5-Minute Individual Potato Gratins

Recipe courtesy Melissa d'Arabian
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/5-minute-individual-potato-gratins-recipe/index.html

Ingredients
•Vegetable spray
•2 large russet potatoes, roughly peeled and thinly sliced
•1/2 cup grated Swiss cheese
•2 green onions, finely chopped
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•3/4 cup heavy cream


Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Spray 8 muffin tins with vegetable spray. Layer potato slices, cheese, and onions into each muffin cup. Season with salt and pepper and top each gratin with 1 or 2 tablespoons of heavy cream. Cover with foil and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, removing the foil halfway through cooking time. Invert gratins onto plate and serve.

Rustic Lemon-Onion Chicken

Recipe courtesy Melissa d'Arabian
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/flexible-4-step-chicken-for-family-and-company--rustic-lemon-onion-chicken-recipe/index.html

Ingredients
•4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, sliced in half crossways (butterflied, cut all the way through)
•1 teaspoon dried thyme, plus 1 small bunch fresh thyme, leaves chopped
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
•4 tablespoons olive oil
•1/4 cup all-purpose flour
•1 red onion, thinly sliced
•1/4 cup white wine, optional
•1 cup chicken broth
•3 lemons, juiced
•1 to 2 tablespoons butter
•Spinach "bed", recipe follows

Directions
Season chicken with dried thyme and salt and pepper. Heat a large saute pan over medium heat and add the oil. Dredge the chicken in flour, add to the hot oil and saute until cooked through. Set chicken aside to rest on plate tented with foil.

In same saute pan, over low heat, add onions and fresh thyme and cook until aromatic.

In a measuring cup, measure out wine, if using, and broth, and add the lemon juice. Turn the heat up to high, and deglaze the pan with the broth mixture until starting to reduce.

Remove the pan from the heat and finish the sauce by whisking in butter. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Place a bed of cooked spinach on a serving platter, top with the chicken. Spoon the sauce over the chicken and serve.

Spinach "bed":

•1 bag pre-washed fresh spinach
•3 tablespoons water
•1 tablespoon butter
•1 lemon, juiced
•Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Microwave spinach in a microwave-proof dish with a few tablespoons of water on high for 5 to 6 minutes, or until hot. Drain, and toss with butter, lemon juice, and salt and pepper, to taste.

Christmas Goodies

Update to how they turned out in red!!

Ok.... so this will be a post in progress. I'm trying to figure out what goodies I'm going to make for my Christmas goodie boxes. Considering that, if I choose to write down everything - I'll probably lose it or it'll get colored all over by Rylee -- I'm going to post my ideas and recipes on here. That way, at least I know it's safe! :)

Peppermint Bark
--dark and white chocolate, peppermint flavoring and crushed peppermints.
Always good and super easy.  However, when breaking it up into actual pieces, the dark and white chocolate split -- only giving me white peppermint bark.  hmmmmmm.  Still turned out good, but I need to figure out what I was doing wrong. 

Balsamic Chocolate Truffles
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/balsamic-chocolate-truffles-recipe/index.html
I'm thinking that maybe I'll add powder sugar to the cocoa powder, or maybe just roll them in powder sugar entirely, or roll them in crushed nuts. Hmmmm.... I need to see.


8 1/2 ounces dark chocolate, chopped (recommended: Valrhona)
1/4 cup cream
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup cocoa powder

Directions
Melt the chocolate and cream in a double boiler over hot but not simmering water. Place melted chocolate in a small bowl. Stir in the balsamic vinegar. Cool the chocolate in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Remove from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for 2 hours, until firm but moldable.

Use a teaspoon to scoop out chocolate. Use your fingertips to shape into balls about the size of a cherry. Set the chocolate balls on a parchment-lined tray.

Place the cocoa powder in a small shallow dish. Place 6 truffles at a time in the cocoa powder and roll the truffles around to coat, and return the coated truffles to the baking sheet. Continue with the remaining truffles. Place the truffles in a serving dish or airtight package.

Eh.... didn't come out the best.  Tasted okay... not amazing though.  The ganache though was a hard consistency to work with.  It was either too hard to mold into nice-looking balls or too soft and it would get all over my hands.  Again...they tasted okay -- but I won't do it again.


Shortbread Cookies dipped in chocolate with sea salt
Beat 2 sticks of butter, 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 1/2 cup powder sugar until fluffy. Whisk 2 cups flour and 1 tsp salt , then stir into the butter mixture. Press the dough into a buttered 8 inch square dish. Using a fork, score the dough into strips (however long you want) -- chill in fridge for 30 minutes. Bake 1 hour at 300 degrees. Cool, then slice along the scored lines.
Once the shortbread is totally cooled ( maybe pop it into the fridge for a bit to make sure it's really cool) -- melt chocolate and dip one end into the chocolate - letting excess chocolate dripped off. Place on parchment or wax paper to cool. Sprinkle with sea salt.

Amazing!  Really easy and really good.  My shortbread came out a little thick, so after they were cooled, I cut them in half lengthwise, put some butter on the tops and popped them back into the oven for a bit to make the top look a little more finished (since I had to cut them...).  Then dipped in chocolate and sprinkled just a little sea salt on them.  YUMMY!

Cranberry and Date Roll Ups
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paulas-party/cranberry-and-date-roll-ups-recipe/index.html

Probably my favorite of the bunch.  the cookie wasn't that sweet and the cranberry gave it a nice pop of citrus.  I cut up the dates and in each "roll up" I used some dates, a couple of Craisens (for a little bit of added sweetness) and then 2 cranberries.  Sprinkled powder sugar on top.  My doctor RAVED about them!  He said that he even went home and told his wife about how good they were! lol   Definintely making these again!

Hazelnut Brittle **not sure about this one....
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/hazelnut-crunch-noci-croccante-recipe2/reviews/index.html#user-reviews-top

Eh..... came out just okay.  It was good and had a good flavor but it was a little too nutty for me.  I only used 2 cups of the hazelnuts (instead of the 2 1/2 cups) but I think next time I'll only use a little over 1 cup.  I like more "brittle" than "nuts" anyways.  IT was good though.  I'll make it again. Oh and FYI -- make sure you use PARCHMENT PAPER not wax paper. I thought I could just them interchangably but it turns out you can't!  The wax paper stuck to the brittle so badly that even after trying to scrape it off, I still had to toss half the batch.  :(

Rachael Ray's 15- Minute Meal: Chicken with BLT Gravy

The "BLT" stands for "Bacon, Leeks, and Tomato" :)

I made this today for lunch and we really enjoyed it! It took me a little bit longer than 15 minutes, but not too much (although I wasn't timing it or anything). Darrin even took seconds! :) Served with sourdough bread for "mopping". It would be great with rice too!

Oh and FYI -- I fixed everything as the recipe states... except that I only used boneless skinless thighs (they're so much cheaper) and could only fit 5 in my pan (so we only had 5 pieces of chicken, not 8 as the recipe calls for). I only used 1 leek, and not 2 (which was good since I had less chicken). Besides that though - stuck with everything else!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 pieces boneless, skinless chicken breast, halved across
4 pieces boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed up
Salt and pepper
4 slices smoky bacon (chopped)
2 leeks
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup chicken stock
2 small plum tomatoes
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup cream
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Crusty bread, to pass at table

Directions
Heat 2 skillets each with 1 tablespoon EVOO over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper and add to first skillet, cook chicken 12 minutes, turning once.

Meanwhile, add bacon to second skillet. While bacon cooks, halve trimmed leeks lengthwise then slice 1/2 inch thick and vigorously wash in a colander then dry on kitchen towel. Add leeks to bacon and saute to soften 5-7 minutes. Sprinkle flour over the leeks 1 minute. Stir in stock and tomatoes and reduce heat to a simmer.

When chicken is done remove to platter and deglaze the pan drippings with wine, scraping up the bits and color 30 seconds, pour drippings into the gravy pan, stir to combine.
Finish gravy with cream, stir to combine and when sauce comes back up to a bubble, turn off heat and stir in Dijon mustard.

Finish gravy with cream, stir to combine and when sauce comes back up to a bubble, turn off heat and stir in Dijon mustard.

Spoon BLT gravy over chicken and serve with crusty bread torn into pieces for mopping.

Cheddar Corn Chowder

Update at Bottom!!
-------------------------
Just something that I want to make and don't want to lose the recipe. Sounds yummy, huh? Great for a rainy day.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/cheddar-corn-chowder-recipe/index.html


Ingredients

8 ounces bacon, chopped
1/4 cup good olive oil
6 cups chopped yellow onions (4 large onions)
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
12 cups chicken stock
6 cups medium-diced white boiling potatoes, unpeeled (2 pounds)
10 cups corn kernels, fresh (10 ears) or frozen (3 pounds)
2 cups half-and-half
8 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese, grated


Directions

In a large stockpot over medium-high heat, cook the bacon and olive oil until the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and butter to the fat, and cook for 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent.

Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and turmeric and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and potatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. If using fresh corn, cut the kernels off the cob and blanch them for 3 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain. (If using frozen corn you can skip this step.) Add the corn to the soup, then add the half-and-half and cheddar. Cook for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is melted. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper. Serve hot with a garnish of bacon.
---------------------------------------

Update!
I made this tonight and it was great!  My mom loved it so much she had seconds. :) I did make some changes though.  I cut the recipe mainly in half (see below).  Changes I would make the next time is to either cut the potatoes up a little smaller or if I had an immersible blender - do a quick blend afer the potates are cooked.  I also didn't like the bacon on top of the soup.  Just made it a little too rich and salty.  I just felt like it didn't really need it.  However, I would omit it due to the flavor the fat gives.  Next time, I'll just cook up the bacon like normal, then put it in the fridge or freezer for breakfast the next day or to use in another dish (mmmm like maybe stuffed potatoes...).

Here's the changes to the ingredients I did:

8 ounces bacon, chopped (kept the same)
1/4 cup good olive oil (???? didn't really measure it out....I think it was about the same)
6 cups 3 cups chopped yellow onions (4 2 large onions)
4  2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup 1/4 cup flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt (eyeball it)
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (eyeball it)
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric Omitted altogether.  More for color than taste and I wasn't going to buy an entire jar for less than a teaspoon.
12 cups 5 cups chicken stock (could even do 4 cups)
6 cups 2-3 cups medium-diced white boiling potatoes, unpeeled
10 cups corn kernels, fresh (10 ears) or frozen (3 pounds) 1 lb frozen corn
2 cups 1 cup half-and-half
8 ounces sharp white cheddar cheese, grated (kept the same)

Open-Face Chicken Parm Sandwhich

I made this today and it was yummy! A great way to get rid of leftover chicken and a really quick lunch. It's also easy if you're "cooking for one". I got it from my Parents magazine.

Take slices of whatever bread you have on hand. Italian bread or Sourdough works best though, I think. Toast the bread in the toaster. Lay pieces of cooked chicken on top of the bread, top with some spinach leaves (if you have some), marinara sauce and cheese (a mix of parm and mozzarella works best). Then pop it in the oven under a broiler until the cheese is bubbly and a little brown -- about 2-3 minutes or so.

Not the absolute healthiest meal around.... but good nonetheless! Another "quick tip" is to have Marinara sauce on hand at all times. I make my own every couple weeks and keep it in a jar in my fridge. It makes whiping up pasta and sauce super easy. After boiling and draining pasta, return to the pan and pour some sauce directly in the pan on low heat. Just a couple seconds and the sauce will be heated up! Makes cooking for one (or one and half in my case) super easy!

Crockpot Chuck Roast

I bought a 2 lbs beef chuck roast on sale but had no clue how to cook it. I knew that the crockpot would be my "safety" - so I looked for different recipes. I found several and decided to kind of combine some stuff. It turned out GREAT! The Gravy it made was a dark gravy and was really good. The meat was uber-tender too. I served it with mashed potatoes and a salad. Will definitely make this one again!

Ingredients:
2 lbs (ish) Chuck Roast
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can of Dr. Pepper (or any dark soda I think will do)
1 packet of Lipton Onion Soup Mix (dry)
Salt, Pepper, Parsley to taste



Directions:

Season the meat with salt, pepper and parsley. Put it in the crockpot.

Dump cream of soup, soda and onion soup mix on top.... kind of stir to combine. (You could also do this in a separate bowl and then dump it all on top. Whichever you like)

Cook on low for 6 hours or so

40 Cloves and a Chicken

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/40-cloves-and-a-chicken-recipe/index.html

This recipe uses 40 cloves of garlic. But don't shy away just yet! I had seen this before and always stayed away from it b/c I thought it would be TOO garlicky even for this avid garlic-lover. Then I saw a Food Network episode from "Good Eats" with Alton Brown (episode name: In The Bulb of the Night). **sidenote -- I LOVE this show - it's really educational about whatever food their featuring and focuses on the chemistry and science behind the food and not just a certain recipe. If you haven't watched it - take a gander next time it's on. It's pretty cool. A bit cheesy, but cool nonetheless** The episode explained why whole cloves of garlic are less potent then cut or minced cloves (has to do with the walls of the cloves being broken and releasing more and more of the flavor). So... I decided to take the leap and try it. And I'm proud to say that it was pretty good!

The chicken, surprisingly, wasn't as garlicky as I thought it would be (or maybe even hoped). It had a nice subtle garlic flavor. The garlic cloves were soft and buttery - melts right in your mouth and smears easily on whatever you decide to put it on. The oil was kind of a lot but not too much and since it's now infused with the garlic flavor - makes for an awesome addition to any dish (yes, you can save the leftovers).

I used 4 leg quarters instead of the broiler/fryer chicken. Because I had less chicken, I reduced the cooking time to only 1 hour, which was perfect. If you choose to use breast only (which would probably absorb more of the garlic flavor) - I would reduce the time even more. Maybe only 30-45 minutes. Breasts dry out really quickly, so I would keep a close eye on them!

A couple tips with the garlic --1) One head o garlic contains about 10 cloves. 2) make sure that you keep the cloves as whole as possible when peeling. It's okay if you happen to smash some, but try not to (let me know if you need tips on how to easily peel garlic). 3) don't use bulbs that have sprouted. They won't harm you but they are more bitter - so you won't get the same flavor. 4) If you have a Sam's Club membership (or maybe Costco... I don't know) - you can get a BIG bag (2lbs I believe) of fresh garlic for $2.88. It's a lot of garlic but well worth it, I think!

Lastly - if you're going to do this recipe - I would suggest clicking the link at the top and read through all the comments. I always learn SO much from other people's comments - things to do or not do or areas that other people had trouble with. It's really informative.

Ok, I'll stop typing now -- here's the recipe!

Ingredients
1 whole chicken (broiler/fryer) cut into 8 pieces
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil
10 sprigs fresh thyme
40 peeled cloves garlic
Salt and pepper


Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Toss with a 2 tablespoons olive oil and brown on both sides in a wide fry pan or skillet over high heat. Remove from heat, add oil, thyme, and garlic cloves. Cover and bake for 1 1/2 hours.

Remove chicken from the oven, let rest for 5 to 10 minutes, carve, and serve.


***Garlic Toast
After the dish is made, take some of the garlic oil and brush it on pieces of bread. Take a clove of garlic and spread it on top. Pop the pieces in the broiler for a minute or so until toasty. You can top it off with some Parm cheese if you want! YUM!

****Suggested Side Dishes -- mashed potatoes and a Lemon veggie dish (we had lemon asparagus). The lemon/acid is a great and refreshing paired against the rich, buttery garlic.

Slow Cooker Sweet Potato Chili

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2009/05/sweet-potato-chili-vegan-crockpot.html

This is actually a Vegan dish, but I un-veganized it (and added more calories) by adding chopped bacon in the crockpot, then cheese and sour cream to top it off. I also added a can of black beans. It didn't taste of a chili as much as a thick stew. But put it in a sourdough breadbowl and it's a GREAT meal on a cold night. It's a pretty cheap meal too! :)

The Ingredients:

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and in 2-inch chunks
1 yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or 2/3 cup dried beans, soaked overnight and boiled briskly for 10 minutes because of the freaky red bean toxin thing)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 (14.5-ounce) can tomatoes (whatever's on sale, mine had oregano and roasted garlic)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice (If you don't have any in the house, use water)


The Directions:

Use a 5-6 quart slow cooker. This is enough food to feed a family of 4 regular-sized, or 6 smallish people. Peel and chunk the sweet potato and add to the pot. Add diced onion. Follow with the red bell pepper, can of tomatoes, the beans, garlic, and seasonings. Pour in OJ and water. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until the onion is translucent and the sweet potato is fork-tender (if you want the sweet potato to get really squishy and disappear when stirred, cook longer).

Pork Chop Delight

A friend of mine fowarded me an e-mail FULL of crockpot recipes! I recently bought some pork chops on sale and thought that I'd take one of the recipes to cook up my chops. This was a GREAT meal, easy and really good. I actually made this the day before, then things happened and we never were able to eat it - so, instead of putting in the sour cream, I stuck it in a tupperware dish and popped it in the fridge. The next day, I just dumped the entire contents into a deep pan, let it heat up, then added the sour cream/flour mixture to cook for 15-20 minutes. It turned out just fine! We had our brother and sister over and they liked it too! The pork was nice and tender and the sauce it made was really good. I would either make rice (or mashed potatoes if you want something heavier) and veggies with it. The only FYI I would say to remember is, as with any kind of meat with bones you put in the crockpot - the meat falls offthe bone very easily. Which means bones mix in with the meat and sauce. So just be careful or maybe try to fish out the bones before you serve. It wasn't that big of a deal, but I don't want to have to wory that I'll bite down into a bone when eating!

Anywho - here it is!

http://www.50plusfriends.com/cookbook/crockpot/pkchpdel.html

From the Kitchen of: Pepper
4 - 6


boneless pork chops

seasoned flour for dredging (add salt, pepper, etc. to flour)
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 lg. onion, sliced
2 c. chicken broth
2 tbsp. flour
8 oz. sour cream

Heat oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Dredge pork chops in seasoned flour and brown in skillet, turning to brown both sides.

Layer chops in Crockery Pot with onion slices. Pour chicken broth over layers. Cover and cook on low 7 - 8 hours.

Stir the 2 tablespoons of flour into the sour cream until smooth. Stir sour cream into the Crockery Pot and blend into the cooking juices. Raise the Crockery Pot to high for 15 - 30 minutes or until the liquid has thickened.

Serve the chops and sauce over rice or noodles.

50 Easy Soups

This is a GREAT article giving recipes for 50 soups (from The Food Network). Check it out

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes-and-cooking/50-easy-soups-1--10/index.html

Rachael Ray's Carmelized Onion Penne

http://www.rachaelray.com/recipe.php?recipe_id=2874

Really good. Just be aware that it calls for a HALF pound (or half a bag) of penne. that would have been nice to notice as I made way too much pasta and the sauce wasn't very creamy since it was suppose to be for only half the pasta. :) But other than that - ooooo soo good! Made it with the Pork Chop Pizzaiola.

Ingredients
1/2 pound whole-wheat penne pasta
Kosher salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 teaspoon anchovy paste or 4 flat fillets
2 large onions, thinly sliced
1 bay leaf
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano, (a couple of handfuls)
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley


Preparation
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Salt the water and add the pasta. Cook to al dente and drain.

Heat the EVOO in a large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the anchovy paste and let it melt into the oil. Add the onions and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Cook the onions until very soft and light caramel in color, about 20 minutes. Stir in the cream, and cook until heated through. Remove the bay leaf, then add the pasta and cheese and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving bowl, sprinkle with parsley and serve.

Racheal Ray's Pork Chop Pizzaiola

http://rachaelray.com/recipe.php?recipe_id=2875

I made this the other night and it was OH so yummy. I used boneless pork chops, since that's what they had on sale. Turned out great. The only thing is that the "sauce" was a bit thin-- I thought that it was going to be thicker. Maybe next time, I'll cut down on the wine and chicken stock or just try to cook it down more before I throw in the chops.

Ingredients
4 bone-in pork chops (1 1/2-inch thick each)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO)
1 large clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon fennel seed
1 medium onion, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 sprigs fresh oregano, leaves chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup red wine
2 cups chicken stock

Preparation
Season chops with salt and pepper. Heat the EVOO in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the crushed garlic and stir it around to flavor the oil. Add in the chops and caramelize on both sides, 2-3 minutes per side. Remove the chops to a plate and reserve. Stir in the fennel seed, onions, red pepper flakes, and oregano. Reduce the heat and cook for 7-8 minutes.
Add the tomato paste, and cook for 1 minute, then add the wine, and cook for another minute. Stir in the stock and combine well. Slide the chops back into the pan, cover and simmer to finish cooking the chops, about 5-6 minutes. Arrange the chops and sauce on a serving platter and serve.

Rachael Ray's Spicy Thai Shrimp with Coconut Rice

Rachael Ray's "Thai it, You'll like it" Spicy Thai Shrimp with Coconut Rice

Click to watch the video on how to make it! You can also use chicken instead of shrimp.

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/thai-it-youll-it-spicy-thai-shrimp-coconut-rice/

Ingredients
1 cup sweetened, shredded coconut
2 1/2 cups chicken stock or broth
1 cup long grain white rice
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 pounds jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined (or chicken if you prefer)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 fresh red chili, seeded and thinly sliced or 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons fish sauce or 2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 cups (a couple of handfuls) basil, torn
Zest and juice of 1 lime
Yields: 4 servings

Preparation
Toast coconut in a saucepan over medium heat until it turns golden brown. Reserve 1/2 cup for garnish.

To the remaining coconut in the saucepan, add the chicken stock, rice and salt, and bring it to a boil. Once at a boil, reduce the heat to a simmer, place a lid on top and cook for 15 minutes. Let the mixture stand for five minutes off the heat then fluff with a fork.

While the rice is cooking, preheat a large, nonstick skillet over high heat with the canola oil.

When the pan is hot, add the shrimp, red bell peppers, chili (or red pepper flakes) and garlic, stirring frequently for about 3-4 minutes.

Add the fish sauce (or soy sauce), basil and toss to combine. Serve the shrimp and some of the sauce over the coconut rice and squeeze some lime juice over everything. Garnish with the reserved toasted coconut and the lime zest.

Crunchy Beef Bake

This recipe is from my cousin Ali Adema who got it from Taste of Home magazine. Sounds good, easy and uses "normal" stuff that you may already have in stock.

"This isn't some fancy schmancy gormet meal or anything, but it was good! I made it for the first time for dinner tonight, and I really liked it. Lukas said he did too. I always like getting new recipies because I hate being in a "cooking rut", so I thought I'd share this with anyone who'd like another recipe. I got it from a Taste of Home magazine. Again, it's nothing special and it probably isn't the most unique meal out there (whatever), but it was easy and tasted good. =)"

Crunchy Beef Bake - yield 4-6 servings

Ingredients:

2 cups uncooked spiral or macaroni pasta (I used large macaroni)

1 pound ground beef

3/4 cup chopped green pepper

1 garlic clove, minced1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained (I had a can of diced tomatoes with green chilies already, so I used that instead. I think it added some good flavor.)

1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted

3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese

3/4 teaspoon seasoned salt

1 can (2.8 oz) french-fried onions

Directions:

1. Cook pasta according to directions. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven, cook the beef, green pepper and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink and pepper is tender; drain.

2. Drain pasta; add to the beef mixture with the tomatoes, soup, cheese, and salt.

3. Transfer to a greased (oops, just realized I forgot that part, haha) 2 qt. baking dish. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes. Uncover; sprinkle with onions and bake for another 5 minutes.

Rachel Ray's 7 Layer Cassarole

Rachel Ray's Super-Sized 7 Layer Cassarole

To see the video and other pictures, go to the website:

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/super-sized-7-layer-casserole/

**FYI this recipe is for 12 servings! I haven't made it but it looks GREAT. But it also looks like a lot of work -- or at least time consuming. So I would, at least, go to the webiste, and print out the recipe so you can have it in front of you. I also wonder if you could make it and freeze the first 3 layers. hmmmm....

Ingredients
1 package corn tortillas or any color corn chips
2 tablespoons vegetable oil or cooking spray
1 box elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 pounds ground beef
1 medium onion, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, grated, divided
4 jalapeño peppers, finely chopped, divided
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon coriander
1 tablespoon cumin
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 bottle of beer
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 1/2 cups milk
1 14.5-ounce can chopped tomatoes with chilies, drained
3 cups shredded yellow cheddar cheese, divided
2 cans vegetarian spicy refried beans
5 to 6 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 small red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
Salt
2 limes, zest of 1 and juice of 2
2 avocados
1 cup sour cream
Juice of 1 lemon
Hot sauce to taste
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
1/2 cup chopped olives with pimientos
1 bunch scallions, chopped
Yields: 12 servings

Preparation
Preheat oven to 400˚F.
If using corn tortillas, cut them into thin strips about 1/2 inch thick, and place them onto a baking sheet. Toss them with some vegetable oil or spray with cooking spray and season them with salt and ground pepper. Pop them into the oven and cook until crispy and golden, about 15 minutes.
Bring a large pot of water up to a boil over high heat. Salt the water then add the noodles and cook to package instructions.

Place a large skillet over medium high heat with a tablespoon EVOO. Brown the meat, then add in the onion, 4 cloves grated garlic and 2 jalapeños, and cook until tender.

Season the meat and veggies with chili powder, coriander, cumin and tomato paste. Let the meat mixture cook for a minute or two with the spices, then add the beer and let that cook down for about 4-5 minutes. Reserve.

While the meat is cooking, make the cheese sauce: In a saucepot over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the flour and give it a stir to combine with the butter. Cook for a minute or so then whisk in the milk. Cook until thickened.

Drain the can of tomatoes with chilies and add them to the thickened milk mixture. Fold in 2 1/2 cups cheese and the reserved noodles. Season with salt and pepper, and reserve.
In another saucepot, heat up the can of refried beans with a little bit of water.

To build the casserole, spread the beef mixture out in the bottom of a casserole dish. Top with the refried beans and finish it off with the mac and cheeses and the remaining cheese. Pop the casserole into the oven and bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
While the casserole is baking, make the salsa: Mix the plum tomatoes, remaining jalapeño peppers, red onion and cilantro in a small bowl. Season with salt, lime zest and juice, and reserve.
For the guacamole sour cream, scoop the flesh of the avocados into the bowl of a food processor and add the sour cream, lemon juice, remaining 2 cloves grated garlic and hot sauce. Process until creamy.

Once the casserole comes out of the oven, top it with the crispy corn strips and shredded iceberg lettuce. Top with the salsa, then the guacamole sour cream and finally the chopped olives with pimientos and scallions.

Cin-fu Peach Cobbler

(Photo from Food Network)

Cin-ful Peach Cobbler by Guy Fieri

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/cin-ful-peach-cobbler-recipe/index.html

This is SOOO good! I forgot to thaw the peaches and it still turned out wonderful! Try this - it's pretty easy and perfect to put in while you make and eat dinner!! Great for company too!

Ingredients

For the peach filling:
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 cups frozen peaches, thawed, about 3 pounds prepared
1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 1 tablespoon water
1 lemon, juiced
1 teaspoon butter

For the crumb topping:
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup oats
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature, cut into 8 pieces
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream, for serving
Special Equipment: 12 by 8-inch oval stoneware dish or 13 by 9-inch rectangular glass or stoneware dish

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.

To make the peach filling: In a large bowl, stir together sugars, flour, cinnamon and salt. Add peaches and gently toss to coat. Mix together cornstarch slurry and lemon juice and stir into peaches to incorporate. Butter a 12 by 8-inch oval dish and add peach mixture.

To make the crumb topping: In a medium bowl, combine dry ingredients, add in butter pieces and combine with hands until crumbly.

Top peaches with half of the crumb topping. Place in oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F. Bake uncovered for 30 minutes, then add remainder of the crumb topping. Reduce heat to 325 degrees F and bake until golden and bubbling, another 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let sit for 15 minutes before serving.

Serve with vanilla ice cream or fresh whipped cream.

Orange Chicken

I was hungry for orange chicken today so I did some internet searches and came up with something really good! The main recipe is from Melissa d'Arabian's new show "Ten Dollar Dinners" on the Food Network. It's actually REALLY good and super easy. Here's her recipe and then below I explained my changes. FYI - my version is actually a bit easier and cooks up really quickly:

Crispy-Skinned Chicken a l'Orange

Ingredients:
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 skin-on bone-in chicken breast halves
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
4 tablespoons honey

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Liberally salt and pepper the chicken breast halves. Heat the oil in a large saute pan over medium-high heat and sear the chicken, skin side only, until brown and beginning to crisp, about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the orange glaze: In a small saucepan, heat the orange juice concentrate, honey, and salt and pepper, to taste, over medium heat, and boil for 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Turn the chicken over and brush each piece with the glaze. Turn the chicken skin side up and transfer the pan to the oven. Bake until the internal temperature reaches 160 to 170 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, brushing on more glaze halfway through, about 15 minutes in total.

Let the chicken rest for 10 minutes on a cutting board. Remove the chicken breast from the bone and slice the meat on the bias. Transfer the chicken to a serving platter and serve.

---------------------------------
My changes:

I just took skinless boneless chicken and cut it into strips (like chicken tenders). I browned them on both sides, made the glaze (added a splash of soy sauce) and then poured the glaze into the chicken skillet. I let it simmer, covered, for about 5-7 minutes or until cooked completely. Then poured it all over the rice. This would be great served with broccoli too.


I do want to try her recipe, her way, though. I think the crispy skin would be a great addition for the flavor and texture. Let me know if you try her recipe with the skin on!

Italian Crockpot Chicken

My friend, Britni, makes this recipe and she says it's OH so good - plus super easy. Hopefully, I'll get a picture once I actually make it!

Here's the recipe:

1 can cream of chicken soup
4 chicken breasts (or i used a whole chicken)
1 envelope dry italian dressing seasonings


I put the soup on the bottom of the crock pot. I spread it out so it's evenly on the bottom. Then you put the chicken in and pour the seasonings on top. (When I did the whole chicken, I spooned some of the soup on top of the chicken and rubbed it in before I sprinkled on the seasonings.)Cook on low for 6 - 8 hours.

**Variation -- to make it a little more creamy - many recipes call for 1 block of cream cheese. **

Thanks Brit for the yummy recipe!

Drunken Onion Chicken

So the pic isn't the best. It tastes good though!!

OMG - this is good! Again, this is another "let's throw stuff together and see how it turns out" dish. So no real recipe, sorry. Here's what I did:

Cream of Chicken soup and some White Wine (maybe like 2/3-1cup. I just poured in the rest of what was in the bottle) - mix together and pour in the bottom of a crockpot.

Take a packet of Onion Soup Mix and rub half of it (or so) over a whole raw chicken or chicken breasts. For the raw chicken - separate the skin from the flesh and stick some of the soup mix underneath the skin.

Put the chicken in the crockpot and spoon some of the cream of soup/wine mixture over the top. Sprinkle the other half of the onion soup mix over the top. Start the crockpot. Low for about 6 hours or high for 4 hours.

Carmelize onions. You can use some balsamic vinegar, wine or even a little bit of the soup mixture to deglaze the pan afterwards. Pour the onions and the juices over the top of the chicken.

Cook, then eat and enjoy. Sooooo good.

Mushroom Wine Chicken in a Carmelized Onion Sauce garnished with Spinach, Mushroom and Pine nuts

I was grocery shopping the other day and instead of getting a package of chicken breast, I noticed that they had whole raw chickens for 57 cents a pound. Not being able to resist a great deal, I ditched the breasts and grabbed a whole chicken for only $2.17. SCORE! :) Since I now had an entire chicken, we called up my brother and sister in law and they came to help us devour it. They thought it was pretty good so I thought I'd add it here in case I wanted to try it again. Or, of course, if any of my 4 followers ever wanted to try it! :) FYI - I didn't have a recipe for this - so I just threw a bunch of stuff together and hoped it turned out well. Here's what I did - sorry that it's so scatterbrained and not too too specific.

For the Crockpot chicken:

• 1 whole raw chicken (cleaned and gutted, of course)
• Whatever herbs you want mixed wtih some Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
• Salt and Pepper (with the herbs)
• A couple cloves of garlic (number of cloves depends on how much you like garlic)
• White Wine
• Can of "Cream of Mushroom" soup (can be any cream of soup if you don't want to do mushroom)

Directions:

First - take the cream of mushroom soup and mix 1- 1 1/2 cups of white wine (about a half bottle or so -- not a big deal, just eye ball it) together. Dump that in the crockpot.

Take the herbs that you want (I did rosemary, oregano, thyme, basil, garlic powder, salt and pepper) and mix them together in a small bowl. Add some EVOO. Take the mixture and rub ALLLLL over the chicken -- both on the outside, inside the cavity, and then take some and rub it inbetween the skin and meat. Basically -give the chicken a good massage with the mixture. If you have fresh herbs, then stick a bunch in the cavity. Take the garlic and either stick it in the cavity or just drop it on the bottom of the crockpot.

Put the herb-massaged chicken in the crockpot. Turn on low for 6 -8 hours depending on the size of the chicken. Check it after 6 hours.



For the sauce (make about 20-30 minutes before you're ready to serve) :

• 1-2 whole onions (doesn't matter what kind - sweeter onions, like Walla Walla or Vidalia carmelize quicker than others, but you can use whatever you have)
• Some of the crockpot juice (just have a ladle ready so you can add as much or as little as you want) and some of the leftover white wine
• 1/2 - 1 cup of sliced mushrooms
• 2-3 good handfuls of fresh spinach
• Raw or roasted Pine nuts -- just for a little texture and garnish. You can have as much as or as little as you want.

Directions:

Carmelize the onions:

• Cut onions in half, then cut into half rings.
• Add EVOO and some butter to the pan on high heat. Heat until the oil ripples, but not burning the butter - turn heat to medium-low
• Add in onions, some salt, pepper and sugar (optional) and stir - watch and continue to stir until all the onions get a limp and browned all over - about 15-20 minutes.

Here's a couple good links on how to carmelize onions -- an article and a you tube demo:

• http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/Caramelizing-Onions/Detail.aspx
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDdC-kCHSGg&feature=related

*If your pine nuts are raw - stick them on a baking sheet, add some EVOO, salt and pepper. Pop them into an oven on 300 or 350. Just watch them so they don't burn. About 5-10 minutes. Just keep checking on them and pull them whenever they're roasted. You can do this anytime too - so if you want to roast the pine nuts in advance - feel free to do so.

Once the onions are carmelized, add the mushrooms and a couple of ladles of the crockpot juice to deglaze the pan -- this will start a good sauce as well as pick up all that good stuff stuck to the bottom. Add as much as you'd like as you go along as well as adding some of the leftover white wine to thin it out if it's too rich. This is all to taste - so you just kind of gotta see what you like as it cooks. Cook for about 5 minutes or so.

Turn heat off, dump in the spinach and pine nuts. Stir until the spinach is wilted - about a minute.

Serve the chicken, sauce and whatever else you'd like! Angel hair pasta toseed in butter tastes great with this dish. Or you can do potatoes or veggies and garlic bread. Or whatever you want!

Enjoy!

****Next time, I want to try adding a can of cream of mushroom soup to the carmelized onions and crockpot juice so it makes more of a gravy. Let me know if you try it and how it works for you!

Caprese Lasagna

Otherwise known as Basil, Tomato and Mozzerella Lasagna! This was taken from Rachel Ray's show as part of her "Meals for a Steal" segment. It feeds 4 and came in for less than $9. I haven't made it yet, but I put it up here because I don't want to forget about it! :)

Check it out here and even watch her do the segment: http://rachelrayshow.com/food/recipes/caprese-lasagna/

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
2 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk
A few grates fresh nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 box oven-ready lasagna noodles
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Half a bunch (about 30 leaves) basil, chopped
4 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

Preperation

Preheat oven to 375ºF.

Place a large saucepot over medium-heat and melt the butter. Add garlic to pan and cook until aromatic, about 1 minute. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and garlic, and cook for about 1 minute. Whisk the milk into the butter-flour mixture and bring up to a bubble. Add the nutmeg, season with salt and ground black pepper, and simmer until thickened, 3-4 minutes.

Assemble the lasagna by ladling a small amount (about 1/4 cup, just eyeball it) of the sauce into the bottom of a 9x13" baking dish and laying 3 lasagna noodles over the sauce. Top the noodles with a third of the sliced tomatoes, a third of the basil, 1/4 cup of sauce and a third of the shredded cheese. Repeat until all ingredients are used up, topping the lasagna off with a final layer of sauce and shredded cheese.

Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake the lasagna for 30 minutes. Remove the foil from the baking dish and bake another 15 minutes until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbly. When ready to serve, top with remaining chopped basil leaves.

Dutch Almond Boterkoek

I made these cookie bars for our family reunion. Since the family's Dutch, I thought it would be fun to make something that fit the "theme". :)

They were pertty good -- really buttery. Perfect with some tea -- or any type of refreshing drink, because these puppies are RICH.

Super easy too. Here's the recipe and the link:

Dutch Almond Boterkoek
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Dutch-Almond-Boterkoek/Detail.aspx

INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter
1 1/4 cups packed brown sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Grease a 9 x 12 inch jelly roll pan . You can also use a 9 x13 inch rectangular baking pan.

Cream together the brown sugar and the butter or margarine. Add the almond extract.

Sift and add flour to the creamed sugar mixture. Mix well.

Separate the egg, and add the egg yolk to the dough. Mix again.

Press into the greased sponge roll tin, and glaze with the lightly-beaten egg white.

Sprinkle with flaked or slivered almonds.
Bake approx 20 minutes. When cool, cut into bars

------------------------------------------------

FYI's

I had to keep bake them for a little longer than the 20 minutes (like 5 or so longer). So after 20 min, just watch it.

The dough looks like hardly anything - esp for a 9X13 pan. Don't worry, you want it to be a little thinner so it'll cook all the way through. It rises just a little bit too.

The Almond extract -- it didn't make it taste very almond-y. So if you dn't like almond tasting stuff -- don't worry, it's not that strong. if you LIKE that taste, and want a stronger taste of it in the cookies, you can either use a little more extract or use Almond paste.

Enjoy!

Kumquat Appetizer

Kumquat, Cheese Cheese and Candied Pecan Appetizer

So my best friend is getting married and at her lingerie shower , they served these YUMMY apps. Kudos go to Mrs. Jennifer Richman and her apparently amazing mother in law for this recipe! :)

If you haven't ever had a kumquat before, it's like a tiny (think cherry tomatoe size), tart orange or tangerine. You eat the entire thing (peel and all) and by itself, is just too tart for me. However, this recipe is SOOOO good! I couldn't stop eating them! First you're hit with the tart and tangy-ness of the kumquat, then the cream cheese acts as a nice smooth buffer and then you get a burst of sweetness and crunch from the pecan. They're easy to make, can be made ahead of time and sure to be a hit at your next summer party.

Ingredients:

Kumquats

Whipped Cream Cheese

Candied Pecans

Directions:

Cut Kumquat lengthwise, put a dallop of cream cheese on it and top it off with a candied pecan. Set out to be enjoyed!

Yup - it's that easy! Enjoy!

Buenos Aires Hearts of Palm Salad

This recipe is from Rachel Ray's magazine "Everyday with Rachel Ray" (Aug 2009, pg 70). For those of you who don't know what hearts of palm is - it's a canned veggie from a certain type of palm tree. The article described it as tasting like artichoke and has the texture of asparargus. It can be found in the canned food section next to canned and jarred artichokes.

This recipe is good and doesn't require a lot of ingredients or prep work. It's great for a BBQ or just a summer night. I did make some changes - so see those below!

Buenos Aires Hearts of Palm Salad
One 14-oz can of hearts of palm - thinly sliced
1 tomatoe - thinly sliced
1 Hass avacado, quartered and thinly sliced
1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)
1 Tbl fresh orange juice
1 Tbl fresh lime juice
Salt and Pepper

On a platter, arrange the hearts of palm, tomatoes and avacado in a single overlapping layer. In a small bowl, whisk together EVOO, orange and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper. Drizzle dressing over the salad.
-----------------------------------

Ok now for my turn. When I was at the store getting hte hearts of palm, Sprouts only had an organic can for $5! Thinking that was rediculous, and knowing that I already had a can of artichoke hearts in my pantry, I skipped out on the main ingredient in this dish and substituted the palm for artichokes. It still tasted great!

An FYI about the EVOO. Man, 1/4 of a cup is A LOT of oil in my opinion. I didn't need that much at all. Not only did I have TONS leftover after I drizzled the dressing over the salad, but I felt like the oil made the dressing......just too oily. Next time, I'm going to use only 2 Tbls of EVOO and then add more if needed. I also salt and peppered it before I dressed the salad - I like salt and pepper directly on my avacado. It worked out fine. I don't know if it would really matter either way.

Try it out sometime and let me know how you like it. If you don't -- blame Rachel. :)

Happy eating!

Cakeball Cupcakes

(Photo courtesy Bakerella)

I made these cute little cupcake cakeballs for Rylee's party. I put one cupcake into a cellophane bag with some M&Ms and tied it with some curling ribbon (my photo is towards the bottom, but it's not the gretest picture). They were A HUGE hit! I mean, I thought they were pretty good, but I kept getting (and still getting) compliments on them! So I thought that I would put the recipe on here.
I first got the idea and recipe from this AMAZING blog: Bakerella (bakerella.blogspot.com)
First, she created these Cakeball Truffles/Red Velvet Cakeballs. Then she figured out a way to make the cakeballs into a cute cupcake style. However, her first way of making the cupcakes was harder than I wanted to try. Finally, she figured out a way to make them MUCH easier. So I tried it and VIOLA it worked perfectly! Oh and she also makes them into pops - by sticking a lollipop into them. SO cute!

The only problem is that although it's not complicated at all do make - it is quite time consuming. Many hands make light work. So if you're going to make these for something, gather some friends, order a pizza and have fun.

Ready?........here we go:

Ingredients:

• 1 box of cake mix (your choice)
• 1 can of frosting (favorite: cream cheese)
• 1-2 packages of chocolate bark or chocolate candy melts (for the bottom)
• 1 package of colored candy melts (for the tops)
• Candy Cup Molds (candy molds for something like Reeses Cup - can be found at a bake shop that sells candy molds) **Hint, if you're making lots of these, buy several molds.
• M&Ms and spinkles for decoration
  

Directions

1. Make the cake according to the box instructions (HINT - cook it on the longer side - you don't want it to be gooey in the middle, you want the cake to be completely cooked). Cool the cake in the fridge for several hours or overnight. Either way, you just want the cake totally cooled.


2. Crumble up the entire cake -- best way to do this is to break it up in larger chunks and giveit a whirl in a food processor. You want it to be fine crumbles. Put into a large bowl.


3. MESSY PART! Using the back of a large spoon or your fingers, mix half to a full can frosting into the crumbled cake. Mix until the cake forms a moist dough. You don't want it too gooey (so add the frosting little by little)but you want the cake to stick together without falling apart.


4. Roll the mixture into quarter size balls and then lay the balls onto a wax paper-lined cookie sheet. Stick in the frudge for an hour or so or the freezer for a couple minutes. You want the balls to be firm but not frozen. (Make approx 50-75 depending on the size)


5. Melt the chocolate for the bottom of the cupcakes according to the package directions. FYI - make sure you don't get ANY water into your chocolate. It'll mess it up. If you need the chocolate to be thinner, you can melt some shortening or veggie oil into it.


6. Using a spoon or squeeze bottle (this is best) fill the candy molds about 2/3 of the way up. Stick a cakeball in each cup so the the chocolate fills up to the top of the mold but doesn't spill over. Pop in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes so the candy hardens.


7. While the molds are hardening up, heat up your colored candy melts and get all the decorations ready. It's best if you put the colored chocolate in a small bowl deep enough so that you can dip the cupcake in it.


8. Take the molds out of the fridge and pop the half chocolate covered cakeball (do this by either gently pushing up on the bottom of each cup or dumping the mold upside down over a dishtowel -- they should fall out easily)



9. Take each cupcake and dip the top of the cakeball into the colored chocolate up to the bottom of the chocolate already on the bottom. Turn right side up and put down on some wax paper (or back on the cookie sheet). Decorate RIGHT AWAY. The chocolate hardens fast. You can put an M&M on the top and then spinkles along the side.
   
   That's it! It's easy once you get the hang of it - but it is a little time consuming.

Here's a photo of my cupcake:

If you want to make the cakeball truffles - you would follow the same instructions except once the cakeballs are firm in the fridge/freezer, use a spoon to dip each one in melted chocolate and then decorate. Let cool on wax paper. Use can dip in one color chocolate, let cool, then put a different color chocolate in a squeeze bottle and make a pretty design on the truffles. I did this with white chocolate covering the cakeball and dark chocolate swirled over each one. They looked pretty!

Italian Sausage Rotini

So I got this recipe from my brother and sister in law who got it from my mother in law. So I guess you can say this is a recipe that has been "passed down". It's easy, pretty quick, kind of fool-proof and uses stuff you may already have in your house (except for the sausage, perhaps) I made it today for a family friend who is battling cancer. I think it's good comfort food too. I actually didn't get to taste it, but Darrin did and said it was good. Plus, I've tasted it when my brother in law made it -- and it was great then too! :) Here we go:


Ingredients:
1 package Italian sausage (hot is best)
1 package Rotini pasta
1 Green bell pepper (or I guess whatever veggies you want to throw in), diced
2 cloves garlic, minced (optional)
1 Jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
Mozzarella cheese (for topping)
Olive Oil (to brown sausage)

Directions:
1. Take sausage out of it's casing
2.. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large, deep skillet. Add sausage meat, and garlic
3. Put on a big pot of salted water for the pasta
4. Brown garlic and sausage meat (while you're waiting for the water)
5. When the water comes to a boil, put in the pasta
6. After the sausage is about browned (about 5-7 minutes) add in diced veggies, let cook about 2-3 minutes
7. Add in your jar of sauce to the skillet and turn heat down to low
8. Let simmer until veggies are soft
9. When pasta is al dente, drain

From here -- you can either add this all to a 9X13 dish, top with cheese and pop it in a 350 degree over for a couple minutes until the cheese is all melted. This is the best option if you're using an electric skillet. OR, if your skillet is deep enough, add the pasta straight into the sauce/sausage/veggie mix, mix in cheese and cover for a minute or so -- until the cheese is melted. Transfer to a serving dish and top with a little more cheese.


**Healthy Options **
IF you want to make this a little healthier - trade in the regular Italian sausage for JennieO Hot Italian Turkey sausage and make with whole wheat Rotini. These are simple changes and it doesn't alter the taste at all. Still REALLY good. Oh, and don't use as much cheese! :)

----------

My ideas for with this dish

Although this is a great Italian dish (really good seved wtih garlic bread and ceasar salad), I think I want to try to go Tex-Mex with it. Mix in some red bell pepper, some olives maybe some carrots. Then serve with cornbread. Yummy, right? Maybe use some kind of hotter spaghetti sauce (maybe something that has jalapenos in it). I also feel like you can just have ground turkey or beef and season it with whatever . Hmmmm.....lots of options for this dish and lots of ways you can take it and play with it to make it your own! Let me know if you try it and how you it turns out!

Crockpot Corned Beef

By Karen Waters
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Corned-Beef-and-Cabbage-3/Detail.aspx


A couple years ago, I was searching for a corned beef recipe to make for St Patty's Day. I ran across this recipe on AllRecipes.com. This is by far the BEST recipe for corned beef. It taste SO good! The only problem is that corned beef can be expensive - so I keep my eye on it and stock up when it goes on sale. It freezes nicely - although I've noticed that if I cooked from frozen, it tastes a little freezer-burnt. So thaw it out first overnight or so.

Here's the recipe - check out my tips and changes below:

INGREDIENTS
1 medium onion, cut into wedges
4 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered (optional)
1 pound baby carrots (optional)
3 cups water
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 (3 pound) corned beef brisket with spice packet, cut in half
1 small head cabbage, cut into wedges (optional)

DIRECTIONS
Place the onion, potatoes and carrots in a 5-qt. slow cooker. Combine water, garlic, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, pepper and contents of spice packet; pour over vegetables. Top with brisket and cabbage. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender. Remove bay leaf before serving.

-----
Ok that was the real recipe and this is how I do it:

Same ingredients expect no carrots, potatoes or cabbage.
Added ingredient - about 2 Tbls brown sugar

Cut onions into wedges and place on bottom of pot. Take the brisket and all it's bloody glory and rub the brown sugar all over. **Make sure to put the sugar in a separate bowl first, then throw out whatever you don't use. Put the brisket, fatty side up, in the pot over the onions. Wash hands. :) Measure the water in a measuring cup and then add the garlic, bay leaf, sugar, vinegar, pepper and contents of spice packet. Stir it up and pour over the brisket. If the brisket isn't covered (mainly) with water, top it off with some more water. Cover and let it cook for 8+ hours on low. Serve with some mustard.

--------------
Tips:

1. I put "optional" by the carrots, potatoes and cabbage. I do not put those in the crockpot. I've noticed that if I put all the stuff in one pot, it all tastes the same. So I just cook the beef and whip up the carrot and potatoes by themselves as a side dish.
2. I just have crushed bay leaves -- not whole. So I put in a good teaspoon or two. It works just fine.
3. I love onions so if it's a small onion - I'll use 2. you can play around with the type of onion too - mahalo sweet onions are a good choice along with just regular yellow onions.
4. I don't cut the brisket in half - unless it can't all fit in my crockpot.

Crockpoting

I LOVE to crockpot. I really think that it's one of the greatest inventions ever created. Seriously - you just throw in meat (frozen or fresh) along with some kind of liquid (whether that be a soup, or salsa, soda, broth.....whatever) and BAM in as little as 4 hours or as long as 12, you got a meal. It's the perfect contraption for anyone that doesn't want a lot of prep time or for a family that works and wants dinner practically made when they walk through the door. Really, anyone CAN cook with one of these. It's practically fool proof! So either run out and get yourself one, or break it out from the back closet. It'll soon become your favorite gadget in the kitchen!

Spaghetti Carbonara

Spaghetti Carbonara
From Lifetime's "Cook Yourself Thin"
http://www.mylifetime.com/on-tv/shows/cook-yourself-thin/recipes/spaghetti-carbonara


Serves 4
Calories per serving: 412
Calories per serving garlic bread: 78

For the spaghetti
3 slices bacon
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1/3 cup low-fat (1-percent) milk
1 large egg
8 ounces spaghetti
1 cup frozen peas
1 1/2 ounces Parmesan cheese, finely grated (6 tablespoons)
1/4 cup sliced fresh flat-leaf parsley
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste

For garlic bread
1 whole-grain baguette, sliced
1/2 garlic clove
Olive oil
Chopped basil

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, turning occasionally until browned and crisp, about 6 minutes. Drain pan and dry bacon on paper towels; keep the skillet on the heat. Add the oil and onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened and translucent, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. Whisk together the milk and egg in a large serving bowl until well combined. Stir in the onion.

3. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add spaghetti, and cook according to the directions on the package.

4. While pasta is cooking, slice baguette thinly on bias. Place slices on sheet pan. Lightly rub with flat side of garlic clove, and brush on a little olive oil and sprinkle basil. Place into oven on top rack for 5 to 7 minutes, until golden.

5. Two minutes before the spaghetti is done, stir in the peas. Drain and immediately transfer to the milk mixture. Toss until the pasta is well-coated. Add the cheese, parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and toss well. Crumble the bacon into small pieces over the spaghetti, and toss. Serve immediately.

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Ok -- this one was ...pretty good.
1. A little bland - so I needed to add more salt and pepper. I also think that next time I'll sautee up some garlic with the onions for a little flavor kick.
2. After you cook the bacon, drain the excess fat off (I did it in a little bowl to cool and then toss) but don't wash the pan or anything. When you cook the onions - you want that extra flavor from the bacon that's still in the pan.
3. I didn't do the garlic bread because I had garlic bread that I bought on sale from the grocery store. BUT sometimes when I do the whole "rub bread with garlic" trick it doesn't really work right. Instead, I use some garlic powder. So brush with olive oil first, then garlic powder, then the basil.
4. I didn't have peas, but I did have broccoli. So I used that and it worked just fine. I added fresh broccoli to the pasta pot about a minute before it was done(so after about 5-6 minutes of cooking) and it was perfect.
5. Again, me and the whole "I need protein with my pasta" thing. I sautee'd up Keilbasa and served with it. Pretty good. Chicken or shrimp would have worked too.
6. The sauce. I was really afraid the heat from the pasta would scramble the egg/milk mixture in the bowl. But it didn't!! I drained the pasta and let it sit there for a second as I got out the bread and plated it. Then I poured the pasta/broccoli into the bowl and started mixing. Just like the directions say -- it turned into a creamy texture. I was really surprised and REALLY happy!

Penne alla Not-Ka

Penne Alla Not-Ka
From the show "Cook Yourself Thin"

http://www.mylifetime.com/on-tv/shows/cook-yourself-thin/recipes/penne-alla-not-ka

This is the low cal version of the dish "Penne alla Vodka" and let me tell you, it was GOOOOOOD. Not just "oh this is really good for being healthy" -- I mean GOOD! It was a little spicy but I loved that about it. The recipe calls for only a half a bag of pasta for 4 servings, which at first, I laughed and said, "That's how they got the calories so low -- you can have like 4 noodles each!" But surprisingly, this made enough for 3 people and 2 lunches. However, I also served garlic bread and a salad -- so that helped with the portion sizes too (and brought the enitre meal's calorie count up). This would be really good to make someone who's sick or something. A good "take to someone's house" dish.

Here's the recipe and then under it - I'll tell you my changes.



Serves 4
Calories per serving: 371

2 teaspoons olive oil, plus extra for serving
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup chopped red onion
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes or whole tomatoes in juice, pureed in a food processor
Pinch red pepper flakes
8 ounces penne
1/4 cup heavy cream
6 tablespoons evaporated nonfat milk
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup shredded fresh basil
1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil for the penne.

2. In a large saucepan, heat the 2 teaspoons oil with the garlic over low heat until the garlic begins to brown, about 3 minutes. Add the onion and 1/4 teaspoon salt, cover, and cook until the onion is softened, about 2 more minutes. Add the tomato, 1/2 teaspoon salt and the red pepper flakes. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat and simmer very gently 10 minutes. Stir in the cream and evaporated milk and simmer 1 more minute.

3. Meanwhile, after the sauce has cooked 5 minutes, add the penne to the boiling water and cook until just shy of al dente, about 6 minutes. Drain, reserving about 1/2 cup pasta water. Add the drained penne to the saucepan and simmer until the penne is al dente, 1 to 2 minutes, adding a little of the pasta cooking water if the mixture is dry. Stir in 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, along with the basil and black pepper.

4. To serve, divide pasta among 4 serving bowls. Drizzle each serving with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil, and sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan.


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I bascially follwed the recipe to a T. Here's a couple tips and changes that I made ( which also up'd the calorie count, do beware of that)
1. I LOVE garlic and the cloves I had were on the smaller side- so I used 5 cloves, not just 3. Which probably attributed to the spiciness.
2. I didn't measure out the onions - I just did a half a red onion and that was perfect.
3. Basil -- first off - USE FRESH BASIL. It's like $2 at the grocery store and makes ALLLLL the difference in dishes. Secondly, I didnt' measure out the basil either - I just picked 5 or 6 good size leaves and cut them up to add in. Reserve a little bit and garnish each dish with it at the end. The heat will brown the leaves a little when you add it to the pasta -- so some pretty green on top looks nice.
4. I have a wierd thing of just eating pasta without protein - so I added some grilled chicken. That was good but probably not even needed. The dish offered up a lot of flavor and the penne is pretty hearty, so next time I'm going to exnay the chicken.

Cook Yourself Thin

This is my newest obession -- Lifetime's show called "Cook Yourself Thin" -- I LOVE IT!

It's not really a new idea of cooking TV. Take one woman who wants to loose weight and 3 cute little, skinny chefs and show woman #1 how to loose a dress size in 6 weeks. Pretty Basic....... but I can't get enough.

This show reaffirms another "firm belief" that I have. Which is cooking doesn't have to be fattening. You don't have to use gobs of butter or fattening oils to make something taste good. That you can make simple changes to almost any dish to make it healthier and just as good. I just don't know all those tricks and LOVE that this show gives 'em to me! I'll be making a lot of their meals and letting you all know how I like 'em and what...most likely, changes I made to them.

About Me and this Blog

So here's the scoop -- I have a passion for food. I love to cook and I love making all different kinds of recipes. The problem is that once the meal is done, I usually throw away the recipe just to think back several weeks or months later and say "What was that one dish??" So in hopes of actually repeating dishes that I like, I decided to make this blog to store all my favorite recipes - on online cookbook if you will. Really, this is just suppose to be for my reference only, but I recently realized that maybe some other people would like to try out other, new recipes too -- and if someone else has tried it first, they're more willing to take the plunge and whip out their sautee pan. So if that's you - be my guest in trying these recipes. Let me be the first to say though - I'm not this grand chef, I wouldn't even call myself a "cook". I'm just a girl who loves to make food for my family and friends (and myself!!) None of these recipes are my own and I always will try to give credit where credit is due.

I guess though, if other people are going to be reading this - I should say a little about me. So here we go.

I'm a (mainly) stay at home mom to wonderful little girl, Rylee, and an incredible husband, Darrin (or normally referred to as "D"). We've been married for almost 3 years (together for 8) and I can honestly say that I absolutely LOVE being his wife. I also love to cook and take the old fashion "honey can I make you something?" route. And good thing for me - D will eat just about anything if there's bread and it doesn't come from an MRE. So it works out on both our ends.

I have some firm beliefs when it comes to cooking.
1. I really believe that anyone can cook. I hate hearing people say "I can't cook" -- if you can follow a directions, you can cook. And if you can't - then please go and see my best friend who's a 3rd grade teacher. She may have some pointers for you. Eh...scratch that -- maybe even kindergarten.

2. I think that many people, in regards to the kitchen, are just scared of failing. That their dish won't turn out good or they'll poisen someone or whatever. Or, worse, that if they make a dish and it doesn't turn out good - then they'll never make that dish again. This is one area I am not. I dont' really mind thinking that I'll fail and kind of like the "thrill" of wondering how the dish will turn out. Sometimes, it's good - sometimes it's not so good and other times it's just plain BAD. But either way, chauk it up to a learning experience, give it to the dog, and order a pizza. You can try again tomorrow.

3. I also firmly believe that people are lazy, myself included. I won't normally make something that will take all day to cook (unless it's in a crockpot). Yea right. If I can't do it in an hour or less it's not hittin' my stove. Furthermore, I really like to try and make recipes that are easy to do and taste GOOD. The truth is - homemade food can be quick and easy and doesn't require a degree from Le Cordon Bleu. IT can also cost a lot less than going out to eat and be much healthier for you (although let's be honest, who doesn't like going out to eat?). But we're a lazy bunch of beings and many times don't want to make the effort to dirty some dishes or make a grocery list. But I say that's okay! And that a good meal doesn't have to require a lot of prep work.

These beliefs are another reason I'm making this blog. Because sometimes, just having someone else that has actually made the dish and can say "I did this" or "don't do that" or whatever takes the pressure off of someone. And if I can turn a "I can't cook-er" to a "hunny let me try out this new recipe for you!" -- then my job is done.
So take the plunge and join me in this fun, tasty ride in the kitchen. :)