but that was only because we are use to sage instead of thyme in our sausage, but will be made again plus this has given me incentive to make more types of homemade sausage patties for our breakfast.  The omelet was enjoyed greatly and makes it quick when I need to make several different types of omelets and I don't have to dirty up a lot of dishes.
So, thanks again Food Network for being there helping us try something new to keep our adventures continuing!

New Year Dinner Traditions

On January 1st, I cooked a simple dinner that is steeped in New Years tradition.  After some research, the menu was Stuffed Pork Chops, Black-Eyed Peas, Greens (Mustard & Spinach), and corn bread.  The dessert was not so traditional, but was ever so good: Oreo Balls. 

The Stuffed Pork Chops were based off of this recipe from Guy Fieri, which I am little by little turning it from the way he wrote it into my own.

The Black-Eyed Peas, were your basic dried bean that I made per package directions.  As for the Greens, my family KNOWS how much I do not care for Mustard or Collage or Turnip Greens, so I made Garlicky Spinach which is fabulous on the sandwich it goes on but is really good by itself.  But we for Jamey and his mom, I did have some mustard greens ready for them.

The Oreo Balls or Truffles (depending on what word you choose to Google with, were easy and delicious and extremely addictive.  I would like to thank Nikki for telling that she and her bestie Jen made these which made me go buy the ingredients.  I used Almond Bark instead of the semi-sweet chocolate the recipe in the link shows.  I basically chose this link for the recipe only because the picture has a blue handled bowl in it like mine that I have had for 17 years that I love.  My finished product may not be picture worthy like the others all over the internet, but by golly, they tasted fantastic!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year  to our Blog Family! May you have many Adventures in Your Kitchen this coming year!

Leftover Ingredients Make an Awesome Breakfast

     When trying what to figure out what to make for breakfast this morning, I remember that I had some ham and Swiss leftover from the Pinwheels I made last night.  Then I began trying to figure out what else I had to make something with.  (The inside of my fridge is pretty sad looking once you get past the Grandma's Chocolate Cake.) I then remembered that when I was watching 10 Dollar Dinners with Melissa D'Arabian last week she made this sandwich thingy with ham and Swiss.
      I couldn't remember the name of the dish, but I do know she made it with tomato soup. So, I sat down at my computer and began to search on Food Network.com.  I found the episode: Soup and Sandwich Savings which she made kale chips, tomato soup and the sandwich I was looking for: Quick Croque Madames.
     After looking at the ingredient list, the only one to give me worry was the sour cream.  I pulled 2 sour cream containers from the depths of the fridge which gave me the 1/4 cup it calls for-well, eyeballing the amount anyways.  My Swiss was sliced so I poured a little white wine in a dish and took my 4 slices and kinda flipped them around and then let them hang out while I was doing the rest.  I cut 4 slices of Italian bread I picked up yesterday for the Loaded Breakfast Casserole I will be preparing tonight for our breakfast on Christmas Morning. I  measured the mustard and garlic by eye.

     After following the directions and calling Joey to the table this is what I presented to him:

 

     This was his plate after several bites!:

     I am surprised he let me take a picture as he said it was too good for words.  Michael said it would be better as a top so he could eat it as a normal sandwich. Jamey even said it was pretty good.

      I might have to consult J.C. to see if she has a traditional Croque Madame Recipe. Yay!

 

New Cookie: Orange Cookies

     I buy random cookbooks from consignment shops, Good Will and yard sales. I also take any cookbooks that would like to be donated to me.  Well, I found a 2009 copy of "A Taste of Heaven" by Chapel By the Sea located in Melbourne Beach, FL at the Growing Pains Consignment Shop in Salisbury back around Easter this year.
     I while flipping through the pages last week, I found a recipe I wanted to try.  It seemed pretty straight forward and extremely easy, so I hand everything on hand so I thought I'd give it a try since I was doing some baking this weekend.
     The recipe was submitted by Jean Devenport / Winnie Devenport. Here is the recipe as written:

Orange Nut Cookies

3/4 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup shortening, 1 tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 3 cup flour, 1 cup chopped nuts, 1 orange (juice and rind)
Dissolve baking soda in orange juice. Cream shortening with sugars, add eggs. Add flour, baking soda and salt, mix until smooth. Add nuts and orange juice and rind. Drop teaspoonfuls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 about 10 minutes.

     I had to read it 3 times to make sure I didn't miss something.  The baking soda is mentioned twice. So, I just dissolved the baking soda in the orange juice.  Also, the mention of rind, I wasn't sure exactly what it meant, so I just zested the orange.  I also didn't want to add the nuts, as I had used what I had for a Banana Nut Bread.  I am not one for greasing a baking sheet over and over, so I used parchment paper. Instead of dropping by teaspoonfuls, I rolled the dough into balls about the size of a walnut or large jawbreaker. Once they were baked, I immediately moved them to the rack to cool. They were squishy on top when the were removed from the oven but after they started to cool, they settled and the cookie is a natural chewy cookie.

     I am glad I didn't add the nuts, so now we call them Orange Cookies. I think they taste good without them.  Emma said they taste like a brown sugar cookie with just a hint of orange juice.  Michael just kept saying they were really good.
     Now, it has me wondering if I can change it to another citrus fruit????

An Idea is born tonight...

     So, I as I get prepared to prepare dinner, Michael says he wants to help make the  Country Style Steak, Rice and Gravy.  I know the help would be short-lived as my 13 yr old has an EXTREMELY short attention span, so I took it.  He also said since it was his number 2 favorite dinner,(#1 being hot dogs and mac n' cheese) he would like to help.  While he was scrambling the eggs and making the flour dredge we were talking about the idea that we have been throwing around for probably close to a year - doing a 7 Course Meal. I know, some idea, right?
     Well, while he was working, I decided that Google would provide the answer I was asking myself :What in the world consist of a 7 Course Meal?"  I found Food University which gave me what I needed to know.  While I was reading what it said to him, he tells me that he wants to do Fondue again. So, I batted back to him a Picnic with a blanket and all (since we don't normally do the blanket thing). He came back with a Vegetarian Night. We went back and forth - with the aid of several of my cookbooks and made a list.  We decided to name our list: "Fun with Food". It might not be the greatest or most creative title in the world, but the name is not what matters.  What matters is the list as well as the family time that will incur while completing the list.
     I plan to take the list and make it all neat and hang in our kitchen. Once I get it prettied up for you, I will post it.

Here is our list (so far):

• 7 Course Meal
• Fondue Night
• Picnic
• Tasting Menu
• Formal Dinner
• Tea Service
• Brunch
• Vegetarian Night 
• Cocktail-Mocktails & Apps
• All from same publication (this one requires all items to be made from the same issue/copy of magazine or other cookbook (i.e.Taste of Home Magazine or Southern Living Annual Recipes)

I am sure this list will grow and I am sure we will not like all of the new recipes and I am sure it will lead us to our next great family adventure.  Why, because my friends, it's all butter - and family.

Adventures in Crock-potting...Chicken & Mushrooms in Wine Sauce

My family and I are on a mission to completely use up what's in our fridge and freezer in the next 20 days before we head back to NC for Christmas. A while back I had came across a recipe from a cookbook that I checked out from the library and decided to fix it tonight for dinner. I'm glad I did, because it sure was good.

I had everything on hand to make this for dinner, except mushrooms, tomato paste and thawed chicken. So, off to the store I went and came back to make a simple crock-pot dinner for my family. I still had a half bag of noodles from the Boeuf Bourguignon I made back in October and everything else is pretty much a staple pantry item. The Squished Witch wine came from the Oz Winery and made this dish superb.

Chicken & Mushrooms in Wine Sauce

3 cups sliced mushrooms (I used an 8 oz pack fresh mushrooms & 1 can of mushrooms drained)

1 large onion, sliced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 1/2 - 3 lbs of meaty chicken pieces (I used chicken thighs.)

3/4 cup chicken broth

1 6oz can of tomato paste

1/4 cup red wine (I used about 1/2 cup)

2 tbsp quick cooking tapioca or cornstarch

2 tsp sugar

2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped or 1 1/2 tsp dried basil

1/4 tsp salt and pepper

2 cups of hot cooked noodles

2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese, grated

Place mushrooms, onions and garlic in the bottom of the crock-pot. Place chicken pieces on top. In a bowl, combine broth, tomato paste, wine, tapioca or cornstarch, basil, sugar, salt and pepper. Pour over chicken. Cover; cook on low for 7-8 hours or 3 1/2 - 4 hours on high.

Remove chicken from crock-pot and remove skin and bone. Serve chicken, mushrooms and wine sauce over hot noodles and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Enjoy with a glass of red wine!

Stick to Your Ribs Breakfast

This past Saturday night while talking to Michael on what he wanted for breakfast this morning before his final day playing at the  Greensboro Adidas Clash, he thought biscuits and gravy were a good choice. I agreed.
While laying in bed, I began to think of the many different recipes for biscuits I have made and tried to decide which one to use.  This morning, I chose to use a new recipe.  I Googled "Buttermilk Biscuits".  I chose the second one given to me.  It had fantastic ratings and I had all the ingredients, so I gave it a try.

Southern Buttermilk Biscuits. Wow, these things were great! I follow the directions as written and at the end when I pulled them out, I rubbed some butter over the hot biscuits.  These are a definite do again and again! Maybe next time, I will make them in a square pan!

Cooking Ahead for Thanksgiving!

A few years ago, I stumbled upon a recipe in my Kraft Food & Family magazine and this recipe for Stuffing Balls has become a family favorite around the holidays. The best part is you can make them up to a month in advance.

Stuffing balls, a mixture of all your favorite side dishes on Thanksgiving.

Stuffing Balls (recipe from Kraft.com)

what you need

1 lb. ground pork

1 pkg. (6 oz.) STOVE TOP Stuffing Mix for Chicken

3/4 cup cranberry sauce

1 egg

1 cup water

2 Tbsp. butter, melted

make it

HEAT oven to 325ºF.

COOK meat in large skillet until cooked through, stirring frequently; drain. Place in large bowl; cool slightly. Stir in stuffing mix.

ADD cranberry sauce, egg and water; mix well. Shape into 16 balls; place on foil-covered baking sheet. Brush with butter.

BAKE 20 min. or until done (160ºF).

kraft kitchens tips

SIZE-WISE

Enjoy your favorite foods while keeping portion size in mind.

MAKE AHEAD

Prepare and shape stuffing balls as directed. Freeze in airtight container up to 1 month. Thaw in refrigerator, then bake as directed.

Variations- Saute one medium onion and celery in a bit of olive oil or butter and then add to the pork and stove top mixture, before adding the egg, whole berry cranberry sauce and chicken broth in lieu of water. This recipe double easily and makes about 40 balls if adding onions and celery to the mix.

Here they are in the freezer. I flash freeze mine for a few hours and then put them in a zip top bag or freezer safe container a few days before I need them. Then I thaw, brush with butter and bake as directed on Thanksgiving day. It can't get much easier than preparing this side dish ahead of time. Enjoy!

Split Pea Soup and a trip to the California Wine Country!

Recently I watched a show on the Travel Channel, which documented some of America's "All You Can Eat Paradise". The show traveled to Buellton, California to a roadside restaurant serving up bottom-less bowls of Split Pea Soup. Now, I have never tried split pea soup, I took a gamble and bought a bag of dried split peas from the store the other day. After googling for a few minutes, I came across their classic vegan recipe on another food blog-Worth the Whisk and had everything on hand to make this soup for lunch today. The only thing I did differently to this recipe was saute the onions, celery and carrots in a small amount of vegetable oil.

Even as I am enjoying my second bowl, I know that mine is nowhere near the taste of Andersen's classic recipe. But, it sure is good! I'm adding a trip to the California wine country along with a visit to Pea Soup Andersen's to my bucket list.

Original Recipe for 8 bowls of Andersen’s Famous Split Pea Soup~original post from Worth the Whisk

• 2 quarts of soft water
• 2 cups of Andersen’s Specially Selected Green Split Peas
• 1 branch of celery, coarsely chopped
• 1 large carrot, chopped
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon of ground thyme
• 1 pinch of cayenne
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt & pepper

Boil hard for 20 minutes, then slowly until peas are tender. Strain through fine sieve and reheat to boiling point.

Top with bacon pieces, shredded cheese and croutons or as is and enjoy.

Cooking with Dad

     Wednesday, my Dad suggested that we have dinner together.  Well, that is something that my arm DOES NOT have to be twisted to do.  I love cooking (and eating) with my Dad.  He came over this morning to decide on a menu then do a grocery run.
     We decided on Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, Garlic Bread, and a Salad.  I added that I thought we needed a dessert to go with our dinner and wanted to do something that went along with the menu.  Searching through my "To Try" Recipe Notebook proved to provide a recipe that is a most definite do again dessert.

     Dad made his family famous "No Recipe Available" Meat Sauce. I have watched him many times but mine never taste like his.   Joey informed me that he was sorry but Papa's Spaghetti Sauce was a million times better than mine but mine was still good. Which, I am definitely okay with. That is one of those things that are special when families cook together.  The fresh Parmesan Cheese I grated was awesome with the meat sauce.  I made some Whipped Butter  for our Garlic Bread and some Blue Cheese Dressing for our Salads.  The recipe I used for my Blue Cheese Dressing has its roots in the dressing from the Chicago Steakhouse Sandwich, I just use less mayo, add sour cream and less buttermilk and more blue cheese.  It ends up being a tasting game as it is made and gets better the longer it hangs out in the fridge. I felt very proud and my heart grew warm when my Dad said that my dressing was better than what comes from the jar.The salad itself was super basic, just some Red Leaf Lettuce, Arugula, Red Onion, Carrot and Cherry Tomatoes.  

  

      I did not go out and buy the arugula for this salad,I had it on hand. Several days ago, I made some more of the Boursin Cheese and wanted to try it with roast beef as the note from the original recipe said it would be good with. Julie and I discussed the options of a leafy green to put with the sandwich.  Arugula was chosen because of the peppery flavor it has. We thought it would go good with the baguette and thinly sliced roast beef I got from the deli. I also grabbed a ripe tomato and a red onion that would be thinly sliced. During our discussion, we thought that the thinly sliced onion and tomato would be the best option as not to over power any other ingredient.  I built the sandwiches by cutting the bread into 6 inch segments then slicing them open. I then smeared Boursin Cheese on both sides and laid down some of the red onion on the bottom so they would "stick" to the cheese and not fall out. Then I added a generous portion of the roast beef followed by the arugula and tomato then closed up the sandwich.  Unfortunately, my camera batteries had been stolen so that they could power the Xbox 360 controller, therefore I can't share a picture at this time.  Michael did say that the sandwich "tasted of perfection and nothing needed to be changed", Emma's opinion that the sandwich was "re-donk-u-lous" and Joey just kept saying "Yum, oh my gosh this is great."

 Chocolate Citrus Biscotti by Giada De Laurentiis was the recipe that I tested last night.  A cup of coffee was chosen to accompany the biscotti as dessert.  I have had this recipe printed since December 2004, so I thought yesterday was a good time to give it a try.

 The recipe turned out to be extremely easy. The citrus flavor grabs you as you bite and it is extremely pleasing to the pallet.  Please remember, if you choose to bake this most excellent recipe, that the biscotti will be hard. As it is suppose to be. That is why you dunk it in your coffee or tea!         

     I used regular ground yellow cornmeal, as once again, I couldn't find the correct product here in no-where North Carolina. However, I do have to say that I enjoyed the texture of the biscotti with the yellow cornmeal that was available, which was House Autry. House Autry makes fabulous products that I use for shrimp, hush puppies, cornbread and onion rings. Next time you are at the store, pick some up instead of the store brand or your other normal choice. Plus the company is here in North Carolina! 
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What exactly is a Croquette?

    Night before last, I decided I wanted to make something new to go with the steaks we were having for dinner.  Flipping to a list of recipes that I keep with my Southern Living Annual Recipes Cookbooks, I decided on Potato Croquettes.  This recipe appears in the June section on page 116 of the 1987 Annual.  First off, I had to figure out what a croquette was. Once that was settled, I began to peel the potatoes and realized that the potato cakes that I make are kinda like a croquette. I love being enlightened on food. :)   The only thing this recipe doesn't mention is that leftover mashed potatoes would work better OR if you make them for this recipe, that you don't need to add milk or whatever you normally use to make them really creamy.  A little creamy would be okay, but not super creamy.  Mine were flat, like a formed hashbrown patty, but next time, I'll see if I can make them more tubular.

         In an earlier post I made some Chocolate Syrup to go with the Chocolate Pancakes.  The syrup has been living in the fridge since then and been used on random food or just in a spoon. (Yes, I know the picture is sideways - it isn't in my files. Since my laptop got dropped and the screen busted, I work in "safemode", it won't run some programs and I keep forgetting to email the pic out to get it fixed and hope it shows up right. *sigh*) I made Michael some scrambled eggs and warmed a Potato Croquette for his breakfast. (I'll have to take a picture next time I make these because Joey and Emma took the camera for a day trip with their Papa today.)  I grabbed the milk and was like "Hum...." and grabbed the bottle of Chocolate Syrup.  I mixed up a glass for Michael with the promise that if it wasn't good, he could pour it out and drink regular milk. The color is lighter than when using  Hershey's Chocolate Syrup or Nesquik, but the flavor was there! Michael said it taste just like the stuff we buy.  That is enough for me, that I will make them their chocolate syrup from now on.

Pasty Flour?????

     My friend asked if I would make a Carrot Cake for her husband's birthday, so I said I would.  Even though I had never made one - but my lovely little sister had. So, I emailed her for the recipe she used.  She sent the email and as I read it I notice it called for pastry flour.

     I called her up and she said that she stumbled upon whole wheat pastry flour at a local grocery store in no-where Kansas.  I had no such luck here in no-where North Carolina.  With not finding any, I went to Google for help.  I found others had the same question.  I found my answer here at ehow.  It's a pretty simple recipe.

3/4 cup all purpose flour + 1/4 cup cake flour 

= 1 cup pastry flour

     In my readings, I also learned the differences between all-purpose flour, bread flour, cake flour and pastry flour.  It all has to do with the amount of protein in the flour.  The Kitchn explains it much better than I will for you.  Plus, why would I re-write something that someone else has already written???

     So, my carrot cake is now in the oven baking away.  Check out our Facebook Page later on to see a pic of the finished cake and be sure to "Like Us" too!

The Road to Real Food....

Anyone else caught wind of this "real food" movement? As an avid blogger who gathers recipes, cooking information and getting the low-down on the newest diet craze, I've recently discovered the "real food movement" sweeping the nation. This movement is making people, just like you and me, toss processed foods and going for meals made from fresh fruits, vegetables, local meat, dairy and bread. It's also referred to as "slow", "green" or "local", where people are enjoying things in season and organic, if possible.

So what's this got to do with our blog? Pretty much everything. Since we first started Adventures in Our Kitchens, we originally were doing a combo of Julia Child and Paula Deen recipes. The one main thing these two ladies had in common is their love of butter. Not margarine, but BUTTER. Anyone else ever read that email telling people the difference between butter and margarine? Not all of it is entirely true, but margarine is about as processed as you can get in the culinary world.

Aside from all of this, what lead me on this quest was just looking for ways to shrink our food budget. My husband & I will be graduating from Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University -Military Edition on Saturday. We've learned so much in the last 12 weeks of class, but are still looking for ways to cut costs and stay healthy. I reverted back to some old things I did when we started our youngest on a GF/CF diet almost a year and a half ago. We went back to eating potatoes or rice, veggies and a protein for dinner. Super simple and wholesome. I admittedly tried the same thing back in March of this year with starting Meatless Mondays and shopping the perimeter of the grocery store, but lapsed back into bad habits and food cravings.

What's that old saying? If you don't succeed at first, try again. Well, I'm trying again.

We enjoyed another Meatless Monday last night with the return of my legendary black bean burgers*. There are very few ingredients in this recipe and it comes together in minutes. The longest thing to cook were the fries served with dinner. The jalapeno cheese adds a bit of zing to the burgers too. As an added bonus we had a local homegrown tomato to slice and pile on our burgers. * Check the 03/14/2011 post for the recipe.

These burgers fool even the pickiest of eaters while looking like real burgers.

Last week, I had a request from a friend to make a first birthday cake for her daughter, who is obsessed with ice cream sandwiches. I guess they ease the pain from teething. So, I made a test run cake and came up with a Strawberry & Vanilla Ice Cream Cake. I made it with a box of Strawberry cake mix, the only changes were that I subbed the oil for a 4 oz container of strawberry flavored applesauce and baked as directed. Then I used Breyer's All Natural Vanilla Ice Cream for the layers. Bake the cake in a 11x14 sheet pan, cool and then cut the cake to fit the inside of a spring-form pan and freeze for 30 minutes. Layer ice cream that has sat in the fridge for a few hours and freeze for 30 minutes. Repeat with cut pieces of cake, freeze and layer ice cream again and end with cake on the bottom. Wrap in plastic and freeze for several hours. Remove from freezer 5-10 minutes before serving, then cut and enjoy.

Now, we're by no means 100% free of processed foods, but we're off to a good start. If you moved our potato basket on the bottom shelf of the pantry, you'd see our love of Duke's Mayonnaise. We have juice, cereals and assorted odds and ends, but we're getting rid of it slowly. I'm still incorporating these processed goods into our current meals. I don't believe in wasting money, so we'll have another Spongebob taco night courtesy of Ortega and Friday night pizza a few more times. More importantly, our pantry is in a better state than a month or two ago. Yes, we still have fruit snacks and animal crackers for our boys, but fresh fruit or a few carrots have always been an option. This topic on real food has peaked my interest and I've picked up a few books from the local library. Soon I will be sharing my thoughts on what the authors suggest for a real food lifestyle. So, join me on a slow movement towards real food.