Hurricane Sandy

Being a native New Englander, I am used to tropical storms, Nor'Easters and as of last year, 8 days without power after a freak Halloween Snow Storm. But I am starting to wonder if these October Mega Storms are the new norm. I am currently snuggled on the couch, tuned into the weather channel and watching the wind pick up out the front window. Work has been cancelled for 2 days, CT highways are closing at 1pm and I already had to chase the trash can lid across the back yard. (J is bringing that to the basement when he gets home at 12).

I learned my lesson last year and went out to buy a lantern, candles, lighters, water and a bottle of wine. We have canned fruit, tuna and granola bars galore. But what about meals? I bought 2 loaves of bread along with peanut butter and jelly and last night I made baked chimichongas! Power or no power, tonight we are having left overs!

Similar to a hot pocket, I used ground turkey to make this dish a bit healthier. I made the turkey as I would taco meat, cook, add taco seasoning and water...add diced tomatoes, cumin and oregano, then 1/2 cup each sour cream and shredded cheese and mix... Then I filled 6 Tortillas with the mix, fold seam side down and bake for 15-20 minutes.

We devoured 1.5 each and topped them with sour cream, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, salsa and cheese. Yum! Even if we do lose power, I am sure they will work cold in a pinch.

With my bathtub full of water, blankets at the ready and snacks filling the pantry, I am ready for this hurricane.

Guinness Pie

When I woke up this morning, I was expecting a somewhat relaxing day, J had a family party that we were planning on attending mid day and last week kicked off our Sunday nights on the couch with the new season of The Walking Dead starting. I was up and bopping around the kitchen in my pajamas, getting out my large bowl for the requested chocolate chip pancakes ( J was taking  a break from his typical 3 eggs and an English Muffin). Before I could grab a measuring cup, I hear an "uh oh" from the living room. J was being called into work on his day off. We finally get a weekend scheduled off together so of course an emergency at work has to come up. So in place of C+C pancakes, I quickly threw together an egg and cheese bagel sandwich, wrap it in foil for that authentic "to go" look and pull down the travel mug for an accompanying coffee with cream. Out the door he went by 9am. So now I have an entire sunny fall day to kick around the house and yard and come up with some delicious dinner idea. Comfy clothes were in order, then it was out the door to plant my bulbs so that the spring will come in with some color next year. J's uniform was up next and I was actually able to get it out of the dryer fast enough that no ironing was required. Now for food. I had all day so time was not an option, it had to be warm and filling as all Sunday dinners should be. I have been looking at a recipe on my pinterest board for awhile now and today seemed like a good time to attempt Guinness Pie: an Irish steak pie.

I needed:
a 1.5 lbs chuck roast ( I used pre cubed beef stew meat)
1/4 lb bacon
 1 red onion diced
2 carrots largely diced
2 stalks of celery diced
3 oz mushrooms sliced
3 cloves garlic
1 bottle Guinness
1 cup beef broth
flour for dredging
2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
1 TBS fresh Rosemary ( I had fresh Rosemary frozen from my garden- if you don't use 1 tsp dried)
1 tsp dried thyme
Salt and pepper
2 sheets puff pastry

In my dutch oven I cooked down the bacon
When done, remove the bacon but keep the grease in the pan.
Dredge the beef in the flour and season with salt and pepper
In batches, brown beef in the bacon grease then remove from pan
Saute onion, carrots and celery until soft ( Add butter if the pan dries out too much)
Add mushrooms until soft
Add garlic and cook for 1 minute
Add Guinness and bring to a boil, scraping up browned bits
Add stock, and meat back into the dutch oven
Place pot uncovered into a 350 degree oven for 1.5- 2 hours, checking and adding stock if needed
Remove from oven add cheese and increase temperature to 400
Line 8x10 greased pan  with one sheet of puffed pastry, scoring then placing in oven for 6-8 min so it won't become soggy.
Spoon beef mixture ontop of bottom crust and cover with the second sheet of pastry..
Create criss cross pattern so as not to puff-- not cutting all the way through
Brush with egg wash
Bake for 20-40 minutes

It is baking now, smells great pictures to come

Peanut butter oatmeal

The leaves have just started turning up here in Western MA. Driving down the road there are orange leaves here and there and on occasional tree that I could have sworn was totally green last week, is now completely in the throes of autumn colors. I know that by January, I will miss the color green and the sound of leaves in the wind, and I will be left looking at the blank grey canvas that is a New England winter. But for now, I am anticipating all things fall. Sure I will miss my summer staples; flip flops (my feet really aren't ready for those big girl shoes I have to wear to work), macaroni salad and frequenting the local ice cream stand (which honestly we haven't done for quite some time). But I am ready for all those things that mean Autumn is here; sweatshirts, scarves, apple picking and pumpkin carving. I am ready for J to buy me those Mums he promised...hopefully he remembers he promised. And I am ready for some good old Comfort Food! My Dutch Oven is itching to be used, and I have been stock piling apple crisp recipes.

With slightly cooler weather I have developed an obsession with oatmeal. I have never been a huge oatmeal eater, and if I did eat it, it was the kind in the little pouches. The variety pack boxes where I favored the peaches and cream, apples and cinnamon, and the other fruity flavors to the maple sugar flavor..yuck.

Because J( not an oatmeal eater..more of a scrambled eggs guy..EVERY Morning!) is now a 3rd shifter, he is not awake when I am eating breakfast and a giant container of oats is far less expensive than boxes of itty bitty packets. So I started searching oatmeal recipes...3 have been attempted, 1 was a struggle to finish eating, 1 was pretty darn yummy and 1 was quite delicious!! (found at http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-peanut-butter-oatmeal/)  So I will share with you my quite delicious recipe which I just finished eating!

Peanut Butter Oatmeal

Cook the Oatmeal according to the container. For today I did 2 servings which was :
1 cup oatmeal

1 1/2 cups water
Bring the water to a boil then add the oats
Reduce heat to Medium and cook for 5 minutes
Remove from Heat and cover for 3ish minutes

Now for the Deliciousness....
Add to the oatmeal;

• 2 TBS Good peanut butter ( I used Smuckers Creamy All Natural PB)
• 1 TBS Honey
• 1 tsp cinnamon

Now because I like to add a little something to the softer oatmeal texture, I reverted to childhood, when I loved peanut butter and banana sandwiches..hmm...

I went ahead and sliced half of a banana and added it right in. I am now fighting the urge to go finish off the pot instead of putting it in the fridge for tomorrow.

So I am ready for those fall flavors, cooler days and warm dishes!

Easy Flour Tortillas- Who Knew?

I've never been a "summer person". I enjoy those warm days that say that summer is coming when I can go outside without a sweatshirt or walk to the mailbox barefoot, but now that August has arrived so has my humidity induced crankiness and unwillingness to move above a snails pace. This being said, the prospect of firing up the stove seems like cruel and unusual punishment, especially when I will have to take the third "just to cool off" shower of the day because I opened the oven door to check the progress of some hot meal. No Thank You!  But today, with the fans blowing and a nice little breeze ringing the wind chimes outside the door, I attempted to make my own tortillas. I had seem this on a blog  ( http://smells-like-home.com/2012/07/diy-soft-flour-tortillas/) while cruising through new Do It Yourself Projects on my favorite website.

Hmm making my own tortillas sounded interesting. I have made bread before, but along with the rest of the country, I am trying to eat healthier and hey-- if the bread is thinner and I shed a few calories while mixing and rolling, and sweating I say it's a healthier way to go..But that's just my way of thinking. It also helped kick up the heart rate when the pan started burning with left over flour between batches and I had to desperatly fan out the kitchen before the smoke alarm went off and I had a very grumpy boyfriend on my hands!

I also altered the recipe just a smidge because when a recipe calls for lard, it's just a turn off. And really, I can't justify making a recipe to lead a healthier life when it calls for lard, seems counterproductive right? So instead of Lard I used I Can't Believe It's Not Butter, again one of our healthy changes...since J came home one day and insisted we change because some guy in really good shape told him about it in training... Please, nobody tell him about anymore strange diets or eating fads because I guarantee we will be trying it the next day, and I really can't live without bread or pasta or dressing on my salad or..the list goes on... In fact, why doesn't somebody tell him the best way to stay in shape is to buy me flowers or wash dishes..hmm I think I am onto something. Anyways, back to flat bread! I was just doing a trial run so I halved the recipe and made smaller rounds but the actual measurements are as follows...

3 cups four
5 TBS butter- They said unsalted, I used I Can't Believe it's Not Butter and it came out fine
1 tsp salt- I used sea salt because that's all this house carries
2 tsp baking POWDER
3/4 cups warm water

Super easy right?? Literally took 2 minutes once I dug out the baking powder

• First mix the dry ingredients
• Cut in the butter ( I used my hands because I can't afford one of those fancy pants kitchen aid mixers, and the knife trick takes too long for this impatient girl) 
• Divide into 12 equal portions
• Let rise for 10 minutes (mine looked no different but they still turned out okay) 
• Roll out with a well floured rolling pin to about 8 inches- or in my case I used a handy wine bottle :)
• In a dry skillet turned to Medium high, cook one tortilla at a time for 20 to 40 seconds on each side. They really will start to bubble and turn slightly golden brown
• The recipe said not to roll them all out at once because they will dry out, I would take this advice even though I can't vouch for it--I only made 6

That's It Folks, yummy warm tortillas for your eating pleasure! So many options!

I can personally say they are great with salsa as a chip as well as a great wrap for a tuna melt! I am thinking of making J a breakfast burrito when he wakes up! All I can say is next time I am going for the all out recipe and dishing up some carne asada burritos or enchiladas for supper!

That there is my rendition of a tuna melt, then I folded it in half taco style.

Little Taste of Heaven

For some reason, I was really craving Smores the other night after J made his tri-annual meal for me. Because we don't have a working grill. Well, we don't actually know it doesn't work, it has been in the yard since I met J and yet we have never ventured to turn it on. This could be because I am HORRIBLE at grilling, unless that is, you are having a hankering for hockey pucks on a bun... and if I don't do it that means that...wait for it...J would have to be the grill master...Not likely! So our Smores adventure took place in the kitchen, heating marshmallows in the microwave until they were on the brink of explosion, then scooping them onto the graham crackers and chocolate. Not a bad alternative..Except now I am left with a bag of marshmallows and I am not a big fan of eating just a lone marshmallow (Though I hear they are good for sore throats--anyone have experience with that remedy?)  So while cruising Pinterest--which I must admit is becoming a bit of an addiction! I came across a recipe where you coat marshmallows with melted butter, then cinnamon sugar and roll them in crescent rolls and bake.

I expected a tasty treat for this cloudy afternoon at home, but what I got reminded me of those sticky buns mom used to make every Christmas Morning! Ooooh it was gooood!!!! I am restraining myself from polishing off the remaining 7 before J can have a taste. They are light and fluffy and delicious, oh and super easy!!



To use up one tube of crescent rolls, you make 8 tasty treats so you need...

8 marshmallows
1/2 cup ish sugar
several dashes of cinnamon
1/4 stick melted butter
1 tube crescent rolls

My measurements are vague because I didn't really measure, I eyeballed the cinnamon until I thought it looked acceptable and I just saved the extra cinnamon sugar for use another day!

Bragging Rights Chicken

Since what I am about to share with you has only happened a handful of times, I hope you share my sense of awe! My wonderful boyfriend has many talents, but cooking is not one of them...or so he would like you to think. I have always been the queen of the kitchen in our relationship and he has been king of eating what I make for him. He has made 3 meals for me in the past year and all of them were quite delicious! So this past Christmas, my stocking was stuffed with what we like to call "Tiger Bucks", green coupons that he used during his time as a teacher and for each Tiger Buck, I get 1 meal made by him for yours truly! So now that he has finally settled into his new schedule at work I was able to call in my Tiger Buck!!! And after tonight, I am considering handing over the kitchen for a night or two a week. J's spin on chicken pasta (found on Pinterest) was AMAZING! He marinated the chicken in an herb and garlic marinade with added pesto! Then the sauce was a combo of tomato sauce, half and half, chicken broth and more pesto!

Here is what you need:
2 boneless chicken breasts cut into 1 inch strips
4 Large spoonfuls of Pesto
1/2 bottle of herb and garlic marinade
8 oz pasta

For the sauce:
2 TBS olive Oil
3 cloves garlic
2 spoonfuls Pesto
1/2 cup chicken broth
8 oz tomato sauce
1 cup half and half

Marinate the chicken in 2 spoonfuls of Pesto and the marinade

When ready to cook, place chicken with all of the marinade into a pan and cook until chicken is cooked through. Set aside

Cook pasta as per box directions

Cook the 3 garlic cloves in 2 TBS olive oil
Add 2 Spoonfuls of Pesto
Add chicken broth and simmer until reduced by half
Stir in tomato sauce and half and half
Simmer for 5 minutes
Add flour is it needs to thicken (j did this)

Combine the sauce with the pasta and place chicken pieces over top...SO GOOD!!!!

I promise you will not be sorry you made this one, it is one of J's all time favorite dishes now and he can be a tough critic!! He also was pleased to accompany this dish with some red wine!

Amazing Avocado Season

It is one of those too hot to heat up the kitchen kind of days. This is why my crock pot is currently filled with soon to be pulled pork...I hope.With life settling into a calmer pace I am finding myself back to searching my cookbooks for new dinner options. I wanted summer comfort food..is that actually possible? It is too hot for heavy pasta and meatballs, lasagna or bread bowls filled with any kind of soup. But after a day of cleaning out the basement, wiping down the kitchen and working in the garden, I wanted a something creamy and warm and yummy.This is when I stumbled across a recipe (on Pinterest--yes I am an addict) for avocado pasta. It claimed to be creamy like an Alfredo...hmm the wheels began to spin.... It is avocado season...spinning faster...and I could add chicken...faster still...and I can finally house leftovers! TA DA dinner inspiration! Now, J is not usually a fan of cooked tomatoes--yes he has quite a substantial list of things that won't touch his palate, but I figured he could just pick them out if he despised them (aren't I nice?) So here is how it goes, you need:

• 2 ripe avocados
• 3 TBS olive Oil
• 2 TBS lemon juice ( I used lime since I had it)
• 2 cloves of garlic- chopped
• 12ish quartered cherry or other small tomato ( I will use more next time)
• grated Parm
• Salt and Pepper
• pine nuts-optional
• fettuccine
• chicken

About an hour before I wanted to serve, I quartered my tomatoes, coated them in olive oil and some salt and put them in the oven at 300

With about 30 min left to cook my tasty tomatoes...

I started by cooking cubed chicken pieces on the stove in olive oil.

While this was going, I cut and cubed my avocado and added them to my food processor- man do I need a bigger one of those, is it too early to start my Christmas list?

Next, I added the 2 TBS of olive oil, as I had already used 1 for the chicken- 2 TBS lime juice, garlic, salt and pepper to the processor.

Grind grind grind until smooth and creamy...it does not yet look appetizing!

Cook the pasta of your choice to al dente and stir pasta, chicken, tomatoes and sauce all together in a large bowl.

This is where you may garnish with one nuts if you so desire ( I did not simply because I forgot to buy them) But I did add the grated Parm and plenty of pepper!

Holy Guacamole is this delicious! It took a few bites to really appreciate the flavor, and get over the greenness... but Yumm-o! It really was creamy like an Alfredo sauce but tasted fresher and the tomatoes gave it a nice pop of a different texture. The original recipe did not call for chicken, but we are a carnivorous household and why not add some protein? We both nibbled on some seconds and J requested that this recipe go down in my official recipe book to be made again! He also requested a red wine for next time :)

my little oil covered tomatoes

Simple enough- look at that ripe avocado

As I said- not appetizing yet

A little dark but trust me, SO YUMMY!

Home-Made Simple

In our kitchen it's the simple things in life that matter...like having a functional refrigerator! Oh how I am basking in the simplicity today! Our new fridge was finally delivered yesterday and I am working on stocking the shelves with all things that require a chill. Speaking of needing a chill...I had forgotten how useful a freezer is! There are so many things you can do with ice! J's specialty:  Iced coffee, iced tea, a tall glass of ice water with a wedge of lemon...oh and ice cream! One more great thing about a freezer, spending less money on groceries! I can finally take advantage of those buy one get one...or even more exciting, the buy one, get TWO free sales at Big Y. Today, I got two packs of chicken tenders and 3, yes THREE pork roasts for the price of one... Two are currently residing in my Freezer. I will post the recipe for tonight's dinner later on, but I have left over chicken pockets and left over chicken pocket mix for sandwiches! Oh left overs how I have missed you!

Our Latest Kitchen Addition
But in the past few weeks of not being able to thoroughly use my kitchen due to lack of a cold source, I have taken to browsing Pinterest as I noted in my DIY section. I started with a simple lamp painting project, which I completed today with a shade from Lowes, and found myself searching for creative ways to homey this place up with what we already have. I am beyond happy with my latest kitchen addition (and J loves it too).. A wine glass holder made out of an old rake head that had broken off before my time in the House of J.  I have to share! 

 John used 3 nails to secure the rake and used a hammer to slightly bend the teeth up to keep the glasses from slipping out. I used some of my garden twine to make a simple bow, found a blue wine bottle in the basement from last year's apple picking adventure and picked some black-eyed Susans from behind my garden to bring it all together. We are brainstorming sign ideas for above the masterpiece but have not decided on what it should say.

First Pickings

 

It took some time, and even more patience to see my garden take off this year. I lost my lettuce to the hot weather and some of my veggies decided to be persnickety and not grow as their companions did for no good reason. I saw a sign on Pinterest saying "Grow Damnit!" It will be in my garden as soon as I can find some paint and wood. Today, I finally got J to help me pound in the giant fence posts that he salvaged from an old garden fence in our back woods. From these rusty giants, I strung twine that I was able to tie more twine to for my beans to grow up and to lend support to my tomato heavy vines. While assisting my plants in standing on their own, I noticed my beans had sprung! I had beans reaching the ground, some probably 4 inches long! Yikes!!! I didn't plan beans for dinner, but I came in with a Tupperware of beans, one pepper and a shriveled tomato (poor thing). The first pickings from my garden was an exciting moment in this house and J kindly ate a bean prior to washing and reported them to be sweeter than he thought they would be. So now, I am trying to figure out a way to incorporate beans into our dinner of avocado chicken pasta....May be I will just wait for tomorrow and look at those lovely green beans on my kitchen   counter for one more day!

My herb garden is coming along

First Cucumber!!!!

Crab and Goat Cheese Ravioli

 

We had this amazing dish as one of the first courses for Easter dinner and J and I liked it so much, I dug out my Cuisine at Home and found the recipe to make it at home for just the two of us. The exact recipe is coming soon (as soon as I am back in the kitchen and not visiting CT for the night). But to peak your interest, here are the pictures I took of the process. Making these raviolis was time consuming, but worth it! I would recommend trimming the edges, which I didn't do and making them into circles with a cutter. I also overfilled ours and it was even better! This was served with a lemon cream sauce and left overs were delish

For filling

•  4 oz softened goat cheese
• 2 TBS chopped chives
• 1/4 tsp each salt and pepper
• 1 can minimum lump crab meat
• 32 wonton wrappers(I used more)
• 2 Tbs olive oil

For Sauce
2 cloves sliced garlic
1 TBS butter (unsalted)
3/4 cup heavy cream
1 TBS lemon juice and fresh zest

• Combine goat cheese, chives, crab meat, salt and pepper in large bowl
• scoop 1 TBS of mixture into the center of one wanton wrapper
• brush edges of the top wrapper with water and place wet side down over mixture
• press edges to seal
• Cut to shape if desired
• Repeat until mixture is gone
• Heat pan over medium heat
• add oil and ravioli in  small batches
• Cook until brown on one side (about 2 min)
• Flip ravioli and add 1-2 Tbs water  to pan and cover to steam 1-2 min
• Remove to plate

       For Sauce:

• Saute garlic in butter for 1 minute
• Stir in cream, increase heat to high and boil until cream is reduced to 1/2 cup
• Stir in lemon juice 
• Season with salt and pepper
• Garnish ravioli with zest

Cheesy Hot Chicken Salad

With the New England heat wave rolling through last week, I was trying to find recipes that would be on the lighter side and yet filling for J who has been a bottomless pit the past few weeks. I also still need dishes that will not leave me with left over condiments as we STILL do not have a full sized fridge... I found myself looking through my cooking magazine binder and just did not want to take the time to make some of the yummy looking dishes, but hot chicken salad popped out at me as I had made it once before. I simplified the recipe, using Philadelphia cooking cream rather than buying both mayo and sour cream. I was able to fit the left overs into a medium Tupperware which fit in the fridge and allowed two days of left overs.

For 6(ish) portions:
4 boneless chicken breasts shredded ( I poach mine if I just buy it for this dish)
1 jar pimentos (chopped)
1 small can water chestnuts slivered
1/2 cup peas
1/4 cup slivered almonds ( you don't lose anything if you opt out of these)
1 1/2 cups Philadelphia cooking cream - I used the Italian favor but any would be delish
Juice from 1/2 of a lemon
1 bag shredded cheddar
1 small can potato stix
salt and pepper to taste

• cook, let cool, and shred chicken breasts
• In a large bowl, combine water chestnuts, pimentos and almonds
• Add shredded chicken
• In a smaller bowl, combine and mix cooking cream and lemon juice
• Combine the cream mixture with the chicken mixture
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Coat large baking dish with non stick spray
• Spoon into dish
• Top with cheddar cheese
• Bake for 15-20 min at 375
• Sprinkle with potato stix and serve

adapted from Cuisine at Home

funky kitchen

We are still without a fridge, and as of last night, we are also without a kitchen faucet. These issues with the fact that the "mother in dating" officially despises me has not allowed for a pleasant week, and has certainly not encouraged my cooking. This week, specifically this weekend has sent me into an order delivery
 pizza/Chinese/subway funk. I am in a slump, where the idea of going to the grocery store and trying to find a recipe that will yield no leftovers and need no refrigerated ingredients has me instead steering myself toward the take out menu drawer and another 3 episodes of West Wing. This reminds me of a movie I once saw, with Sarah Michelle Gellar I think...Simply Irresistible?  Anyways, I feel that you put yourself into your cooking, and if that is true, anything coming from my kitchen this week is going to be worthy of the compost pile. Hopefully, this too shall pass and my kitchen will be revived soon.

Refrigeratorless

I hate to admit that we have been ordering take out or picking up Panera salads for dinner for the past week or so. Last night J even took me out to dinner at our favorite restaraunt. The reason for this is not because I am tired, or busy with grad school projects, but because the refrigerator decided last week to stop working. Given, it's been making horrible noises since I met J and I had suspicions that the temperature wasn't quite right a few times, when leftovers went bad before they should have. But now there is no doubt that it has made it's move to that big refirgerator warehouse in the sky, it has kicked the bucket, and no amount of J's fiddling will revive it.

This is not a good development for my much needed cooking therapy sessions! I need my nightly destressor to deal with my day to day happenings..a second grader who rolled her eyes at me at least 100 times yesterday, my mother's looming moving day, and that person that you know has something to say about you as soon as you are out of earshot...and infact, you are not always out of earshot. I have found out some very interesting things that I have done or said that must have been done while I was in a momentary coma because I don't remember half of them. I desperatly need this vital aspect of the kitchen back to house my much needed ingredients! But J says PBJ is fine and who needs cream for coffee, we just won't have coffee, or we can drive down the mountain to DD. So now is the time to find some recipes that don't call for eggs, milk, sauces of any kind or will yeild leftovers.

I was is a pickle last week whenI had signed up to bring my pretzel salad to the end of the year grad party at my professors house but had no way to set the jello or keep it cold until the next day... so pretzel salad was out. I needed something easy, with no cold ingredients, no need to set in the fridge and something I could take to work with me the next day and leave in the car for later on. Thinking...thinking...Tumbleweeds!

Tubleweeds are extremely easy to make and extremely easy to eat the entire batch in one sitting if you are not careful! They even passed J's taste test, so you know they can't be bad!

What you need:
3 cups butterscotch chips
3 TBS peanut butter
1 (12 oz) container of salted peanuts
1 (7oz) container potatoe stix
(Picture to come soon)

What to do:
In a medium pot, slowly heat and stir the buttercotch chips and peanutbutter until melted
Remove from heat
Add peanuts and potatoe stix- Stir to combine
Spoon by large Tablespoons onto waxed paper
Let set :)

You can throw these in the fridge to set if you have one available, but mine came out just fine when I left them to set on the counter!

Now that I have a frigeless dessert, I need to move onto the important meals of breakfast and dinner, we miss our scrambled eggs!

Cowboy Pot Roast

No need to plan a dude ranch vacation to get a taste of good old country, cowboy cooking y'all.  I love my Cowgirl Cuisine cookbook, which is where I got this recipe and only tweaked it a bit to take some of the spice out for my boyfriend with the bland palate! This is a great dish to prepare when you are working outside all day, or you have no clue when your significant other will be home, which was the case when I made this. Sure I will be home for dinner...9:00 at night and after he already ate pizza while he was out... this dish was still amazingly delicious and tender.

What you need:

4 lb bone in chuck roast- I used a boneless roast and it worked just fine!
1 TBS salt plus another 1tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 TBS Cumin
2 TBS chopped Thyme
2 TBS chopped Rosemary
2 Large onions
1 head of garlic trimmed and peeled (15ish)
1-4 Serrano Chiles.. I used 2 and it was still too hot for J so I would go with 1 or none at all
2 cups beef broth
2 TBS instant espresso powder
1 tsp paprika
2 TBS Olive Oil
2 cups canned tomatoes with juice
1/2 cup whisky
2 fresh bay leaves- I used dried
1 lb carrots sliced to approx 4 inches
1 lb fingerling potatoes

Preheat oven to 325

Let meat sit out of the fridge for about an hour before cooking.

1. Combine the salt, pepper, cumin, thyme, and rosemary in a small bowl. Massage the mixture over the
    roast
2. While the meat comes to room temp, slice onion into 8 wedges, peel and crush garlic, slice serrano chiles
     from stem to the tip, keeping one side intact .
3. Whisk together beef broth, instant espresso powder and paprika until blended
4. Heat olive oil in a large dutch oven over med-high heat. When hot, add roast and brown each side until
    crusty and a deep brown on each side.
5. Remove meat, lower to medium and add onions, garlic and chiles. Cook about 5 minutes, stirring often
    until coated with beef fat and onions start to break down.
6. Add beef broth mixture, tomatoes, whiskey and bay leaes. Stir up any browned bits. Return roast to pan
    and nestle into the liquid.
7. Cover and place dutch oven in the oven. Roast for 1 hour, turn the roast and spoon liquid over the top.
     Return to the oven for another hour.
8. Add carrots and potatoes around the meat. Try to cover in as much juice as possible. And cook in the
    oven for the final hour.
9. Remove from oven and let sit uncovered for 30 minutes.
10. Remove bay leaves and serve.

I made buttermilk biscuits to go with this which was a great pairing and good for egg sandwiches the next morning!

Taken from: Cowgirl Cuisine

Cheeseburger Egg-rolls

A few years ago my brother worked at a pizza restaurant so we had pizza for dinner quite often. Some of his concoctions were fairly tame, consisting of the basic pizza toppings of pepperoni, olives, sausage etc.I'm pretty sure I drove with him to try to accomplish some last minute Marine details with the promise of him taking me to dinner when I was introduced to my favorite pizza...What does this have to do with egg-rolls you might ask... Well after coming back from washing my hands, he tells me that he ordered cheeseburger pizza.. I was less than thrilled, especially after he told me what was on it..mayo, mustard and ketchup...pickles,onions, cheese and hamburger...eww gross! I was persuaded into trying a bite and oh my goodness, I think cheeseburger pizza changed my life! It was amazing, now my favorite kind of pizza! So when I saw a recipe for cheeseburger egg-rolls in Cuisine at Home I was hoping for the same phenomenon... While I had some glitches making these for the first time they turned out amazing! Let me share that Egg-rolls are not easy to assemble and I had never fried anything in oil before, but hey I have watched Paula Dean do it plenty of times so how hard could it be? I think I even told J that this making these Egg-Rolls was not fun! But man were they delish!

• If you do make this recipe DO NOT forgo the sauce, it really makes a difference! 
• I started using 2 egg-roll wrappers instead of one, to have a longer area to roll and could add more filling.

What you need:

A large bottle of Canola Oil
1 Lb ground sirloin
1Tbs Olive Oil
1 bag shredded iceberg lettuce- I shredded my own
1/2 cup dill pickle- diced
1/2 cup onion-diced
salt and pepper to taste
1 egg
2 Tbs water
15 slices American cheese
15+ egg-roll wraps

Heat Canola Oil in a large pot to 375 at medium high heat
Brown Sirloin in olive oil in a large saute pan 5 min
OFF HEAT: stir in lettuce, pickle, and onion, season with salt and pepper and stir until lettuce wilts and drain
Whisk together water and eff
Lay 2 egg roll wrappers slightly overlapping on a flat surface
I egg wash these two together before I fill
Put 1 slice of cheese in the center and spoon in 1/4 cup cheeseburger mixture
Roll and fold in the ends
Egg wash the roll to keep together
Place in batches of 3 or 4 in oil until golden brown and crispy

For the Sauce

Whisk together:
1 cup mayo
1/4 cup ketchup
3 Tbs Yellow Mustard
1/4 cup diced dill pickle
Salt/pepper to taste

If I were to make these again, I would lay them on a towel to absorb some of the extra oil and make them less greasy...also if you reheat do so in the oven. J didn't like the sogginess of microwaving them the next day!

Go To Easter Pleaser

If you are going to a holiday with my family, one thing you need to have is a great go to dish. One that you can throw together while you are doing a million other tasks at the same time. For example, this weekend I cleaned out the fridge and washed it from the inside out, cleaned the shower, vacuumed, did two loads of laundry, baked a batch of cookies and made dinner for us and our dinner and a movie guest, and got the flower beds ready for planting. The last thing I wanted to do was make a time consuming holiday dish. Pretzel Salad was something I hadn't made for a few years and I had to go find a new recipe since mine was long gone. Even though the recipe I got did not include all of the ingredients I recalled, I tried it anyways and would only make a few modifications for next time. This dish is a combination of sweet and salty and even though J thought it would be a dessert, we served it with the meal.

What you need:

 2 cups crushed pretzels
3/4 cups melted butter
3 TBS white sugar
1 (8oz) package cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 (8 oz) container  thawed Cool Whip
2 (10oz) packages frozen strawberries
2 (3 oz) packs strawberry Jell-O
2 cups Boiling water

Crust:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Stir together crushed pretzels, 3/4 cups melted butter and 3 TBS sugar:
Press mixture into the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish and backe 8-10 minutes
Let cool

Filling:
In a large bowl, cream together cream cheese and 1 cup sugar
Fold in Cool Whip
Spread evenly into COOLED crust

Topping:
Dissolve Jello in boiling water
Stir in frozen strawberries
Let set for a few minutes until the consistency of egg whites (about 5 min)
Spread over cream cheese mixture and refrigerate until set.

 I made an extra cup of the crust to cover my dish. I would have made double both the filling and Jello Topping if I had the time to go back out to the store. A thicker layer of both would have been great. But everyone loved it, many had seconds and I have some left in the fridge for dessert tonight!

New England Native

Being a native New Englander, the only chowder I make is the hearty white New England style. I made this at the end of the summer and twice since. J requests this soup in a bread bowl for Friday dinner when he has had an especially tough week. I have tried a few variations of this recipe, and a few types of bread bowls. The recipe that I find to be the winner hands down is from the Big Y weekly magazine that they put in the bottom of the shopping baskets. I also recommend sourdough bread-bowls., or good crust italian bread.

What You Need: 

2 slices of bacon ( I use more like 4)
1 cup finely chopped onion
2 celery stalks ( I don't use because J hates celery)
2 TBS flor
1 cup clam juice ( I use reserve from the clam cans)
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced small
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 cup fresh clams- I used about 4 cans of the chopped NOT DICED clams
1 cup Light Cream
1 cup water
4 drops hot sauce
salt and pepper to taste.
Bread bowls per person

• Place Bacon in a large stockpot- (I used my dutch oven) and cook over medium heat until crisp
• Add onion and celery and saute over medium low (about 5 min)
• Add flour and stir to make a paste
• Add clam juice, water, potatoes and thyme
• Increase heat and bring to a boil
• Reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes or until potatoes are tender.
• Add clams and stir in cream
• Simmer for 5 minutes, until thick and creamy
• Stir in salt, pepper and hot sauce.
• Serve in hollowed bread bowls!

Tenderizing Therapy

Today was one of those days where all went well until you walk in the door days. Let's just say that after a day of teaching fifth graders wearing gym attire because I was supposed to be the PE teacher, the news I came home to did not do much to perk me up (although the coffee coolatta that J brought me helped). Today has brought my attention back to the fact that there is no way you can please everyone, and that the only person you can make happy is yourself. But, when I set out to make chicken cordon bleu..as requested for the nights meal, had not yet found this inner piece of wisdom. So I whipped out the "meat hammer" and went to town on my poor chicken breasts! This chicken demolition was indeed gratifying and ranked right up there with a good hour at the gym. I did go too far with one chicken breast, accidentally smashing it to a pulp..oops. But after the flattened chicken was stuffed with ham and cheese, dredeged in flour, egg wash and panko bread crumbs, and after a few curses when my eggwash bowl upended and poured the sticky mixture onto the kicthen floor, I walked away from the oven (preheated to 350) for 20-30 minutes feeling much better. Another example of how a good bout in the kitchen is the best therapy I know!

 

After making this, I would make a few changes, first of all, it took longer that 30...more like 40 minutes to cook through. Also, J requested more Swiss cheese! Very tasty! But in all of my tenderizing therapy, it was pointed out to me that I forgot a vegetable..oops

Portuguese Shrimp

I tried out this recipe for New Years Eve, and again a few weeks ago. I first had this dish on Christmas Eve at the my boyfriend's aunts. Nearing 11 or 12 at night, after we were all stuffed from dinner and desserts, had played games and were almost talked out, a giant pot of spicy shrimp was put in front of us along with chunks of bread. I wasn't sure I could manage more food, but was convinced that this was "the best thing ever". Now I had already been impressed by all of these new Portuguese dishes his family had laid out, but this is by far one of the best things I have EVER eaten! A week or so later, I was looking for something special for New Years Eve, and I made a call to the head cook of his family who gave me the following recipe...

(technically called Shrimp Mozambique)

2 Lbs shrimp Raw with the shell on- very important

1 can beer ( I used Bud)

2 sticks butter

2T paprika

1 tsp salt and pepper

juice from 1/2 of a lemon

1/4 cup fresh parsley

1/2 T garlic

Tabasco to taste

4 small packages Goya seasoning (conazafern- the orange one with shrimp on the package)

In a skillet, melt 2 sticks of butter

 add the can of beer.

Place shrimp in skillet

Add all other ingredients

Cook on Medium heat for about 15 min

Turn off heat

Let shrimp sit in sauce for 1 hour to absorb.

I serve this in a deep bowl, with a side bowl for the shrimp shells and Portuguese bread which I get at the bakery in Ludlow MA. Your fingers will be orange by the end but the sauce is THE BEST part!

My Kitchen Introduction

I have loved cooking since my teen years. I was always asking to cook for my family, wanted to have dinner parties and probably drove my family crazy with the mess I always left in my wake. After moving out on my own, I found cooking to be therapeutic. I could forget my loneliness, the bad day at work, the fight I had with whomever and just focus on making something complicated and delicious. Of course cooking for yourself is not quite as rewarding as cooking for others. I made endless bowls of pastas, vegetables and always felt guilty when all I could produce was spaghetti and meatballs with those frozen meatballs I had to pull out from behind some forgotten pint of ice cream.

I then met a man and that seemed to change everything. I had someone to cook for! He loves to tell the story of how I said I loved to cook, and  then the first meal I made for him turned out to be the " worst ribs on the face of the earth. " I challenge myself not to repeat meals for him, and I must say I have done fairly well, repeating only those which he requests again. I think I made up for the ribs! Now about to enter my late twenties (ech) I find that I would rather grocery shop, plant an herb garden and create dishes in his sunny yellow kitchen than go out on the town. 

I have been inspired by a grad class in which I had to create a blog, and I began reading blogs of friends and strangers alike...stealing recipes and ideas. I wavered about making my own but  here goes nothing...