My Kitchen My World - Virtual Travel to Argentina!

A man walks into a doctor’s office. He has a cucumber up his nose, a carrot in his left ear and a banana in his right ear. “I don’t feel so good - what’s the matter with me?” he asks the doctor. The doctor replies, “you’re not eating properly.”

That may be one of the lamest jokes ever, but it made me laugh today.  I know for a fact that I don't always eat properly, but it is not because I have vegetables in my ears.  It is because I love those foods that are not good for me!

In our MKMW group, this month we are experiencing the deliciousness of Argentinian foods.  I was pleasantly surprised when I googled to find recipes were abundant on pinterest.  I love pinterest!  I decided to treat the DH to a dish of Argentinian Garlic Chicken with Corn, Tomato, and Parsley Sauce.  I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised.  It had just the right amount of spicy kick to it, but not overpowering at all.  And I do think it is probably pretty healthy.  Easy to prepare.  First you grill your chicken.  Since it was cold and raining outside, I used my grill pan indoors.  I always slice my chicken breasts in half so they cook quicker.  Chicken breasts seem to be getting bigger every time I buy them. I wonder what the chickens secret is to large breasts.  LOL

Then you mix up some spices and herbs in the food processor.  Add to some cooked corn and cut up tomatoes and voila.  Your dish is ready!

This is such a fun blogging group to be a part of.  Each month we try a different country.  Come join the fun and adventure - you will not regret it!!  Check out our group website at MKMW.wordpress.com

REMEMBER TO HAVE A KNIFE DAY - SEE YOU SPOON!!  

Argentinean Garlic Chicken With Corn, Tomato and Parsley Sauce

Ingredients:
Servings:
6
Units: US | Metric
Sauce
2 cups fresh parsley leaves, fresh, stems removed
1/2 cup sweet onion, chopped
8 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup white vinegar
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2/3 cup olive oil
3 tomatoes, seeded and diced
2 cups sweet corn, cooked
Chicken
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon oregano, dried
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon onion powder
6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Directions:

1
Sauce: In food processor, combine parsley, onion, garlic, vinegar, oregano, hot pepper flakes, salt and pepper; process until finely chopped. With motor running, slowly add oil and process until well blended but with coarse texture. Pour into bowl. Stir in half the tomatoes. Stir corn into bowl.
2
Chicken: Combine salt, pepper, oregano, cumin and garlic and onion powders; sprinkle about 1/2 teaspoons on each side of each chicken breast.
3
Lightly oil barbecue grill and heat to medium. Place chicken on grill; close lid and barbecue for 3 to 5 minutes per side or until no longer pink inside. Serve with parsley sauce spooned over each one. Garnish with remaining tomatoes.

Pound Cake in Honor of Mother's Day!

My mother was a pistol as they say.  Clever, funny, smart, beautiful, talented, and a great cook.  She passed away five years ago and not a day goes by that I do not think of her and miss her.  I am sure I get my love of cooking from her.  She loved to make cakes, especially pound cakes.  She must have had ten recipes for pound cakes.  Chocolate ones, buttermilk ones, sour cream ones, swirled ones, plain ones, etc.

I must have been in my 20's when someone at church gave me their pound cake recipe.  I made one and shared with my mom and even years later we both agreed it was the best pound cake recipe around.  We never found one that was better.  We even named it "Best Poundcake Ever."

In honor of mother's day this Sunday, I baked that pound cake.  It was so moist and delicious.  I know mom would be proud of my cake.  Notice a piece missing?  That was ME tasting it right out of the oven while it was still warm.  So good!  When it gets a tiny bit stale, I like to butter it and toast it and enjoy for breakfast.

BEST POUNDCAKE EVER

1 stick butter
1 cup crisco shortening
five eggs
1 cup milk
3 cups plain flour
1/2 teas. baking powder
1/2 teas. salt
3 cups sugar
1 T. vanilla flavoring

Cream butter, shortening and sugar.  Add in eggs one at a time.  Add dry ingredients and vanilla.  Cook at 325 degrees for 55-60 minutes in a well-greased bundt pan.  let cool ten minutes before removing from pan.  Keep tightly covered.

Happy Mother's Day Mom!

Wedding Day Arrives!

It was an outdoor wedding in Orlando.  The weather was iffy that day and the weathermen were saying 50% chance of rain.  The bride and groom were trying to remain positive that their dream wedding would go as planned.  It rained a bit during the day but then stopped for the wedding and was just a bit overcast.  It was GREAT.

What a beautiful ceremony!  I was so proud to be a part of it.    Small, but elegant, and every detail perfect.

The surprise of the evening came when my son told me he would be "rapping" a song in a bit.  Well I had never heard him rap, but it was great.  The crowd cheered.  A little later, he did two more songs and my other son chimed in on the last one.  He sounded awesome as well.   Proud mama me.  :)

They have just returned from their honeymoon in Belize where they had an awesome time!

I am so proud of my family.  All of them.  

Now if I could just get my house cleaned I could relax and start cooking and blogging again.  My microwave just died on me last Thursday night and I had to go shop for one today.  Lowes told me it would be 14 days before they could get me one.  I was so frustrated.  I mean. . . who knows how to cook anymore without a microwave?  It seems I use it a lot more than I thought I did.  I heat my water in it for my hot tea in the afternoon.  I heat my back pad in it.  I heat my leftovers in it.  I cook my vegetables in it most days.  I need my microwave!!!!  The good news is Home Depot is delivering one to my house tomorrow.  That makes me happy.

Now off to clean the kitchen and then to cook the "old fashioned" way.

Coconut Milk - OBSESSED!

Do you LOVE milk?  I never have.  Even as a child.  I know I need calcium for my skinny bones so I continue on my quest to find a milk that I enjoy.

I've tried Almond Milk, and Soy Milk.  This week I tried Coconut Milk.  I have always loved the taste of the milk as it flows from a fresh coconut so I thought I would try it. 

I am now obsessed with my new coconut milk.  It is so tasty and smooth.  If any of you have any pros or cons, I would love to hear from you.  I have not tried cooking / baking with it yet.  I also have not tried putting chocolate syrup in it, but I'm sure I will this weekend!!  Hmm. . . I'm thinking a glass of it would be great right now with this piece of pound cake I am eating.

Here are some advantages I found online that I thought I would share with you.  Since I am trying to GAIN weight, I was not happy to see "aids in weight loss" on the list, however some of you will be happy to see that I'm sure!

Benefits of coconut milk

Higher in calcium than regular milk and almond milk.

Nutrient Rich : Coconut milk is rich in a wide range of minerals and vitamins. It contains iron, selenium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium, and also the following important vitamins: C, E, B1, B3, B5 and B6. Coconut milk is also a good source of protein.

Boost immune system : Half the medium-chain fatty acids in coconut milk are composed of lauric acid, which is anti-viral, anti-bacterial, anti-microbial and anti-fungal thus strengthening the immune system.

Weight Loss : The saturated fat in coconut is made up of short-chain and medium-chain fatty acids which the body quickly turns into energy instead of storing as fat. Therefore, even though it’s high in saturated fat, coconut can aid in weight loss. No wonder it’s the number one recommended milk for protein shakes. It is also said to boost metabolism.Coconut milk makes you feel full very quickly because of high concentrations of dietary fiber.

Relaxes muscles and nerves: Rich in magnesium which can help relive and ease cramps, muscle pulls and muscle soreness.

Aids in Digestion : Coconut milk contains beneficial substances that allow the stomach to digest food properly. Due to the high content of lauric acid, coconut milk is anti-bacterial and it kills off bad bacteria in the stomach that can cause you to not digest food properly. So adding coconut milk to your diet will help with digestion.

Dairy Free, Nut Free and Vegan : Coconut milk is a dairy-free alternative for those who are lactose intolerant or allergic to nuts. This vegan drink is also soy-free and gluten-free.

Chicken and Yellow Rice Casserole - Blast from the Past!

Years ago, and I do mean years ago, my ex-mother-in-law made a fabulous chicken casserole.  I made that casserole many, many times for my family as the kids were growing up.  While looking for a cake recipe last week, I ran across the casserole recipe and decided I needed to make that again.  It is very easy to make and just fabulous.  Delicious enough for a company main dish, or just for your family on a weeknight.  Chandler and I ate way too much of this last night and I am looking forward to having leftovers for my lunch today!  Definitely need to put this on my monthly dinner rotation.

Chicken and Yellow Rice Casserole

Boil three chicken breasts until done.  Shred meat and put in the bottom of 9 x 13 buttered casserole.
Cook one package of yellow rice, one onion chopped, four stalks of celery chopped.   Spread one can of cream of mushroom soup over chicken, then top with cooked rice mixture.  Top all with buttered breadcrumbs and bake in 350 oven for about 20 minutes until bubbly.

Delicious AND easy!!

Valentines lasted for more than a day!

So for Valentine's this year we decided to cook together.  Now my DH is not a cook at all.  He barely knows how to open a can and heat it up.  But he was game for this.  So we started out Saturday morning making our grocery list.  I gave him one item to prepare - a side dish.  "Aren't you going to tell me what to cook," he asked.   I told him no that was part of the fun - the surprise of it all.  So I gave him a cookbook and he chose cauliflower.  Strange. . . I know, but it was delicious.  I chose to make a chicken dish I had seen on Rachel Ray's show last week and for dessert, some Nutella pastries.

Here is the cauliflower dish.  For me, it would have been better without the dijon mustard.   He did an excellent job of preparing it.  And he opened a bottle of pink champagne we had in the fridge for like four years.  I wondered if you could keep it that long, but it seemed to taste okay still.  It was so cold outside we enjoyed our night staying home.

The chicken dish was a bit bland for my tastes.  But Chandler liked it okay.  I think if I ever made this again, I would have to add more seasonings.  I forgot to put the parmesan cheese on the tomatoes.

Basically, it was a chicken breast wrapped in cheese and ham with a broiled tomato on top.  I guess that is a good way to simplify the description.  You can see the recipe here:
http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/chicken-ham-and-mozzarella-and-broiled-tomatoes/

Now let's talk dessert.  OH MY.   I will have to say, this was the easiest dessert to prepare and we absolutely loved it.  We couldn't wait the next day to have the leftovers.  This is a definite keeper and I will be making it over and over again.  Because of this dessert, I have become a Nutella freak now.  Inside the delicious crescent roll dough is Nutella spread, a few chocolate chips, and three raspberries.

okay these are supposed to be in the shape of hearts, but. .  . I didn't shape them too well.  We really enjoyed our evening of cooking together though and definitely you should try the dessert.  You can find the recipe here:
http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/chocolate-raspberry-hearts/db1da18d-3d98-4886-8578-ed8929fa5355

And now. . I am off to watch the season finale of Downton Abbey!!!!  Oh how I will miss you when you are gone.

Perfect cake for Valentines!

Every year around Valentine's I get a hankering for strawberry cake.  The best one I have made is from Paula Deen's collection.   As you can see from the photo however, my frosting is a bit runny.  I can attribute this to the fact that I "tried" to cut back on the amount of confectioner's sugar the recipe called for in an effort to be a tad healthier.  In this case, the recipe was correct and I needed to use all seven cups of sugar.  The cake itself is moist and delicious and the strawberry smell coming from your oven is divine!  Paula makes hers as a layer cake but I made mine a sheet cake just because it is easier and quicker to do a sheet cake.  Since this type of frosting is just too sweet for me, I have decided the next time I make this cake I will put a whipped cream topping on it.

You can find the recipe here:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/simply-delicious-strawberry-cake-recipe/index.html

Perfect Pancakes

I have never loved pancakes.  Even as a child.  I think now it was because I had not had the "perfect" pancake.  I've tried many recipes - all too thick and chewy for me.  The ones made with biscuit mix are the worst.  You know how it is.  You take a bite and chew and the bite just gets bigger and bigger in your mouth.  It seems like you will never get it chewed up and swallowed!  Too much work and too little flavor.

I learned several years ago how to make melt in your mouth pancakes and I love them!  For the last two Saturday mornings, I have been in a mood for pancakes. These are easy to make from scratch and I promise you will not be disappointed.  They are light and flavorful.  Always a big hit at my house.

The secret is in the eggs.

Double this recipe for four people, but for just us two, this is the recipe I use:

1 cup s.r. flour

1 T. sugar

3 T. melted margarine

2 eggs

1 cup milk

Mix dry ingredients with milk, melted butter and two egg yolks.  Beat the two egg whites until soft peak forms and then fold beaten egg whites into batter.  Make pancakes about four inches in diameter on your griddle and cook until lightly browned on both sides.

Serve with your favorite syrup and melted butter.

Enjoy!

Butterneck Squash

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S EVERYONE!  I hope you all ate your ham, blackeyed peas, and greens for your new year's day meal.  I did.  I had delicious collards, hopping john, corn casserole and a delicious glazed ham.  I plan to have success in 2013 by eating the right things.  LOL

I meant to post this before Christmas.  I had read an "easy" way to cut up butternut squash and I wanted to try it.  Well there is no easy way in my opinion, but the secret is having a VERY sharp knife.  Then it isn't so bad and the outcome is worth the effort.  I simply cut up the squash into cubes, placed in a roasting pan, drizzled them with olive oil and sprinkled a little brown sugar on top and baked for about a half hour or so until tender.  They were a delicious accompaniment to my smoked turkey that I served that night.  Here it is before baking.

Trust me - it was delicious and healthy too!

Sugar Cookies or Teacakes?

Hello Blog.  I've missed you!

I've been suffering from a bad back for the last three weeks which has really put a damper on my Christmas shopping, baking, decorating, etc.  I am getting better daily and thanks to all of you who have checked on me!!

Since my DH has been so sweet and helping me so much lately, I am making him a full blown dinner tonight complete with Christmas cookies.

My sweet mom made teacakes when we were growing up.  They are a little softer I think than sugar cookies.  She made homemade chocolate syrup to pour over them and it was a fabulous dessert.  These are not fancy because I did not take the time to decorate them today.  Just a good cookie.  I discovered also today that making sugar cookies at Christmas by yourself is not nearly as much fun as it was when the kids were little and it was a half day adventure with decorating and baking!

These are super easy to make and super easy dough to work with!

Teacakes
4 cups self rising flour
1 cup shortning or butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk (more if you need it)
one egg
1 teas. vanilla flavoring

Mix with mixer until dough sticks together.  Roll out to about 1/4 inch thick.  Bake at 375 for about 12 minutes until bottoms are brown.  Cool.

Blood Typing

Recently a friend of mine blood typed me to help me know what foods, etc. are actually good for my particular blood type.  It is a very interesting theory.  I am type B  which means that my body cannot digest chicken or corn.  Only type A's can do corn.  There is a book written by Dr. Peter J. D'Amo that lists out the specific foods that are healing for you, as well as those you cannot tolerate.  Since I love chicken, that was a bit of a shock to me.  The medicinal meats on my blood type's list are lamb, goat, rabbit, venison, ostrich.  Now those are not meats that I normally eat.  On my neutral list, however, I can have beef and turkey, along with buffalo and several others.  It also talks about vegetables, dairy, juices, etc. and the specific foods that are medicinal for your body and those you should avoid completely.

I am going to try this diet for a few weeks and see if it makes a difference.  I have heard wonderful things about this diet.

I just thought it was interesting and wanted to share with you all.  I will let you know how it goes.

WHERE DOES THE TIME GO?

I cannot believe it has been two months since I blogged!!  I haven't lost interest in cooking or blogging.  I have just been travelling some and really busy helping with a silent auction we have coming up November 1.

I miss hearing from all of you and I hope you will hang in there just a little longer as I plan to start cooking again soon!  I already have several recipes clipped to blog about.  I'll be back on Twitter again soon too I hope.

I have a question for all you wonderful cooks out there.  How long can you safely keep fried chicken in your refrigerator if it is in a box and not sealed airtight?  I'm about to eat some for lunch that I bought on Wednesday.

Indian Cuisine!!

Some of my favorite twitter friends and I occasionally get together and cook up an Indian dinner together on twitter.  Margaret of Scones4me, Nancy of The Dogs Eat the Crumbs, Kayte of Grandma's Kitchen Table, and Rebecca "Hobknob", and also Abby of Mixitbakeit.  A fun group for sure!

We decided on Authentic South Indian Biryani with Indian Cucumber Salad.  I'm not a lover of curry and fortunately for me this one did not include any.  It was easy to prepare and so delicious.  I especially loved the fresh mint in both dishes.  I also made some Kashmir Spinach to go with (I won't be making this again though hubs liked it).  On the side, we had delicious naan bread.  I could eat naan bread every day!

Here are the recipes so you can try them yourself!  Really good.  I cannot wait to eat the leftovers for my lunch today.  Let me know if you try it!!

Authentic South Indian Biryani

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 pod cardamom
• 1 clove
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 4 medium onions, chopped
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon chopped fresh ginger
• 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into cubes
• chili powder to taste
• 1 1/2 medium tomatoes, chopped
• 16 ounces plain yogurt
• 3 tablespoons water
• lemon juice, to taste
• 3 cups white rice
• 1 teaspoon butter
• salt to taste
• 1 bunch fresh mint, chopped
• 1 bunch chopped cilantro

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
2. Heat oil in a large oven-proof pot over medium heat. Add cardamom, clove, and cinnamon stick. Stir in chopped onions, and fry until golden brown. Stir in garlic and ginger. Stir in chicken pieces, and fry about 3 minutes. Stir in chili powder, and cook several minutes. Stir in tomatoes, and cook about 5 minutes. Mix yogurt with 3 tablespoons water and lemon juice; stir into sauce.
3. Cover pot, and bake in a preheated oven until the sauce is somewhat thickened and concentrated, about 15 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, cook rice in enough salted water to cover. Bring to a boil, and cook until it is half cooked, about 7 minutes. Drain rice, and stir into chicken and sauce. Stir in butter, season to taste with salt, cover pot, and bake 1 hour. Stir in mint and cilantro immediately before serving.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 860 | Total Fat: 14.1g | Cholesterol: 75mg

Indian Cucumber Salad

Ingredients:

Servings:

  4   4

4-6

Units: US | Metric

• 3 medium cucumbers
• 1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/4-1/2 teaspoon sugar, to taste
• 1/2-1 teaspoon ground cumin, to taste
• 1/2-1 tablespoon chopped mint

Directions:

1. 1
   Peel cucumbers; slice in half lengthwise and scoop out seeds. Dice the cucumbers and place in a bowl.
2. 2
   Whisk together yogurt, lemon juice, sugar, cumin and mint.
3. 3
   Pour over cucumbers and toss to coat.

Hot Chicken Salad

Well here I am after a brief blog "vacation."  We have been travelling this summer so no time for cooking or baking.  Soon we will be traveling again to help my future daughter-in-law choose a wedding dress.  I'm very excited about being included in the shopping trip for that.  Of course, all the dresses are going to be beautiful.

I think I have been watching too many westerns this summer.  I had a hankering to cook pioneer food this entire week and serve to my cowboy.  But after thinking about how much fried food there would probably be, I'm putting that off for a few weeks. I still intend to challenge myself and do it.

Last week, I was fortunate enough to have lunch at my friend Pat's house and she served the most delicious hot chicken salad.  I have tweaked the recipe just a bit for my own tastes.  Very easy to put together if you use a rotisserie chicken like I do.  For a different variation, add a cup of cooked rice to the mix. All you really need to go with it is a salad and a slice of bread..  We happened to have some leftover squash casserole (using squash from my very own garden), some baked beans, watermelon, and a jalapeno pepper (again, from  my garden).  It has been a lot of fun to go out each evening and see what vegetable surprises await me there.  So far I only have gotten two tomatoes from my vines, but lots of squash and cucumbers.  Soon I will have okra.

I spoke with a good friend this morning who is giving me some Amish Friendship Bread starter. I cannot wait for that.  I did that one time years ago and it was fun.  Stay tuned in a week or two to see the results.

Hot  Chicken Salad Casserole

• 2 cups cooked chicken breast meat, cubed
• 1 cup diced celery
• 1/4 onion chopped
• one small carrot finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 cup grated medium Cheddar
• 2/3 cup crushed Kettle potato chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 13 by 9-inch baking dish with vegetable oil cooking spray.

In a large mixing bowl combine the all ingredients except the chips and cheese. Place the mixture in the prepared baking dish. Spread the cheese on top, then the crushed potato chips. Bake for 20-30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Just Things

I cannot believe it has been several weeks since I have blogged.  So much has gone on in my life that there has not been enough hours in the day to cook something special, much less blog about it!!

We have been travelling quite a bit and the month of June holds more travels for us.  Some exciting, and some necessary.

For those of you who are our facebook friends, you know that my brother-in-law Roger had an unexpected brain aneurysm which culminated in brain surgery a week ago.  Thanks to all of you who have been praying for him.  He is making progress, but has a long way to go.  We are so thankful for his progress this far and hope he improves every day.

Wednesday we lost a dear friend of ours.  The father of our close friend Lisa.  We loved Mr. Littleton and will miss him greatly.

So, life sometimes gets in the way of cooking and hobbies.  But I will be back as soon as possible.  Please keep checking back in and thank you for your steady support!!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful spring/start of summer so far!  I LOVE LOVE the warm weather!!

FOFF - Thursdays with Carla Vavala

On Thursdays, my friend Joanne of Applecrumbles and I have been trying to cook our way through Carla Vavala's book Fusion of Food and Friends.  These recipes are heart healthy folks!!  And I have yet to make one of her recipes that was not tasty.  Check out Joanne's webpage to see what she has been cooking.

Broccoli would not be my first vegetable of choice, but neither would it be my last.  Preparing it this way, however, was a new and delicious taste to a familiar vegetable.  Very simple and quick to make as well.

Cut fresh broccoli florets.  Microwave them for 4 minutes.  Preheat oven to 400.  Splash broccoli with olive oil, salt and pepper, garlic powder and cook for about 12 minutes in the oven.  Then sprinkle with lemon juice.

Enjoy!!!!

Sweet Potato Fries

Have you ever tried sweet potato fries?  I have lately become addicted to these.  And heart healthy to boot!!

For a little something different as a side dish, try making these instead of regular fries.  You will not be sorry you did.  You back them in the oven on a cookie sheet for about 25 minutes.  Add a little brown sugar to them if you like.

Delicious!!!

CEiMB - Zucchini and Potato Cakes

I chose this week's CEiMB's pick for the Ellie Krieger group.  I thought these potato cakes looked crispy and delicious.  To be completely honest, I guess I prefer fried potato cakes even though they are not the best for you.  These are certainly more healthy.  Maybe it was the mix of zucchini in them or just that they lacked a bit of flavor.  These were good though especially if you are watching your fried foods!  I'm curious to hear what you thought as we all have different likes and dislikes.

The recipe is found in Ellie's new cookbook Comfort Food Fix.  Ellie has lots of great recipes that are good for you and they are all pretty easy to prepare.  I will share the recipe with you here:

Crispy Baked Zucchini Potato Pancakes
Page 236 of Comfort Food Fix - Krieger

Olive oil cooking spray
2 tsp. olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
1 medium russet potato unpeeled
1 medium zucchini unpeeled, ends removed
2 large eggs
2 large egg whites
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 ts. salt
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 400.  coat a baking sheet with cooking spray.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring, until softened and golden, about 5 minutes.  Remove from the heat and allow to cool completely.
Grate the potato and zucchini on the large holes of a box grater.  Place the grated potato and zucchini in a kitchen towel or cheesecloth and twist over the sink to squeeze out as much liquid as possible.  Transfer the zucchini and potato to a bowl.  In small bowl, beat together the eggs and egg whites to combine.  Add the eggs, lemon juice, flour salt, and pepper to the potato mixture and stir until well combined.
Heat the prepared baking sheet in the oven for 3 -5 minutes until hot but before the oil begins to smoke.  Remove the baking sheet and immediately begin to make the pancakes.  Place them on the tray.  Use about 2 T. of batter for each, forming it into a flat, 2 inch pancake.  You should wind up with about 16 pancakes.
bake until the edges begin to crisp.  7-8 minutes.  remove from oven and spray the tops of the pancakes with cooking spray and flip the pancakes.  Bake until browned and crisp, about 5 minutes more.  
Makes 4 servings.

Craving Chocolate? how about a PIE!!!

I needed a quick dessert for Friday night.  Chan is not a huge fan of chocolate, but I remembered my mom's "water" pie she made so often.  I have never made a  chocolate pie - believe it or not!  I could not find my mom's recipe, but I took a recipe I had and changed it to make it my own.  It got rave reviews and was so easy to prepare!

I used a purchased pie crust and cooked the specified time in the oven.  Let cool.

Stir together 2/3 cup sugar, 1/3 cup cornstarch and 1/2 tsp. salt.     Using a whisk, beat 4 egg yolks with 2 cups of milk and one cup of heavy cream.  Gradually blend milk mixture in with dry ingredients in a glass bowl.  Cook in microwave (this is how I cook all my cream pies) and stir every minute and a half with the wire whisk until mixture has thickened.  (Usually takes about 8-10 minutes depending on your microwave).  Add 1 T. vanilla extract, 2 T. butter and 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli's semi-sweet).  Stir until chips are melted and pour into crust.  Put plastic wrap on top of pie and chill for 8 hours.  Then top with whipped topping.

So creamy and delicious!!  I'll be making this time and time again.

Carla Vavalos FOFF

Well I finally got around to cooking something this week. . .. .

Had a dental appointment this morning - how I have grown to hate going to the dentist.  Just the thought of it gives me goosebumps.  I used to love getting my teeth cleaned but now it is painful.  And something new every time I go.  This time my dentist was on leave so I saw Dr. Marta.  No one can pronounce her last name so we call her Dr. Marta.

In Carla Vavalas book Fusion of Food and Friends I made the roasted asparagus.  What's so special about that you might ask?  Well the fresh asparagus roasted is great of course, but Carla tops her off with a delicious sauce made of butter, balsamic vinegar and soy sauce.  It was so delicious that we had grilled chicken with it and the sauce was wonderful making its way across the plate and bumping into the chicken!  Loved it.

Buy her book on Amazon for just $10 or email me for the recipe.  So easy and delicious.

Back from my trip!

I never meant to take a blogging break - honestly I did not!  But it has been a couple of weeks since I posted.  Things have been crazy here in Alabama.  My husband had a very special birthday last week and it seems we celebrated the entire week!  Ending the week with a fabulous trip to Dallas to visit my son, daughter-in-law and sweet grandbaby for Easter.  We had a wonderful time and ate wonderful food while we were there.  Took a trip to the Dallas Zoo and saw all the beautiful animals and rode the monorail.  Ate at Patrizio's for Chandler's birthday.  He loves anything Italian and it was really really good.  Thank you Cameron and Meredith for treating us!

I'm ready to start cooking again so stick around for new recipes coming!  Have a wonderful week.  I'm so happy spring is here (although it is chilly today).

BWJ - Irish Soda Bread

This week in Baking with Julia we made Irish Soda Bread.  It came at a great time for St. Patty's week.  I watched an old video of Julia Child making this and it gave me what I thought were helpful insights on the preparation.

The dough was very easy to mix up and it was a nice soft dough to work with.  It said not to "overknead" or the bread would be chewy.  I did not mix in any add-ins as I wanted the traditional irish bread.

I cut the traditional crosses in the top of the bread before baking.  The cuts were supposed to be about 1 1/2 inches deep.

Apparently, my cuts went haywire in the oven because my dough spread so much when it was done it almost looked like it was in four sections.  This was one 'section' of it.

We enjoyed the bread.  It seemed to me to be like a giant biscuit.

For the recipe, buy the book Baking with Julia, or check out our hostesses' webpage Carla and Cathleen. Also check out the other bakers in the club TuesdayswithDorie

TWITTER AVATAR FUN!

This month was my month to choose a chef for twitter avatar fun!  We have one chef each month and use a photo of the recipe from that chef as our avatar on twitter.  I chose Sunny Anderson. I really like watching her show and she has some fun recipes to share.

I chose her "Meatloaf is the way to my heart as long as it has kick and potatoes around it."  We love meatloaf at our house and this one was really good.  It has a mixture of ground turkey and ground beef so it is a little more healthy than just a ground beef one.  Loved the sauce.  Mine took a little more than an hour to cook.  I'm beginning to think my oven may not be as hot as it should be since this happens a lot.

Try it!!  You can get the recipe here.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/meatloaf-is-the-way-to-my-heart-as-long-as-it-has-kick-and-potatoes-are-around-recipe/index.html

FOFF - Asian Salad

If you check out Joanne's version of this you will see two totally different versions.   I'd put my money that her version is the better one!

The recipe called for beef flavored Japanese noodles.  I assumed it was Ramen, but when I got to the store, there were all sorts of noodles in the asian section but they were out of ramen unless you wanted a 12 pack size.  So I thought, "hmm. . .salad. . these crunchy ones would be good!"  I added some thin spaghetti as well.

Check this one out.  Easy to make and healthy to boot!  Full of healthy stuff.  Zucchini, water chestnuts, a semi-hot dressing over the top. . . Chan is going to love this!

1 pkg steamed edamame
1 can of whole water chestnuts (I used sliced)
1 package beef flavored Japanese noodles
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 small fresh zucchini chopped small
1/2 cup cashews (I left these off because I do not care for cashews)
1/2 package fresh broccoli slaw

Dressing:
1 T crushed red pepper
102 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 T. sesame oil
3 T rice vinegar
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
3 tsp. soy sauce
small sprinkle of the beef seasoning from the noodles (obviously I left this out)
Cook noodles.  Let cool  Add other ingredients, then top with dressing.  Chill for 20-30 minutes and serve.

Thursdays with FOFF - Carla Vavalas = Portuguese Soup

I love soup.  Mostly I love vegetable soup or beef stew.  Or even a good chili or taco soup.

I'm not much on creamed soups like cream of potato, or pumpkin soup.  For those of you who are, this soup may be right up your alley!  And it is healthy to boot!

It was very simple to prepare.  Just cut up vegetables and cook in a chicken based broth for 1 1/2 hours, then use your immersion blender to mix together and serve.  Carla says you can add small pasta to this if you like.

Two T. olive oil
One onion chopped
4 cloves garlic
three potatoes cut in cubes
one sweet potato cut in cubes
two carrots cut up
2 celery stalks chopped
2 T. fresh parsley
1 chicken bouillon cube
salt and pepper to taste

In a large stockpot, add olive oil, onion and garlic.  Cook until translucent.  Add the rest of the ingredients and cover with water about one inch above vegetables..  Cook about 1 1/2 hours until vegetables are tender.  Using a hand held blender puree (after removing from burner of course).
You can eat the soup like this, or add small cooked pasta to it.

BWJ - Chocolate Truffles Tart

Sometimes our days just don't go as we plan.  Last week I took my car in to have new brakes and rotors installed, oil change, and tires rotated. The next day, I noticed my front tires looked a little low, but I drove on them anyway.

The next day, I headed out the door to leave for work and both my front tires appeared to be almost flat.  To top it off, it was raining cats and dogs and I was running late.

I stopped at a tire dealership to get them checked.  The nice guy checked and all four tires were nearly flat.  After paying him to put air in them, I was on the road again.  But not before calling my husband to ask him to call the dealership that rotated my tires and inform them that they should have checked the air in them before letting me drive off the lot!

Now remembering it was my boss's birthday, I made a stop to pick up Krispy Kreme doughnuts to take for him, making me later than ever.

Got to work with doughnuts and realized there were three more birthdays going on that day in my department.  So we had doughnuts, then chocolate cake, then later it was cake day for the entire firm and cake and ice cream were offered.  I was smart enough to decline on that one.  Needless to say, I was on a major sugar high by the time I got home that night and still had Valentine's candy left over that I really needed to dispose of so I had a few pieces of that.

The tarts were a bit time consuming, but they were worth it.  Ran to Bed, Bath & Beyond and bought some mini tart pans.  How have I managed this long without these?  I love them!!  Also, I was out of parchment paper so I used non-stick foil and it worked like a charm.  My dough seemed just a little dry and was hard to roll out, but the end result was perfect.

I added butterscotch and white chocolate to mine, along with purchased biscotti.

I halved the recipe since there are only two of us here and I was still suffering from the sugar high of the day before.  We ate one tart, then took the other two to our dance club that evening where I shared one with my table friends, and gave the other to a friend having a birthday.  They were a big hit.

Now I wish I had made the entire recipe.  Sometimes, things just don't go as you plan.

Thanks to our hosts this week Steph awhiskandaspoon.­com; Spike http://spikebakes.tumblr.com; Jaime http://www.goodeatsblog.com/; and Jessice http://www.goodeatsblog.com/.   Be sure to check out their version of the chocolate truffle tarts.

Valentine's Day Dinner with my Sweetheart

He got an invitation to come to a candlelit dinner at his own home on Valentine's Day.  He was to be home at 5:30 sharp.  My husband, my lover, my best friend, and my sweetheart walked in the door and was escorted to the den on the arm of his wife where he found a warm fire blazing and a table set for two complete with red tablecloth, roses for the centerpiece, and a single candle burning.  Soft classical music played in the background.  A Valentine card was there at his place.

The dinner started with a cherry tomato salad, made with soft green lettuce, mozzarella cheese, cherry tomatoes, and all drizzled with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.  A bottle of non-alcoholic grape juice was the drink of the evening.  And yes, even without alcohol, it was intoxicating.

The main course consisted of brown and wild rice and creole chicken patties with creole sauce.

Dessert was chocolate bread pudding baked in separate ramekins and topped with a dollop of whipped cream.  It was without a doubt the best bread pudding he and I have ever shared and the perfect ending to a perfect meal.  And a perfect Valentine evening.

If you would like the recipes for any of these delicious dishes, please email me.  It was the perfect romantic dinner for two people and easy on the budget too!

This is how the table looked when we were finished!  Yes, the tablecloth is wrinkled, there was no time for ironing!!

Twitter Group - Delia Smith for February

I believe Nancy chose Delia Smith for our chef for the month of February.  I was unfamiliar with Delia's recipes but the internet was helpful in choosing something to make.  We choose a different chef each month and then use the photo from our completed dish as our avatar on twitter.  It's a lot of fun.

I chose Delia's Oriental Chicken.  I left off the hot pepper on top because my stomach doesn't like hot peppers!  You can find the recipe here:
http://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/main-ingredient/poultry-and-game/chicken/oriental-chicken.html

The chicken was delicious.

Tonight, I have invited my husband to a candlelit dinner at my house for just the two of us.  He was very excited to get the invitation and he says he cannot wait to come home and see what I have cooked for him.  I will blog about it later in the week!  Happy Valentine's Day to all of you lovers and friends out there!

Baking with Julia - White Loaves - First Post!

And so it begins. . . a new year. . .  a new book ..  . a new group of friends interested in baking together!

This week's challenge from the Baking with Julia group was white loaves hosted by our fearless leaders, Jules and Laurie.  I have not made bread in about twenty years, so the task seemed a bit daunting at first.  But once my loaves started to rise, I got very excited.   And my house smelled delicious all day!!

My camera is not working right and therefore the photos are a bit yellow.  My autofocus is messed up so I will have to send my camera to Nikon to get it fixed I am told.

The bread had to rise twice.  Once in a bowl, then once in the loaf pans.  Did I mention how wonderful they smelled while they were rising and baking?  Nothing like fresh bread baking.

I had a great time making this and the results were fantastic.  I definitely have renewed interest in bread baking now!  My loaves were perfect and so tasty!  I froze one loaf so I am excited that another meal of good bread is coming soon!  Did I mention how wonderful your house smells while this is baking?  :)

Check out the website to see how the other bakers fared.

Strawberry Salad with Pretzel Crust

Last weekend our supper club met and the hostess asked that I bring a red salad to match her Valentine inspired table.  I decided on this strawberry congealed salad.  Not only is it pretty, but it has a pretzel crust which gives it a little salty and crunchy pop.  The middle layer is cream cheese and cool whip.  I made a 9 x 13 size and the eight at dinner devoured it!  It is very important to let each layer cool completely before adding the next one.  Maybe try it for your upcoming "Valentine."

Also, for those of you who knew we were building out our attic, we finally finished it right before the holidays.  Here is a photo of our "work" in progress.  It took us almost a year of hard labor, but we are very happy with the finished product.

Here is the recipe for the strawberry salad:

Ingredients

• 2 cups crushed pretzels
• 3/4 cup melted butter
• 3 tablespoons sugar, plus 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (8-ounce) container whipped topping
• 2 (3-ounce) packages strawberry gelatin dessert mix
• 2 cups boiling water
• 2 (10-ounce) packages frozen strawberries
• Whipped topping for garnish (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

For the crust, mix the pretzels, butter, and 3 tablespoons of sugar. Press this mixture into a 9 by 13-inch pan and bake for 7 minutes. Set aside and allow to cool.

In a mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and 3/4 cup of sugar. Fold in the whipped topping, and spread over the cooled crust. Refrigerate until well chilled.

In a small bowl, dissolve the gelatin in the boiling water, and allow to cool slightly. Add the strawberries, and pour over the cream cheese mixture. Refrigerate until serving time.

To serve, cut slices and serve with a dollop of whipped topping.