Thanksgiving!

What a FANTASTIC meal we had this year. Honestly the best I have ever had, hands down. Every single thing was made completely from scratch and the flavors went together so well. It was divine!

I was in charge of one of the turkeys, dressing, mashed potatoes, Brussels Sprouts, gravy and dessert. I got my inspiration this year from Bobby Flay and The Pioneer Woman's Thanksgiving Throwdown. Mike and I were drooling over the food so I chose the dishes that looked the best from the episode and replaced my normal recipes for these recipes. It was a GREAT decision!!
Mike did the turkey on the green egg, so I wont post that, its self explanatory!

The dressing I decided to make was SO FABULOUS! It was my favorite of the new recipes! It would go so well with a pork tenderloin for a nice meal. Sooooo delicious!!

Sourdough, Wild Mushroom and Bacon Dressing
by Bobby Flay

1 1/4 pounds sourdough bread, crusts trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 12 cups)
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stems removed, coarsely chopped
1/2 pound oyster mushrooms, coarsely chopped
1/2 pound cremini mushrooms, thinly sliced
4 tablespoons canola oil, divided
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3/4 pound slab bacon, cut into 1/2-inch dice
1 large Spanish onion, finely diced
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 to 5 cups homemade chicken stock or low sodium canned chicken broth
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh sage
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the bread onto a large baking sheet (or 2 smaller baking sheets) in an even layer and bake, stirring a few times, until lightly golden brown, about 12 minutes. Remove and let cool. Once cooled, put the cubes into a very large bowl.

Increase the heat to 375 degrees F. Combine the mushrooms in a large baking dish or baking sheet, toss with 3 tablespoons of the oil, and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven, stirring several times, until soft and golden brown, about 25 minutes.

While the mushrooms are roasting, heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of the canola oil in a large high-sided saute pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and the fat has rendered, about 10 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon to a plate lined with paper towels. (At this point, I threw the bacon out. I didn't want the bacon in there, just the drippings for the flavor!)

Remove all but 2 tablespoons of the rendered fat in the saute pan and place back on the stove over high heat. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add 3 cups of the chicken stock and the herbs, season with salt and pepper, and bring to a simmer.

Add the mushrooms to the bread, and then add the onion/stock mixture, egg, salt and pepper, and gently stir until combined. The dressing should be very wet, add more stock as needed. Scrape the mixture into a buttered 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil, and continue baking until the top is golden brown, about 30 to 40 minutes longer. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

I chose Pioneer Woman's mashed potatoes. First of all, they can be made ahead because after you mash them, you bake them....which makes serving them very easy! Second, there were so many fattening ingredients in them that I knew a) they had to be good and b) I would never make these normally! :) It was also a great choice. So very good!

Mashed Potatoes
by Ree Drummond

5 pounds Yukon gold or russet potatoes
1 1/2 sticks softened butter, plus more for baking
1 1/2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Milk, if needed, for thinning

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Peel the potatoes and rinse them in cold water. Chop the potatoes in fourths. Place the potatoes into a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until fork tender, 20 to 25 minutes.

Drain the potatoes, and then return them to the pan. With the burner on low heat, mash the potatoes with a potato masher; the more steam that's released while you mash, the better. Mash for about 5 minutes. Turn off the burner.

Add the butter, cream cheese, half-and-half, and seasonings. Stir to combine, and if the mixture needs thinning, add milk. Check the seasonings, adding salt and pepper, to taste.

Pour the mashed potatoes into a large casserole pan. Dot the surface with butter. Cover with foil and bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 10 more minutes. Serve immediately.

The next recipe I decided on was Bobby Flay's Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranates and Vanilla-Pecan Butter. It didn't seem like my type of dish to be honest, but all the guests on the show were raving about them so I thought I would give them a try. They made a nice addition to the plate because of their slightly sweet but tart flavor. It broke up all that rich food! They were good, but I still prefer just roasted, salted ones!

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Pomegranates and Vanilla-Pecan Butter
by Bobby Flay

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
1/4 cup toasted pecans, chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed
3 tablespoons canola oil
3 tablespoons pomegranate molasses
Seeds from 1 pomegranate
1 lime, finely zested
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest

Combine the butter and vanilla bean seeds in a small bowl. Fold in the pecans and season with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the Brussels sprouts in a medium roasting pan and toss with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in the oven until lightly golden brown, 20 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven, add the pomegranate molasses and stir to combine. Return to the oven and cook until just tender, about 10 minutes longer.

Transfer the sprouts to a large bowl, add the pomegranate seeds and lime and orange zests. Transfer to a platter and top with some of the Vanilla-Pecan butter.

The last recipe I used was Bobby Flay's Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce and Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise. It looked so good on the show, and I LOVE Bread Pudding, so I had my heart set on it. After reading the recipe though, I nearly changed my mind! Wow, there were so many steps! Not that I mind, but since I had a lot of other things to do, I almost saved this for another occasion, but as I said...I had my heart set on it so I couldn't wait to try it. It was very easy to make, just time consuming. I honestly can't even give it a good review because the caramel sauce got throw away during dinner clean up! The cleaner-upper thought it was gravy (It was similar in color) so it got dumped. Since that flavor was 1/3 of the recipe, I can't give this a fair review. The apple/caramel flavor would have changed the flavor completely! It was still good, but I think it would have been A LOT better with that tart apple flavor. Oh well, ill just have to make it again! ;)

Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce and Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise
by Bobby Flay

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
6 large egg yolks
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 cup pure canned pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons bourbon
Pumpkin Bread, toasted and cubed, recipe follows
Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise, recipe follows
Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce, recipe follows
Freshly whipped cream

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Combine the cream, milk, vanilla bean and seeds in a small saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer.

Whisk together the yolks, sugar, maple syrup, and pumpkin puree in a large bowl. Slowly whisk in the hot cream mixture until combined, remove the vanilla pod, and whisk in the bourbon. Strain the custard into a clean bowl.

Scatter the pumpkin bread cubes in a buttered 9 by 13-inch baking glass baking dish. Pour the custard over the bread, pressing down on the bread to totally submerge it in the custard. Let sit for 15 minutes to allow the bread to soak up some of the custard.

Place the pan in a larger roasting pan and pour hot tap water into the roasting pan until it comes half way up the sides of the glass dish. Bake until the sides are slightly puffed and the center jiggles slightly, about 1 hour.

Remove from the oven and water bath and cool on a baking rack for at least 30 minutes before serving.

Spoon some of the Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise into a shallow bowl, top with some of the bread pudding and drizzle with the Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce. Top with freshly whipped cream. Bread pudding is best served warm.

Pumpkin Bread:
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
8 ounces (scant 1 cup) canned unsweetened pumpkin puree
2 large eggs
2/3 cup water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter or lightly spray the bottom and sides of a 9-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.

Whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves in a small bowl.

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the 4 tablespoons softened butter, sugar, and oil at high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute, scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl a few times.

Add the pumpkin puree and mix until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until just incorporated. At low speed, slowly add the flour mixture and water and mix until just combined. Spread the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 60 to 75 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a baking rack for 10 minutes. Remove from the pan and let cool completely.

Once the bread is cool, slice in half lengthwise, and then slice each half into 1/2-inch cubes. Spread the cubes on a large baking sheet and bake in a 325 degree oven until lightly toasted, turning once, about 20 minutes. Let cool.

Vanilla Bean Creme Anglaise:
2 cups half-and-half
1/2 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
5 large egg yolks
1/3 cup pure cane sugar

Bring the half-and-half and vanilla bean and seeds to a simmer in a medium saucepan.

Whisk together the yolks and sugar in a medium bowl until at the pale ribbon stage. Slowly whisk in the hot half-and-half, return the mixture to the pot, and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture coats the back of the spoon. Strain into a bowl and set over an ice bath. Stir until chilled. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour before serving.

Spicy Caramel Apple Sauce:
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup apple juice
1 star anise
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
4 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon apple schnapps

Combine the cream, apple juice, star anise, ginger, cloves, cinnamon sticks, and nutmeg in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat and let steep for at least 20 minutes. Strain the mixture into a clean, small saucepan and place back over low heat while you make the caramel.

Combine the sugar, water and, vinegar in a medium saucepan over high heat and cook without stirring, until it's a deep amber color, about 8 minutes. Slowly whisk in the warm cream mixture a little at a time, and continue whisking until smooth. Add the apple schnapps and cook for 30 seconds longer. Transfer to a bowl and keep warm. The sauce can be made 2 days in advance and refrigerated. Reheat over low heat before serving.


See? WOW....a LOT of steps. But good!

Now....in the process of making a Turkey and Andouille Sausage Gumbo with our Thanksgiving leftovers. So far our house is smelling fabulous. Check for recipe tomorrow! ;)

Clean out the fridge and pantry week

So this week was "clean out the fridge and pantry" week. One day was Shephard's Pie and another day was Steak Enchiladas. Both of these meals were made 100% from items from the fridge/freezer or using leftovers! And they were both so delicious!! I threw both of them together and they were both very good. Here's what I did...

Shepherd's Pie

1 - 1.5 lbs ground beef
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
Butter for saute...a couple T. (I used a spoonful of yogurt butter)
1 onion, diced
A big handful of baby carrots, diced
1-2 C. frozen peas (or corn or both...)
1/2 - 1 C. of beef broth (or more if necessary)
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Mashed potatoes (however you make them...we just had some leftover in the fridge)

Saute the onion and carrots over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until soft. Add meat and beans and cook until meat is no longer pink. Drain fat if necessary, then add peas, salt and pepper, Worcestershire and beef broth. Cook over low heat for about 10 minutes. Add more beef broth if you need to to keep it moist.

Place mixture in baking dish and top with mashed potatoes. If you're really fancy you can make marks/peaks in it with a fork so they will brown pretty. I didn't do that....I guess I'm not fancy. ;)

Cook at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes until bubbly and brown. If you're really, REALLY fancy you can broil for the last 5 minutes so your peaks will be nice and brown. DELISH!!



Although this looks like something Sixer may have thrown up, I assure you it doesn't taste like it. I really do love this. It is comfort food to the max. My kids seriously gobbled it up and Jacob said it was his "new favorite dinner". ENJOY!!


The very next night, I decided I needed to do something with all the steak that was left over from Mikes birthday dinner. I also had a bunch of cilantro left from when I made the teachers at P&E's school Deer Valley Turkey Chili that was about to go bad. And I had several packs of corn tortillas, because if you've ever looked in my meat drawer you know that on any given day I have 287534 packs of cheese, and even more packs of tortillas.

So, Steak "Enchiladas" it was! (Put in quotes because I made it in casserole form. I didn't feel like rolling enchiladas! But you could if you wanted.) Here's how I put them together....

Steak Enchiladas

About 2 lbs steak (I used sirloin, but you can use flank steak or any steak for that matter), cut into a 1/2 inch dice
1 small onion, diced
about 1/2 C. chopped cilantro
2 C. Monterrey jack cheese, shredded & divided
1/2 C. green salsa
16 corn tortillas
1 C. light sour cream
splash of milk
1 bunch cilantro
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded..(I roasted mine in the oven before seeding)
1 T. cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Saute steak in a small amount of oil until just heated. Add onion and cilantro and cook until onions begin to soften (about 5-10 mins). Remove from heat and add salsa and 1 C. cheese. Stir well and set aside.

Make cilantro sour cream sauce by adding the roasted, seeded jalapeno and the entire bunch of cilantro to a food processor. Pulse until combined and shredded. Add sour cream and splash of milk (to thin it) to a saucepan over medium low heat. Heat until it stars to smoke and then add cilantro/jalapeno mixture and cumin. Season with salt and pepper if necessary.

Spray a 9X13 pan with no stick cooking spray and then line with 8 tortillas. Pour steak mixture over the tortillas and top with remaining 8 tortillas. Pour sour cream sauce over the top and the top with remaining cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and the edges have started to bubble.

Seriously yummy! Mike said "I cant wait for you to make this again!" And the children devoured it as well.

Deer Valley Turkey Chili

So, over 10 years ago (OMWow....cant believe its been that long...), Mike and I and a bunch of friends went to Utah to ski. One day we went to Deer Valley to ski and when we ate lunch, we got the pleasure of having their famous Turkey Chili. Man was it good!

I have thought about that chili for a long time, so I found a copy cat recipe online and made it for our Halloween get-together. Yummo!

Deer Valley Turkey Chili

Ingredients:
2 cups dried black beans, rinsed or 2 cans black beans (rinsed and drained)(I used canned)
10 cups water
1 tsp pepper
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 medium Anaheim chilies, seeded, chopped
2/3 cup chopped red onion
2/3 cup chopped red bell pepper
2/3 cup chopped celery
1 large leek (white part only), chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tbsp oregano
1/4 cup flour
2 1/2 tbsp chili powder
2 1/2 tbsp ground cumin
2 tbsp coriander
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp sugar
5 cups chicken stock or canned broth
2 1/4 cups frozen corn, thawed
4 cups diced cooked turkey (I used a rotisserie turkey breast)

grated cheese
chopped red onion
sour cream
chopped fresh cilantro
Fritos

Directions:
If using dried beans - Place black beans in large pot with enough cold water to cover by three inches. Let soak overnight. Drain beans. Return to pot. Add 10 cups water and pepper and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until beans are tender, stirring occasionally, about 1 1/2 hours. Drain beans and set aside. If using canned beans, start with the following paragraph (the veggies) and add beans later.

Melt butter in same pot over medium heat. Add Anaheim chilies, chopped onion, celery, bell pepper, leek, garlic and oregano. Cook until vegetables often, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low. Add flour, chili powder, cumin, coriander, salt and sugar and cook 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Add 4 cups stock and bring to simmer, stirring frequently. Puree 1 1/4 cups corn with remaining 1/2 cup stock in processor. Add puree to chili. Mix in black beans, turkey and remaining 1 cup corn. Simmer chili 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Ladle chili into bowls. Serve; passing toppings separately.

Crawfish Chowder

A fall staple in our house is this Crawfish Chowder. It is SOOO easy and so very good!

Potato, Corn and Crawfish Chowder
Serves 20

1 stick butter (I used yogurt butter)
1 onion, diced
1 T. garlic, chopped
1 T. cumin
2 lbs. crawfish tails
1 C. flour
1 quart chicken stock
1 C. tomato paste
1 quart heavy cream (I used no fat half & half)
2 C. potatoes, diced and blanched
3 C. fresh corn
1 C. green onions, chopped
Salt to taste
Pepper to taste
Cayenne to taste
¼ C. sherry
The juice of ½ lemon
**add 1 T. or more of Tony’s Seasoning

Melt butter in a heavy bottom soup pot. Sauté the onions and garlic until they are a little bit soft and then add cumin and crawfish tails briefly. Stir in the flour completely and stir constantly for a few minutes(to eliminate the flour-y taste). Then add the tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly for a few minutes more. Add the stock slowly, stirring continuously. The add the heavy cream (or half in half in my case). Bring to a boil and immediately reduce to a simmer. You need to watch carefully while bringing it to a boil because if it boils too fast and rapidly it will curdle. It will still taste great, but it will look grainy and separated. Add the potatoes and corn and cook for 30 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and season to taste.

This is a Tim Creehan recipe and it is DELICIOUS!!! And not too bad for you either (as long as you use the no fat half & half). I did 3/4 of the recipe so we could eat on it for a few days. You don't need to do the whole thing unless you are having a houseful....because it makes so much! But it definitely warms the soul. Add a little hot sauce at cooking time and you are good to go. Yum!!

Red Potato and Tomato Salad

I made this potato salad for a get together last weekend and it was DELISH! Much better (in my opinion) than a mayonnaise based potato salad. I served it with burgers and Tri Colo Orzo. YUMM-O!!

Red Potato and Tomato Salad

3 pounds baby red potatoes, halved (or quartered depending on the size)
2 pint (4 cups) cherry tomatoes, halved
1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced
1 cup pitted black olives, halved
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
6 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained
3 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 large lemons, zested
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Add the potatoes to a medium saucepan with enough cold water to cover by at least 2 inches. Set the saucepan over medium heat. Bring the water to a boil and continue boiling until the potatoes are tender, about 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes in a colander and allow them to dry for 5 minutes.

In a serving bowl, add the potatoes, tomatoes, scallions, olives, parsley, capers, thyme, olive oil, and lemon zest. Toss gently until all the ingredients are coated and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Refrigerate for 1 hour and gently toss again before serving.

Banana Barbie!

Yesterday my baby turned 2. *sobs*

Let's not dwell on the fact that I will never have a baby nuzzled up in my neck again, or the fact that my 2-going-on-5 year old is already super divalicious, or the fact that the doctor yesterday at her check up suggested I get her into her own bed and take away her paci.

No, let's not dwell on those depressing things. Instead let's talk about how fun it is to play Barbies, shall we?

Girlfriend is OBSESSED with Barbies! Which is different for me because I never played with Barbies. I played with baby dolls and other things of the sort, but not Barbies. And at 2?? Aren't Barbie accessories too small for 2 year olds? But she insists and when I take her to the toy aisle, that's where she goes. So I have to face it, my life is Barbie right now.

So naturally I asked the baby Diva what kind of cake she wanted...thinking I was just talking to hear myself talk since no way at 2 she would have an idea of what kind of cake she wanted (I must have forgotten which 2 year old I was talking about). Her reply? "BARBIE!!"

So I used the banana cake recipe which is super simple and I knew she liked. I doubled the recipe. Made the regular 2 layer cake on bottom with 8 inch pans. Then baked 2 6 inch layers. The 6 inch layers, I iced the middle, shaved it to look like a skirt and then crumb coated it. The stacked it on top of the 8 inch layers and iced the whole thing. At the end....stuck a Barbie in the middle! It wasn't the best, but Eden was OH SO EXCITED! And wow was it ever easy.....

So....ta-da! Barbie cake. :) Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Anyone who knows me (which I am sure is everyone here reading....since I am only a famous food blogger in the land of nobody. And I am not calling you nobody....just pointing out that I am no Pioneer Woman and to my knowledge, no one really cares what I am cooking), knows I LOVE Chocolate Chip Cookies.

They are like, my favorite food in the entire world. Like if I was on a desert island and could only choose one food to bring, Chocolate Chip Cookies would be it. If I was on death row I would choose them for my last meal. Additionally, I absolutely CANNOT go to the mall without getting a Chocolate Chip Cookie. I mean, why else do you go to the mall? Also I hide them from my children in the house so they won't eat them. After all, the cookies are not for them, they are for me.

I have most certainly inherited this trait from my mother, and my brother shares the gene also. We have successfully passed the cookie love to our spouses, who now love them also. Mike used to say he hates sweets, and Laura used to claim she hated cookies. Now? Notsomuch. They are all as obsessed as we are.

Annnnnnd now I am starting to sound a little deranged. I don't want to make babies with cookies, but I love them an almost equivalent amount and they are most definitely my vice. If I did not eat cookies, I would very well look like this:



which is one of the very few pictures I have of myself when I was very ill and weighed 25 pounds less than I weigh now. You can't really tell but I looked so bad. My arm? Skinny. GROSS.

Anywho, cookies keep me sane, healthy and happy. And that's all that matters in this life right?

So here's a very yummy cookie recipe from my cousin's friend Annie. Thanks Annie for the cookies....YUM! And Happy Birthday!

Annie's Chocolate Chip Cookies

12 T. butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 t. vanilla
3 cups all purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/2 bag semi sweet chocolate chip cookies

Preheat oven to 350. Cream the butter and the sugars until fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine dry ingredients and add them to egg mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Roll into balls (this is important) and place on cookie sheet. Bake until golden brown. (Set the timer for 10 minutes and check them little by little after that if they need more time. Take them out juuuuuust when they are getting a teeny bit brown on top.



Enjoy!

Watermelon Margaritas

It's summertime. Wine gets hot quickly and beer makes you feel like a bloated cow. Super sweet fruity drinks give me a tummy ache and I don't want a 'stiff' drink either. Usually a go-to drink for me is vodka/soda/lime or a vodka tonic (who doesn't like this in the summer!??). But recently, my aunt Ebby told me she made some Watermelon margaritas and that sounded just fabulous. I had some leftover watermelon so I mixed up a batch and WOW were they ever good. Plus, they were pretty "skinny" since I didn't have to use any sour mix, nor sugar. Score! I also like this because the frozen watermelon is the only chilling agent; there is not any ice to dilute it and water it down. YUM!

Watermelon Margaritas

1 watermelon cubed, (about 5 cups)
1 C. tequila
1/2 C. triple sec
5-6 limes, juiced
1 squeeze Agave nectar (you could use 1/4-1/3 C. sugar if you don't have this or can't find any. Agave is just a lot better for you!)

Cube watermelon and freeze overnight. Add frozen watermelon and all other ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Can be made ahead of time and kept in a Ziploc until ready to use. If it is too thick when it is time to serve, add a little bit of Perrier and you should be good to go.

DELISH!!


(not my pic, these went way too fast to get a good picture :))

Banana Cake

Ok, this is for you Ty. Or should I say Laura, since you will most likely be the one to actually prepare the cake...while Ty will most likely be the one to *eat* the cake.

We made this cake when Ty came to play work here last week. Although it was only two days, we had a blast with him here and it was yet another reminder of how far away they are. Boo hiss! :( Anyway, he LOVED the cake so I thought I'd share. It is one of those cakes that starts with a box mix so it is sooo easy and sooo good! Seriously the way everyone carried on about it, you would have thought I had slaved in the kitchen all day! Not the case at all. So here goes!



Banana Cake

1 package (18 1/4 ounces) plain yellow cake mix
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 ripe medium-size bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 13-by-9-inch baking pan (or 2 - 9 inch cake pans) with shortening, and dust with flour. Shake out excess flour. (I used Pam cooking spray)

Place cake mix, brown sugar and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Add mashed bananas, 1 cup water, oil, eggs and, if desired, liqueur. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed 1 minute. Stop mixer and scrape down side of bowl with rubber spatula. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed until well blended, scraping side again if needed. Pour into prepared pan(s), and place on center rack of oven.

Bake until top is lightly browned and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 40 minutes (for the 2 cake pans, I'd start checking them at about 20 minutes and increase the time from there. I think I cooked for 30 minutes and they were a tad bit overdone for my taste). Remove from oven, and cool on a wire rack.


Banana Cream Cheese Frosting

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) butter, at room temperature
2ish cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 t. banana extract
1/2 t. vanilla extract (if you can't find banana, you can just use 1 full teaspoon of vanilla)

Place cream cheese and butter in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until combined. Add confectioners' sugar a bit at a time, and blend on low speed until well incorporated, 1 minute. Add flavoring, and blend at medium speed until fluffy, 1 minute more.

Use at once to frost top of cake.

*I also topped the cake with chopped walnuts, but that was only for looks. I kept it in the fridge also, only because I am only on a cold cake kick right now. Cold cake with cold milk = heaven.

(the cake was gone before I got a picture of it; it only lasted 2 days! So I swiped one from google. It looks amazingly similar!)

Grilled Jerk Shrimp over Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Black Eyed Pea Salsa and Chipotle Sour Cream

Yesterday I took the kids to a friends house to swim. We got home around 2:30 and I put Eden down for a nap. Jacob stayed behind at the friends house, so the only person awake in the house besides me was Parker. I turned on a movie for him in my bed and he was down to rest for a few hours.

So what to do with myself.....but cook!?? I have not been to the grocery store since BEFORE we left for San Diego (which was on June 4th!!) besides once just to pick up some lunch meat, bread and milk. So basically I had NOTHING in the house. But I really wanted to cook!

I opened the pantry, the fridge, the freezer to search for anything I may have that I could make a decent meal out of. I had 2 bags of frozen shrimp. Ok, I can work with that. I had 3 large sweet potatoes in the fruit basket that I had bought before I left that we never used. They weren't sprouting yet, so they'll do too. I also had lots of frozen veggies. But what the heck do you make with shrimp and sweet potatoes and some random bags of frozen veggies?

My first thought was a chowder. I knew I had some frozen corn, chicken broth and some skim milk, so I could do something with that. But really, who wants chowder when it's 100 degrees out?

Then I thought I would put together a marinade for the shrimp, grill them and make sweet potato fries (which my family LOVES). But then that wouldn't solve my boredom and desire to cook.....so I started brainstorming...and here's what I came up with.

Grilled Jerk Shrimp over Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Black Eyed Pea Salsa and Chipotle Sour Cream

Jerk Seasoning

1 T. dried minced onion
1 T. onion powder
1 T. garlic powder
4 t. dried thyme leaves
2 t. salt
2 t. ground allspice
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. ground cinnamon
2 t. ground black pepper
1/2 t. ground chipotle chile powder
1/2 t. cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients and blend well. Store in a covered container.

Grilled Jerk Shrimp

2 lbs. large shrimp (fresh or frozen), peeled and de-veined with tails on
4 T. jerk seasoning
4 T. vegetable oil
Wooden skewers, soaked on water for one hour prior to grilling.

Combine jerk seasoning and oil. Rub onto shrimp and refrigerate for one hour. Thread shrimp onto skewers. Grill on medium heat just until shrimp turns pink; do not overcook!

Mashed Sweet Potatoes

3 large sweet potatoes
Yogurt butter (or regular if you prefer)
Skim Milk
Salt and Pepper

Peel and chunk sweet potatoes. Add to a pot of salted, boiling water and boil until you can pierce with a fork. Drain and return to pot. Add a few splashes of milk and a scoop of butter. Mash with potato masher (I don't like beaters for mashed potatoes...I like them a little bit chunky). Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Black Eyed Pea Salsa

1 small bag frozen black eyed peas (or you could used 2 cans, drained and rinsed)
1/4 C. frozen mirepiox (this is all I had in the house. You could just do a couple T. each of diced onion and diced green pepper)
3 T. diced pickled jalapenos and a few whole sliced ones tossed in.
1 T. pure maple syrup
1/2 t. dried thyme
2 T. white vinegar
1 T. vegetable oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Add black eyed peas to a pot of water. Bring to a boil for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to simmer for 40 minutes. Drain and cool. In a bowl, toss all ingredients. Refrigerate for several hours in advance to allow flavors to blend.

Then finally for the chipolte sour cream, I just added some chipolte Tabasco to some light sour cream. Put in in a squirt bottle and drizzled it over the top.



So how was the creation? Pretty good! The shrimp were pretty darn spicy so next time I would either cut down the cayenne pepper to 1/4 t. or just simply add cilantro to the top to cool it down. Or just maybe plain sour cream as opposed to the spicier chipolte. But all in all I was proud of my creation and had a fun afternoon preparing it!

Bon Appetit!

Birthday Cake!!

Parker's birthday party was yesterday (pics can be seen on The Journey to Eden).

I decided to make his superhero cake. The cake itself is not from scratch (I know, I know....but it was for kids and they don't care. Plus the decorating was time consuming so I didn't have time to make the cake and the frosting on top of it. Sorry!) He wanted chocolate, so I did the top and bottom layer chocolate and the middle layer white. Just to spruce it up, I tie-dyed it so it would look "rainbow". They thought rainbow cake was pretty cool! I just divided the batter into 5 bowls and used food coloring to color them. Then I poured them in and ran a fork around in circles to swirl it.



I used a 10 inch squares for the bottom layers (each tier has 2 layers each), 9 inch circles for the middle layer and 6 inch circles for the top layer. I baked the cakes, let them all cool and them wrapped them in Saran wrap to put in the fridge to be iced the next day. It is a lot easier to ice a cold, firm cake than a room-temperature soft cake! I also put a cake board under each of the tiers so the cake wouldn't sink. In addition, I bought lollipop sticks (you could use toothpicks) and stuck them in each layer to keep it upright and keep it from sliding.

The next day I put a crumb coat on the cakes. A crumb coat is a very thin layer of icing to catch all the crumbs. Doing a crumb cake makes a huge difference in how the cake looks. If you don't crumb coat it, inevitably you will have some crumbs here and there in your frosting that are visible. If you are just making a cake to enjoy at home this is no biggie, but if you are making one for something like this, you want it to look as smooth as possible! Here's what a crumb coat looks like....



If you are crumb coating the same day you are frosting (which I would usually do), put it in the fridge for about 30 minutes at least so the coat will harden just the littlest bit. Then when you put your frosting on, it will look smooth!




After the frosting went on, I braved the decorating. I am NOT a cake decorator by any stretch of the imagination, but I did the best I could. After all, 4 year olds don't judge, and bats and webs are pretty easy. ;)


I had put the cake on a cake board, but wrapped it in blue wrapping paper. I put a small piece of wax paper under each side of the cake to catch the mistakes.

It was far from perfect but I had a ton of fun doing it!! Happy Birthday Parker!

Buffalo Chicken and Tomato, Onion and Spinach Orzo

So, this is another one of those "clean out the pantry" recipes. I needed a side to make with the Buffalo Chicken we were having (recipe below) and I didn't really have ANYTHING....so I made something up and it was a huge hit. Mike and the kids LOVED it!


Tomato, Onion and Spinach Orzo

1 box Orzo pasta
1 small yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, chopped
2 large handfuls spinach, coarsely chopped
1 can Rotel, drained
Feta Cheese
Beef Broth
Pepper

Boil Orzo in heavily salted water. (Salting the crap out of the water is what makes it so delish!) Saute onion and garlic in a small amount of olive oil until soft and fragrant. Add cooked orzo, spinach, Rotel and Feta (just as much Feta as you want). Stir and bring pasta back to heat while lettting spinach wilt a bit. Add a splash of beef broth just to moisten. Add pepper and serve.


Buffalo Chicken

1 package chicken quarters
1 jar Lawry's Buffalo Marinade

Marinate Chicken quarters in a large Ziploc bag with entire jar of Buffalo marinade for several hours (or all day, or overnight...whatever you feel like). Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Place chicken quarters in 9X13 baking dish and pour remaining marinade over chicken. Cook for 30 minutes. Embarrassingly easy and DELISH!! (and cheap too!)

Heres what the jar looks like!

Chopped Salad

Ok so I LOVE the chopped salad at the Cheesecake Factory. It is on the side salad menu, but has chicken so it is just perfect for a main meal (espesh at lunch!) It has to be one of my favorite things to order at a restaurant. It isn't gargantuan like everything else at the CF seems, and it is really tasty. So, here's how I make it at home! (I really do think it is as good. Hope you agree.)


Chopped Salad

2-3 romaine hearts, chopped small
4 Roma tomatoes, diced
3 green onions, chopped
Frozen, fresh off the cobb, or canned (with no salt added) corn. About 1 C.
1-2 diced avocados (depending on the size, if they're the size of Nerf footballs you only need one)
1 granny smith apple, diced
5 pieces turkey bacon, crumbled
1/2 container crumbled blue cheese
1 handful chopped cilantro
2 C. cooked chicken, diced (I use about 1/2 rotisserie or 2 breasts)

Dressing:

1/2 C. olive oil
1/4 C balsamic vinegar
2 T. Dijon mustard
2 cloves garlic, minced

Combine all dressing ingredients in a jar and shake very well. Refrigerate for several hours before serving to allow the flavors to mix.


Place all salad ingredients in large bowl. Dress and serve.

This is a perfect side dish to bring to a party. Everyone LOVES it and it is healthy. If you are making it for your family, it makes a lot, so serve out some and then dress it, leaving the rest of the salad undressed for lunch later in the week. It is perfect! Enjoy! :)

This weeks cooking

So lets see what I have made this week worth blogging about....

Red Velvet Cake
Lemon Cake
Tomato, Onion and Spinach Orzo
Roasted Buffalo Chicken
Large Grilled Sub Sandwich (family loves this)
Chicken Chopped Salad

Now who wants what? Comment and I will do blogs on them. :)

Taco Salad!

I'm back! :) OK, well just temporarily perhaps.....

I am thinking of re-vamping K is for Kitchen. I am still going to have recipes on here, but I am also thinking of taking it a different direction. Details to come....

I am so sorry for the neglect all you chefs out there! I haven't been cooking much myself due to a very busy sports schedule.

So I'll leave you with a very quick, very easy recipe that actually doesn't involve much cooking at all! Just a little chopping and a few cans to open. These are the kinds of things we are eating for dinner these days. No time for gourmet! ;)

Our Favorite Taco Salad

1 bag iceberg lettuce
1 tomato, chopped
Red onion, chopped
Cilantro
1/2 can corn
1/2 can black beans
1 avocado, diced
shredded cheese
1 packet taco seasoning
1 package ground turkey
Newman's Own Southwest Dressing
Lime (optional)
Thin tortilla chips

Prepare ground turkey according to directions on the taco seasoning packet. Layer the other ingredients in order, starting with lettuce on bottom. Pour hot, cooked turkey on top. Squeeze 1/2 lime on top of meat and toss with lightly with salad dressing. Arrange chips on plate in an "O" shape and serve salad in center. Enjoy!



Here's what the dressing looks like. It is fairly low in calorie and DO NOT substitute! It makes the salad. :) Tastes creamy so you do not need extras like sour cream. Also this recipe makes a lot more than one meal! I usually end up up scooping half of it into a bowl to toss with the dressing so I can store the rest in the fridge for quickie lunches for myself. Perfect!



This recipe (and the weather) also goes perfect with this.

Loaded Corona

1 Corona or Corona Light
Bacardi Limon

Open corona and fill the neck with Bacardi Limon. WOW. Thank me later for this. ;)