A Long Awaited Treat

6/21/09: Hot Dogs with Chocolate Chip and Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

• Meal details: Main course, hot dogs -- pork and beef hot dogs with ketchup, mustard, and green tomato relish for condiments.

Dessert, chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies -- I don't think I need to explain further! I would believe most of you can visualize what these two cookies are like. :)

• Recipes sources: I had an incredibly hard time trying to find a chocolate chip recipe. . . Not! I just used the good old Nestle Tollhouse cookie recipe that I found on the back of the chip bag. I've tried many different C&C (aka chocolate chip) recipes before and I have found these to be my family's favorite. The oatmeal raisin recipe came from Annemarie's Betty Crocker cookbook. I don't know what I would do without that cookbook!
• Defining moments: I made TTTOOONNSSS of cookies before, they are one of my favorite things to bake, so I didn't take a big step into the unknown this week.
• What I learned: I discovered why someone created refrigerator cookie recipes. It was so hot in that kitchen last Sunday! I think the temperature was around 80 that day so you can imagine what it would be like when you are standing by a 375 degree oven for an hour! But the cookie satisfaction afterwards can't be beat. :)
• Any modifications? Nope, followed the recipes precisely.
• How it tasted? Haven't had cookies since Winter so they were readily received by all.
• How about a 2nd time? Yes, and a 3rd, and a 4th, and. . .
  

Now stop, take a deep breath, and scroll down slowly.

Drooling yet? :)

The Blending Operation Went, Well, "Smoothie" :)

7/14/09: Lemon Asparagus Pasta & Strawberry & Peach Smoothies

• Meal details: Main course, lemon asparagus pasta -- steamed asparagus and ruffle pasta tossed together with lots of lemon zest, evaporated milk, Parmesan cheese, and pepper.

Dessert, strawberry and peach smoothies -- strawberry smoothie was made with our own fresh strawberries and a few spoonfuls of ice cream. The peach version was made using our frozen peaches packed in simple syrup. Nothing was added to the peach concoction except for water.

• Recipe sources: The pasta dish came from kitchenparade.com, the strawberry smoothie was found by visiting cooks.com, and the peach smoothie was my own doing.

• Defining moments: I USED THE BLENDER! Gosh, that's a big stepping stone, isn't it? :) Kidding aside, the blender experience was really something extraordinary. You wouldn't believe how many settings it has and the horrific noise it makes!

Besides the blender, anything exciting and new? Well, this would be the first time I had to steam a large amount of asparagus at once. The steaming part was no problem, only the washing and cleaning.

• What I learned: I learned that our blender can crush ice. The day before I made the smoothies I thought the blender wasn't capable of doing this and I thought I would have to do it all by hand. Fortunately, I misread the instructions and discovered that it is possible. Glad to hear that!

I also learned that using the double boiler works very well with steaming the asparagus. And you know what? The asparagus that I've been keeping in the refrigerator is holding up rather nicely. I was thinking they would be limp by this time but they have remained crisp and fresh. I guess the plastic bag with some water is doing its job well. I still need to freeze some because I don't think we will be able to use them all in time. It would be nice, too, to have asparagus available when our fruits and vegetables are ready to harvest.

• Any modifications? Yes, I made some to the pasta recipe. I eliminated the dill from the recipe and I used evaporated milk rather than the half-and-half it called for. I also used less asparagus, about half of what they called for. My family is new to asparagus so we have to take it slow you know!

• How it tasted? The pasta was really bright and fresh and the addition of Parmesan cheese did wonders! According to one taster, I added too much pepper. I may want to go back on that ingredient a bit next time. The smoothies were just how I expected them to be: fruity, summery, nectar-y. . . Don't I explain it so well? Annemarie said the strawberry version was really, really good; said it three times in fact!

• How about a 2nd time? All were winners, so yes. I would, however, add more asparagus to the pasta dish.

Now doesn't that look so nectar-y?

They Have Arrived!

Our strawberry patch is bearing fruit as I speak! We started picking them on Thursday. Here, take a look at the fruit of our labor.








We've already been enjoying them on shortcake and cereal. For this Sunday we'll be having more for breakfast and they will be served along side homemade pancakes. I can undoubtedly say that it will be yummy!

The Word is "PIE!"

6/10/09: Chicken BBQ Pizza and Peach Pie with Asparagus on the Side

No, June 10th is not a Sunday but it happens to be my youngest sister's birthday. Many months prior to her birthday she was requesting me to make BBQ Pizza and Peach Pie for her birthday supper. Click here and here to see my past experiences with BBQ Pizza and here and here for the peach pie. The asparagus came in later and let me tell you how and why. Back in May my family watched a PBS special called Asparagus: Stalking the American Life (you can learn more about this show by visiting this blog). During the duration of the 53 min. program we learned about a farmer who lives in our area who was combating the foreign trade issue. Later on, around the end of May, this same asparagus farmer stops at our farm market and promises to bring some of his asparagus to us on a later trip. He stayed true to his word and last week he gave us 10 pounds of fresh picked asparagus!

The asparagus: (I steamed some and pan-roasted the other half. My family hasn't really tasted asparagus before so we're kind of testing it using light seasoning.)

So here are some photos of the peach pie (1 of 2) made using the canned peaches my family did last year:

My youngest sister can't seem to get the pie ecstasy out of her system! For the past 6 days she has been constantly saying with much ardor: "PIE!"

Where's the Beef?

6/7/09: Beef and Bean Chimichangas

• Meal details: Chimichangas filled with cheese, onion, corn, refried beans, chicken, peppers, and taco sauce baked in the oven to become an ooey, gooey, cheesy package full of goodness. :) What, no beef? Read on to learn why.

• Recipe sources: This recipe came from a book called Allrecipe's Dinner Tonight. If you have been reading my blog for awhile you would know that I go to allrecipes.com frequently for Sunday supper. This website has a huge amount of recipes that have been submitted by home cooks, so for me I find them easier to follow and the ingredients tend to fall within my family's comfort zone. I mean, I don't usually have goat cheese, lamb, or tuna filets available all the time! For some of you these may seem like everyday ingredients but I find them to be exotic! If you want to take a look at the recipe you can find it here.

• Defining moments: Before I began making Sunday supper my family used to have store bought chimichangas every Sunday. This is what made me choose the recipe, I wanted to see if I can make them myself. I'm always interested in making my family's "everyday food" from scratch. That is why I was so fascinated with making homemade hamburger buns a few Sundays back. Click here to read about it.

• What I learned: It was a very easy recipe to follow and execute so not many new techniques or ingredients were learned this time. But I did learn how to roll up a flour tortilla burrito style, and I discovered that smearing the tortilla with the refried beans really helps in performing this step.

• Any modifications? Yes. I substituted chicken for the ground beef so this recipe would be better known as Chicken and Bean Chimichangas. And I omitted ground cumin and chili powder from the recipe and used taco seasoning instead. I didn't follow the amounts exactly either so maybe I should write down my ingredient list here:

To make 20 chimichangas:

2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 large onion
1 cup bell peppers
2 cups whole kernel corn, drained
1 (8 ounce) bottle of taco sauce
4 tbsp of taco seasoning
2 teaspoon of garlic salt
1 (32 ounce) can refried beans
20 (9 inch) flour tortillas
2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
2 tablesppon butter, melted
Toppings: 1 (16 ounce) container of sour cream -- Note: I thought the added sour cream was fantastic!

• How it tasted: Everything about it was great! Even though these chimichangas would probably be regarded as 'burritos' by any die hard Mexican restaurant (because they were baked rather than fried), I believe my family truly enjoyed the homemade version of our classic Sunday supper meal.
• How about a 2nd time? You betcha!
  

I had to make two 13 x 9 pans of these. I only wanted to have a picture of this batch because, well, let's just say the first was my rough draft!

St. Michael's Angel Food

5/31/09: Hash Brown Casserole and Pentecost Cake in Honor of the Feast of Pentecost (May 31st)

• Meal details: Main course, hash brown casserole -- had cheese, eggs, evaporated milk, and bacon and was baked in two 13 x 9 pans.

Dessert, Pentecost Cake -- a special cake recipe that was topped off with cranberry cream cheese frosting. This specific frosting was chosen to achieve a reddish color to represent the Holy Spirit.

• Recipe sources: Casserole recipe came from verybestbaking.com. You can see it here. The cake recipe came from catholicculture.org and can be seen here.

• Defining moments: Using cranberries in frosting. Who would of thought! And I must mention here that this is my first time using bacon as an ingredient for a Sunday supper. Pretty big moment, don't you think? :)

• What I learned: I learned that it is very easy to cut bacon into pieces when it has been out of the freezer for thirty minutes, and only thirty minutes. I shouldn't let it sit out for much longer because it will be difficult to stand the stack of bacon on its side. My Papa said this is the easiest way to do it and he is absolutely right!

I also learned what a tube pan is; it is the pan that is normally used to make angel food cake.

• Any modifications? Yes, to both recipes. For the casserole, I didn't add onion or pepper, didn't use turkey bacon but rather good old pork bacon, and added more hash browns (4 oz.) and eggs (2 eggs yolks that were left over from the cake I made) to the bowl.

The cake recipe wasn't changed exactly, only the frosting. But I did have to resort to using an 8" bundt pan instead of the 7" tube pan that the recipe called for; we don't have any pan like that in my family's collection. Because I used a large cake pan the baking time went much faster. Instead of baking for 45 minutes, the cake was done in 30.

So getting back to the frosting. . . The frosting recipe called for strawberries and since I didn't have any on hand and I wanted a red fruit, I decided to substitute it with a cranberry frosting recipe. Here is the cranberry frosting recipe I used:

Cranberry Cream Cheese Frosting
--recipe found on razzledazzlerecipes.com--

3 oz. cream cheese, softened
4 tb. cranberry sauce (I used the jelly kind you find in the can)
1/3 tb. salt
1 lb. powered sugar (that's 2 cups for you fellow volume lovers!)

Soften cream cheese. Add cranberry sauce and whip until light and fluffy. Add salt. Gradually add powered sugar and continue beating until mixture is creamy. Spread between layers and on top and sides of cake. Yield: enough for two 8" layers. (Note: the frosting I made was not very stiff. It will dribble off the sides of the cake.)

• How it tasted: The casserole was liked by all but I wish it had more of a flavor punch to it! However, the texture was great and it was really easy to put together. Just make sure you have an hour for it to cook!

The cake was also well liked and I found the cranberry frosting to be d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s! Most of the time I find cake frosting to be too sweet, but with this recipe the tart cranberry flavor tones down the sweet-tooth quality I typically find.

• How about a 2nd time? I think the casserole can be made again but I would like to find that one important ingredient that it is lacking. The cake I love so that will have to reveal itself again next year!
  

My Papa said, "The texture of the cake is like a pound cake but the flavor is like an angel food. Perhaps a tough angel food would best describe it then? Oh, I got it! St. Michael's Angel Food!" Sounds good to me!

Am I getting high-tech or what? Here is a 360 view of the Pentecost cake on video. Take a look!

Blazing Through "Braising"

5/24/09: Pork Chop Supreme and Long Grain White and Wild Rice

• Meal details: Main course, Pork Chop Supreme -- boneless, loin pork chops braised with ketchup and topped off with one slice of onion and lemon and a pinch of brown sugar

Side dish, Wild Rice -- boxed rice from Gordon's Food Service.

• Recipe sources: Annemarie's Betty Crocker cookbook was where I found the pork chop recipe. The wild rice mix we had for a side dish was a boxed rice from Gordon's Food Service.

• Defining moments: First time cooking with pork chops and first time baking rice in the oven. (I've only done it on the stove top before.)

• What I learned: I was introduced to many new things this Sunday. First, I learned that there are three different types of pork chops: shoulder, sirloin, and loin; the third being the most tender because it has the least amount of connective tissue. I used a boneless loin cut for my pork chop recipe.

I also learned what the word "braising" meant. Braising is a cooking technique where the meat (or vegetable) is seared and then later left to simmer with a bit of liquid (typically water or stock) with the pan cover on. This technique allows tougher cuts of meats to become more tender and gives richness to the entire dish because the ingredients have time to intermingle. I was very interested in learning about braising because I realized I have been doing it for years when cooking ground beef. My family likes to use partially frozen meat products when cooking because we find it less messy. (I never like those raw meat juices dripping on the kitchen counter!) Since we use meat in this state we always need to add a bit of water to the covered skillet in order for the meat to quickly, and thoroughly, thaw. In other words, BRAISING. So very interesting, don't you think?

Because I cooked some wild rice for a side dish I decided to read up on this type of rice and find out why it is called "wild." This is what I found. Ahem. Wild rice (aka Canada rice, Indian rice, and water oats) is the name given to four different species that make up the genus Zizania. Three of these species are native to North America and the fourth is native to Asia. Why is it called wild? I couldn't find any source that would answer this question directly, but from what I have read it is because these four species tend to grow along slow-flowing streams and small lakes.

• Any modifications? Nope. Did everything according to the recipe.

• How it tasted? I had rave reviews about these pork chops! They were fantastically tender and full of flavor. The brown sugar and lemon really made it special. The wild rice was a bit hard to chew (that is how wild rice is), but it was mighty tasty.

• How about a 2nd time? Absolutely for the chops, but the wild rice will probably be replaced with a softer variety.

Here are the chops simmering away in our nonstick dutch oven. Boy, it seems like I have to pull that dutch oven out every time I cook!

I'm sorry I wasn't able to take a photo of the wild rice I made--they took a little bit longer than I thought so my mind was more on them being done than on photos! But here is a reference photo from Uncle Ben's website to give you a picture of what I made. My rice resembles it very well.

Strawberry Search

Strawberry season is coming soon and I would like to make some strawberry dishes for my family, freeze some, and maybe make a smoothie. Now I just need some ideas and I am hoping some of you who are reading this post may share a recipe or recipe idea in the comments section. It would really help me out! You can share desserts, smoothies, or main dish recipes; I'm open to anything.

So which strawberry path should I take. . .

(image from notquitenigella.com)

Shortcakes?


(image from fun345.com)

Strawberry Pie?


(image from luvsandlife.blogspot.com)

Strawberry Cheesecake?


(image from thekneadforbread.com)

Strawberry Bread?

Or maybe. . .

?

. . . you fill in the blank, thanks!

"Layering" on the Flavors This Week

5/17/09: Cheesy Meat Lasagna and Warm Chocolate Pudding Cake

• Sources: Both recipes came from http://www.kraftfoods.com/foodandfamily/.

• Defining moments: This would be my first ever lasagna and pudding cake. Actually, I never even heard of a 'pudding' cake until I came across the recipe on the Food and Family website.

• What I learned/modifications: Guess what? I learned how to make instant pudding! :) Nah! I'm kidding. What I did learn was that there are two types of lasagna noodles: oven-ready and boil. The oven-ready are very easy to use (you just place the dry noodle in the casserole dish and allow the sauce to cook it), so I used them. The ones you have to boil are tricky to use and a bit sloppy. I never handled them before but that is what I gather from Annemarie.

Any modifications? I substituted ricotta cheese for the cottage cheese and I didn't really pay attention to the exact number of noodles to use. I just made the layers and eyeballed it. And instead of using ready-made pizza sauce I used our homemade tomato puree. I allowed it to reduce and thicken and then I added oregano, Italian seasoning, and granulated garlic to the pot.
I made a tiny mod for the pudding cake. Instead of using the boxed devil's food cake I made the cake batter from scratch using the "New Popular Devil's Food Cake" in Annemarie's Betty Crocker cookbook. The cake recipe uses melted chocolate so it is a bit different than your traditional. You should have been by the oven during the last ten minutes of baking time for this pudding cake! The cake started forming huge bubbles and rupturing like a volcano! The recipe instructions gave me a head's up to this, um, 'pudding cake quality' so I placed a cookie sheet under the 13x9 pan it was baking in. No spills made it to the bottom of the oven, and that is a very good thing!

• How it tasted? The lasagna noodles were a bit crunchy on top and I think the flavors didn't stand out--according to my taste buds. Everyone else seemed to like it but I think it could have been better if I added more seasoning and placed sauce and ricotta cheese on top of the final layer of noodles. The ricotta cheese probably would have aided in the noodle cooking.

The pudding cake was a bit dry and the pudding top layer was rubbery. I could have baked it for too long. I wanted to make sure a toothpick would come out clean (like the recipe says) so I kept on waiting and waiting. The pudding probably threw off my toothpick readings so the cake ended up baking for too long of time. I mean, a typical cake bakes for 30 min. or so, but this pudding cake stayed in the oven for an hour and 10 min.! So I think 50 minutes in the oven would be just right for this dessert.

• How about a 2nd time? If I pay attention to the points above I will make these two dishes a 2nd time.

Can you see the lava flow in this picture? :) Wow, that was some cake!

Here's an interesting tidbit: both recipes use a layering technique in their assembly. I do love layering, it always add visual appeal, but it always reminds me that we don't have a trifle dish. :( Ah, another wish of mine. I shall but it right beside my cake stand wish!

Interesting Data I'm Seeing

Yes, very interesting. After viewing my long list of tags on the sidebar I noticed that most of them are used 1 or 2 times. But wait a minute--the chicken has EIGHT. Gosh, I like to use chicken, don't I? :)

Roll Out the Red Velvet Cake for Our Mother Mary!

5/10/09: Chicken BBQ Pizza from The California Pizza Kitchen and Red Velvet Cake for dessert.

• Sources: Pizza recipe came from recipezaar.com and the cake was from Annemarie's Betty Crocker cookbook. I made the Chicken BBQ Pizza before, so check it out here.

• Defining moments: First ever Red Velvet Cake and first time using a piping bag. You can certainly tell it was the first time--read on!

• What I learned and modifications: Did you know that Red Velvet Cake and Devil's Food Cake are one and the same except that the former has red food coloring added? I didn't know that one!

I chose to bake a cake this Sunday in honor of the month of Mary: May. I was planning on adding fondant roses to the cake but wasn't able to find glycerin in time. I then decided to make the roses out of buttercream frosting but yours truly had one of her clumsy moments and the piping bag came apart at the seams. One big and heavy sigh. I couldn't make the roses this time but I'm looking forward to buying another piping bag and decorating tools to have at least one little rose to come into existence. I requested The Icing on the Cake from the library so should be able to figure out what I need soon.
So any mods this time? Well, I sort of winged it with the pizza recipe. I never did follow it, even for my first attempt. The recipe ingredients sort of sowed the "seed" in my mind and I went on from there.
Here is what I did:

Becky's BBQ Chicken Pizza
Prep: 1 hr. Cooking: 25 min.
Yield: Two 10 x 15" cookie sheets
Ingredients:

• 1.5 lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts, cooked and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
• 3 boxes of Jiffy Pizza Dough Mix
• 4 cups of bbq sauce (I add some ketchup, worcestershire sauce, and granulated garlic to Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ Sauce)
• 1 medium onion
• 1 1/2 c. bell peppers
• 2 1/2 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions: Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Cook the chicken in the dutch oven with 2 cups of water. After they turn light brown take them out and cut them into small cubes, then transfer them back into the pan and wait until they are thoroughly cooked. In the meantime, cut the onion and peppers and prepare the bbq sauce and pizza dough. After the chicken is done move it to a small bowl and toss it with a small portion of the sauce. While the chicken is cooling knead the dough and role it out to the pan size. Spray the pans with cooking spray and move rolled dough to each pan. Pat down and stretch dough up sides of pan. Bake crust for 2 minutes. Take pans out of oven and brush crust with bbq sauce. Top with onions, peppers, chicken, and cheese. Place back in oven and bake for 25 minutes. Cut each pizza into 8 pieces. IMPORTANT NOTE: I must leave two pieces free of onions and peppers for Annemarie. :)

• How it tasted? Can you really complain about this pizza? No, I didn't think so. The cake was good, too, even though it was missing a rose. I believe Mary wouldn't find fault with it so that's good to know. :)

• What about a 2nd time? Yes, indubitably.

Here's a cake for Mary. You can see that I used the star tip with the piping bag for the filling--before it broke!




What's this?! My photographer happened to take a shot of me cooking the chicken! Boy, you're a sneaky one, sis!

A Wish Come True

5/03/09: Spanish Chicken with Pasta and The Ultimate Cheesecake with Warm Blueberry Lemon Sauce

• Sources: Chicken recipe--southernfood.about.com. Cheesecake recipe--foodtv.com. I made the Spanish chicken with pasta before, check it out here.

• Defining moments: First ever cheesecake. Man, I never thought I would bake this particular cheesecake! I saw Tyler Florence, a chef on the Food Network channel, make his version of the ultimate cheesecake around two years ago. It is really the only dish I saw on t.v. that I drooled over. :) After I watched the show (Tyler's Ultimate) I thought to myself, "I never will be able to make it, , I don't know how to use a spring-form pan, I've never done a hot water bath before, and thick and syrupy blueberry sauce? No way!" But I did it and the preparation turned out to be really simple and easy to do. I would have to say it is simpler than pie.
• What I learned and modifications: I didn't follow the cheesecake directions exactly so here is what I did. Instead of a 8" spring-form pan I used a 10". Why? Because that is the only one we have! Since I adjusted the pan size I adjusted the amount of some of the ingredients. Here is my ingredient list:
  

Crust:
21 graham crackers
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 and 2 tbsp. butter, melted

Filling:
2 1/2 blocks cream cheese, softened
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 pint sour cream
1 lemon, zested (I used the cheese grater for this step)
1 tbsp. vanilla

Warm Lemon Blueberry Sauce:
2 1/2 cups blueberries
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 tbsp. sugar (recipe calls for more, but my goodness, do our homegrown blueberries need to be sweeter? Thanks Papa for planting those bushes!!!!!)

• How it tasted? Everything was superb! I used the tricolor type pasta for the chicken dish, everyone loved it. The cheesecake was light and airy and the added lemon really made it special.
• How about a 2nd time? Yes, for both.