Cake That's Not Carrot Cake But Still Didn't Break My Heart

I love cake. I don’t think I can even begin to express to you how much I love cake. Cake makes my world go round.

I wanted carrot cake, because it’s my favorite. However, I really didn’t have the energy to stand around grating carrots for my homemade carrot cake. So, I went to the grocery store to get one of those box cakes. They didn’t have carrot cake.

Can you believe that? No carrot cake?

*sigh* I bought myself a spice cake mix and two blocks of cream cheese instead and carried it home. Then, I got to thinking, spice cake isn’t really what I wanted either. How to fix it?

(I should have taken a picture but the cake was pounced upon before I thought of it. Sorry.)

Anyway, how to fix it? Raid the pantry.

The result was wonderful. Here goes…

You will need:

1 spice cake mix

2 blocks of cream cheese - softened

1 stick of butter - softened

About 3 ½ cups of powdered sugar

1 small can of crushed pineapple drained with juice reserved

7 ounce bag of pecan pieces

½ of a small bag of coconut

Vegetable oil

Orange juice

Eggs

1 tablespoon of Vanilla extract

Mix the spice cake according to package directions adding the oil and eggs – EXCEPT – where it calls for water, use the reserved pineapple juice and orange juice to make the amount required in the instructions. When the batter is mixed well, fold in the coconut and pecans.

Bake according to package directions. Don’t forget to grease and flour your pan!

While the cake is baking, make up your icing. Keep in mind, I like my cream cheese icing extra cream cheesy tasting and a little less sugary tasting. That’s why I use two blocks where most recipes only call for one.

First blend the butter, vanilla, and cream cheese. Then, while continuing to mix, add the powdered sugar, a little at a time, and mix until fluffy.  Or, you can dump it all in at once. But, don’t forget to call and invite me over first so I can laugh at the cloud of powdered sugar that explodes all over your kitchen and then quickly leave before you’re ready to clean it up.  J

You can use more or less powdered sugar here depending on your preference.  This makes a rather large batch, but we like lots of icing on our cake and I needed enough to ice 2 nine inch round cakes.

Note: a more standard cream cheese icing recipe uses 1 block of cream cheese, 1 stick of butter, and all of 1 small box of powdered sugar

Because you asked....Potato Soup

My potato soup recipe has been requested. It was cold and wet yesterday. I was achy and miserable. Nothing but soup sounded good – potato soup. *sigh*

Again, I don’t generally measure anything. I cook with handfuls, pinches, and little bits of this and that. I season, I taste, and I season again until it’s right. This is my best estimate of what I did last night.

You will need:

1 – 32 ounce carton of vegetable broth

6-8 potatoes – peeled and cubed

3 ribs of celery – roughly chopped

1 small onion – roughly chopped

4 large carrots – peeled and roughly chopped

1- 16 ounce container of sour cream or 1 block of cream cheese

1 stick of butter

Small container of half and half (I have also used heavy cream or evaporated milk)

Salt and pepper to taste

2 heaping tablespoons of cornstarch dissolved in cold water (or you can sprinkle in some instant mashed potatoes. I’ve done both to thicken)

Crumbled bacon and cheddar cheese to top – croutons are good too!

Place vegetables in soup pot and cover with vegetable broth. Add a little water until the veggies are completely submerged by about an inch or so. Add a little salt to the water.

Bring to a boil and cook until the vegetables are tender and cooked through. Add your stick of butter, sour cream, and a little more salt and pepper. Taste for salt content.

When the butter is melted and the sour cream is dissolved, gradually stir in your milk product (half and half, etc.). Let the soup simmer for a few minutes and if it needs to be thickened, this is where you either stir in the cornstarch mixture or the instant potatoes. If you use the potatoes to thicken, I’m thinking about ¼ cup, maybe? Either way, stir as you add or you will just end up with a clumpy mess. It’s kinda like making gravy, you know?

It’s so hard for me to do recipes. I cook by sight, by touch, by taste, and by experience. Hope this is enough for you to go on and hope you enjoy.

A recipe for you...Popcorn 'Cake' Treat Square Candied Thingies...

I don’t know about you guys, but I generally try to keep “real” popcorn in the house. There’s something much more satisfying, and reminiscent of childhood, about fresh popped corn. Sure, microwave popcorn is convenient and smells sinfully delicious as the aroma permeates the air, but let’s face it, it just isn’t the same.

I think that popping your own corn is most likely a thing lost in the past, having given way to the laziness and synthetic butter “flavor” that is microwave popcorn. For me, I never wanted my children to miss that joy and expectation that comes from standing over the stove and waiting for the popcorn to fill the pot until the lid began to rise and the fluffy white kernels spilled over onto the stove.

So, I’m hoping with this recipe that you know how to make “real popcorn”. It just won’t come out quite the same with the microwave stuff. If you don’t know how, you will need to buy the plain microwave corn – unsalted, un-“buttered” and it will take you approximately 2-3 bags of it.

Popcorn “Cake”

1 batch of fresh popped corn (not that microwave crap…the real deal popcorn!)

1 stick butter

1 bag of marshmallows 

Various odd and end ingredients (your choice)

I use the largest pot in my cookware set, the Dutch oven, soup pot, whatever you want to call it, and make a full pot of corn. After popping the corn, remove it to a separate bowl, making sure to discard the last little bit in the bottom of the pot. This is so you don’t have too many un-popped kernels in your treats. Place the pot back on the burner and reduce the heat to med-low.

Drop in your stick of butter and after it melts halfway, add your marshmallows. Stir constantly until the marshmallows have completely melted and then remove from the heat. Dump in your popped corn and mix well with a sturdy spoon.

This is where the fun part comes in. You get to add “various odd and end ingredients”. Experiment. Try any combination of M&M’s, nuts, chocolate chips, crushed pretzels, gum drops…the possibilities are endless and as unique to you as your wonderful treat will be when you’re finished.

Press the mixture firmly into a 13x9 buttered casserole, making sure to distribute evenly and fill the corners well. Let cool about 15 minutes and then cut into squares. Keep in a sealed container (if you have any left).

When I made this the other day, I added slivered almonds and candied walnuts. Then, I sprinkled chocolate chips in the bottom of my casserole before pressing in the popcorn mixture. They were gone in 24 hours…

What a disappointment....

I was really excited about blogging my flea market finds. I got my camera, took my pictures, and headed to the laptop to upload them.

The problem?

They won't upload. I've tried everything but the laptop isn't recognizing the device.

I love all things from the 20's to the 40's. I would have an entire house designed and furnished from this time period if I could.

I wanted to show you a picture of the gorgeous antique vanity with the original matching bench. The matching bench with the beautiful fabric colored seat. The gorgeous vanity that I found for an unheard of low price and they allowed me to layaway.

I wanted to show you pictures of the fantastic little antique collectors food tins I found in perfect condition. They were only a dollar or two a piece and will look too cute on top of my upper cabinets. I found one each for Morton Salt, Nabisco Shredded Wheat, one for graham crackers, and one for brown sugar. These were finds that are usually ten dollars and up, depending on what brands they are.

I wanted to show you the five skeins of designer yarn that I got for the whopping price of TWO DOLLARS!

But my favorite find? You'll think I'm silly. It was a 1976 Better Homes and Gardens cookbook that mom bought for me to tide me over until the day I inherit her 1970 Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. It's in perfect condition and contains many of the recipes that are in hers. I already checked. 

Insert stupid grin here --> :-D

It was that cookbook, with it's lovely red and white checked cover, that gave my mom the basic guideline for perfect spaghetti and meatballs and phenomenal lasagna. It was that cookbook that gave me the base to finally perfect a cornbread recipe. As a teenager I used that cookbook to make cookies, homemade custard and pudding, chocolate cake from scratch, all the things cookbooks don't tell you anymore now that there are mixes for everything. That cookbook was as much a part of my childhood as Golden Dream Barbie, Mrs. Beasley, and Candy Land.

I went home and spent over an hour reading over each and every page, caressing each one like a woman possessed, ready to fly into the kitchen and make something stupendous, all the while keeping my lips tightly sealed lest I drool on the pages and ruin them.

I am happy. My world is complete.

The best cornbread I've ever had is mine...

Alright folks – you have my friend girl Maasiyat over at Inside the Bipolar Mind to thank for this one. She wrote a post called Maters, Taters, Beans and Greens and the first thing I thought of was cornbread. The second thing I thought of is that I believe my cornbread is the best I’ve ever had.

I got the original recipe from my mother’s 1970 something Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook. Since then I’ve managed to tweak and perfect it to my own tastes. The result is I have the lightest, fluffiest, butteriest cornbread I’ve ever had. Now, I’m gonna share it with you.

Yeah, I totally just made up the word butteriest. It’s mine too. You can’t have it.

First you’ll need to gather supplies. You will need:

1 cup flour

1/4 cup of sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

¾ teaspoon salt

1 cup of cornmeal

2 eggs lightly beaten

1 cup of milk

¼ cup of BUTTER FLAVOR shortening (Needs to be at room temperature)

½ stick butter

1-10 inch cast iron skillet. No exceptions! This is the key to amazing cornbread!

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Add ½ stick of butter to your cast iron skillet and place it in the oven.

Next, you sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Add the cornmeal and blend it well with a fork or whisk. Pour in your two lightly beaten eggs and the milk. Blend it all well with your whisk or fork and then add in the shortening. It’s best to use a whisk for this. It does a much better job of breaking up the shortening, allowing it to blend evenly throughout the mixture.

Once the butter has completely melted in the skillet, add your cornbread batter to the skillet. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes. The top should be slightly cracked and it should be just beginning to pull away from the sides. If it's completely pulled from the sides, you've over cooked it.

You can either leave it in the skillet and serve after it cools a little or, you can loosen the edges with a knife and flip it out into a plate. For me, the warmer the better; especially since I typically butter the already buttery cornbread and then drizzle it with honey.

Hey! Don’t chastise me! I said it was good. I never said it was good for you!

Sometimes, when I’m feeling adventurous, I add little things to it. A can of corn and a can of diced chilies make a great Mexican cornbread. A handful or two of diced cooked shrimp, a little Cajun seasoning, and some shredded cheese makes a great Cajun cornbread and goes great with my gumbo. 

Sorry there are no pics. It is 100 degrees outside. I’m not turning on my oven for anyone. Not even you.

But, I love you. Really I do.

** NOTES:  Margarine doesn't work in place of the butter or the shortening. Margarine has water in it so what happens is you end up with a denser finished product. Cornbread should be light and fluffy and almost melt in your mouth. Trust me, I tried it with margarine and it was No Bueno! Also, don't substitute butter where I tell you to use shortening. Again, it's a texture thing. Also, if you have too much butter going on the butter will burn the outside of the cornbread before the inside is done.

If you're not sure, ask me and I'll tell you.

Lemon Chicken Pasta with Artichokes and Mushrooms...yum

Since I haven’t done a recipe in a while I thought I would share one today. To be honest, I haven’t been inspired enough to try anything new in the kitchen lately; that and the fact that I never measure anything when I cook, so guessing at amounts makes my brain hurt. But, that’s neither here nor there so let’s get on with the recipe.

You will need:

1 lb. of Angel Hair Pasta                                                

1 ½ c. chicken broth (or mix 50/50 with dry white wine)

½ sm onion, diced                                                           

2-3 small bonless skinless chicken breasts cubed

1 ½ cups  heavy cream                                                  

2 cloves garlic, minced                                                  

¼ cup of fresh grated parmesan cheese                               

1 sm. Jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained    

1 large lemon and the zest of the same lemon  

Sm container mushrooms sliced                                               

salt and pepper to taste                                               

2 tablespoons of cornstarch in COLD water         

1 tablespoon butter                                                       

Olive oil

Cook your pasta according to package directions and set aside. For me, timing is everything. I like it all to come together at once so, I put the pasta water on and start chopping and slicing. By the time I’m done the water is boiling and I can place the pasta in and start on the sauce.

You want your pasta al dente. (That means NOT BOILED TO MUSH for you non-cooks out there) When it’s done and drained, drizzle a little olive oil over the top and toss it so it doesn’t stick while you’re finishing up the sauce.

In a large deep skillet on medium high heat, melt the butter with about a tablespoon of olive oil. Add the cubed chicken and sauté until lightly browned. Add the onion and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic, artichokes, lemon zest, and mushrooms and sauté another 2-3 minutes. You may, or may not, need to add a little more olive oil or butter periodically during this process. Not too much though. You want a good browning going on.

Add the broth and the juice of the lemon. Be sure to scrape any yummy bits off the bottom of the pan. When the mixture begins to bubble, slowly stir in the cream and reduce to a simmer. This is the part where you salt and pepper to taste. This means add salt and pepper, TASTE IT, if it ain’t right add some more! I will never understand people who don’t taste their food as they cook and then wonder why it doesn’t taste right. Continue to cook for about 4 minutes.

Mix your cornstarch with just enough COLD water that it dissolves and set it aside. If you feel like you need the cold water and cornstarch lecture again I’ve linked it for you ---à here

Add the parmesan cheese and continue to cook for another 3-5 minutes. There should be lot’s of stirring going on in this sauce process. If you don’t have something else you’re trying to pull together, you should be stirring, making sure to scrape the bottom and sides of the pan so nothing sticks.

Now, IF at the end of the process you find yourself feeling impatient (like me) and don’t feel like standing any longer to reduce the sauce and allow it to thicken, grab that cornstarch and COLD water mixture we set aside a minute ago. Very slowly add it to the sauce, stirring constantly and vigorously. Get a whisk if you think you need one. At any rate, keep it moving so you don’t have lumpy sauce.

Serve that sauce spooned over pasta. Or, if you’d rather, go ahead and toss it with the pasta and sprinkle a little parsley over the top to make it look pretty. Whatever floats your boat is fine with me.

Finally, after you’ve tried this, let me know how you like it. J

Mexican Polenta and Breakfast Polenta

I love Polenta. For those of you who have never had it, it’s basically yellow corn grits. It’s so versatile and good for you. You can cut slices and brown them in a skillet with a little butter and/or olive oil, you can serve them like traditional grits, they’re good for breakfast and dinner and if you’re more adventurous, like me, you can try this…

First choose the Polenta you’re going to buy. I’ve found a dry mix at Kroger and also already prepared polenta that comes in a tube. Either way is fine, but if you buy the already prepared you’re going to save yourself a step or two. I buy the mix because it’s a little cheaper. You don’t need a lot. (The tube is a 16 oz package and is more than enough)

First prepare the polenta according to the package directions (when using the mix). Grease a very small casserole or bread pan with butter or cooking spray. Next, pour the warm mix into the dish, cover it well with plastic wrap and place it in the fridge. This is usually best done the day before but the morning before will do in a pinch.

If you’re using the prepared you can skip those steps and just get on with the recipe.

You will need:

Prepared polenta, chilled and cut into 1” cubes

1 small poblano pepper, seeds removed and diced (these are the same ones used for chile relleno)

½ of a small onion, diced

1 handful of pepitas (these are pumpkin seeds, hulls removed and found with on the Mexican foods aisle)

1 lime

1 good handful of cilantro, chopped and stems removed

1 pint of grape tomatoes, halved

Salt and pepper to taste

Olive oil

Heat your skillet on medium high heat and add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add the pepper and onion and sauté until tender. Add the prepared polenta and continue to cook for 2-3 minutes. When the polenta starts to get warm add the tomatoes and salt and pepper. Make sure your skillet doesn’t get too dry. You may need to add more olive oil.

Next, add the pepitas and the juice from the lime. Continue cooking on medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes begin to break down a little. This should take about 3-5 minutes.

Just before serving toss in the cilantro. This makes quite a bit so we usually serve it as the main dish. It’s plenty filling and doesn’t need anything else with it.

For those of you who don’t like the sound of a savory polenta, try this:

Breakfast Polenta

Cut prepared polenta into ½ inch slices. Melt butter in a hot skillet and add polenta slices. Brown on both sides. Serve drizzled with honey or maple syrup.

This is absolutely delicious! Hope you’ll at least give it a try.

Comfort Food (since it's a cold and nasty winter weather day)

This is going to be a quickie. Not because I don’t have time, or because I’m not clever enough to come up with more, but because it’s simple; and simple is good.

Dinner last night was one of those dishes I remember from childhood. It was one of my mom’s “go-to” recipes. Those are the meals I define as comfort food. They make you sit back when you’re done, belly full, and sigh contently, they’re meals that make you feel good and they’re meals that bring back memories.

Dinner as a kid was always served at the table. There was no buffet style at the stove or counter. Meals were prepared, placed in serving dishes and served at a table that had been set with appropriate silverware, dishes and napkins. We talked about our day there, the pitcher of tea sat on the corner of the table and we often had a loaf of bread and the tub of margarine to go with.

Starting with what I made last night, these are two of my working mom’s cheap and easy weeknight suppers. Try not to be overly shocked by the simplicity. These were always so good and meals that we looked forward to.

Green Beans with Ham and New Potatoes

You will need:

1 large can of cut green beans undrained

1 small can of sliced new potatoes undrained

2 cups of water

1 lb of deli ham cut in 1” cubes

½ of an onion chopped

Salt and pepper to taste

You ready for this?

Sauté the chopped onion in the bottom of a soup pot until it starts to get tender.

Grab your handy dandy can opener and open your cans

Dump in the green beans and potatoes with the liquid

Add the cut up ham and the water

Salt and pepper it according to your taste

Boil the heck out of it (just til the onions are done)

Really, it’s that easy. It’s so simple and so satisfying. My favorite part was always the liquid in the bottom of my bowl – the peppery goodness was the best end to the meal and I would dip my buttered bread in to soak up what mom refers to as the “Pot Liquor” and what made me into a “Pot Licker”.  *giggle*

Sauerkraut and Polish Sausage

Again – so easy! Mom always served this with real mashed potatoes made with lots of butter.

You will need:

1 lb of polish sausage cut into bite sized pieces

1 large jar of sauerkraut

Dump it all in the pot and boil the heck out of it. That’s it! It’s so good with mashed potatoes.

Mom made other stuff too – things that were equally good. Things like pot roast, chicken noodle soup, potato soup, mini pizzas made with english muffins...oh, nevermind. You get the point.

But those are the two meals that stuck with me and that I carried over to my own family meals.

I tend to spend more time in the kitchen preparing meals but, I’m an admitted foodie and am always trying to find the next best thing.  Never trust a skinny cook and all that jazz.

Give these a try.  Unless you’re a sauerkraut snob, you should like them. If you are a sauerkraut snob….I’m sorry for you. *wink*

My Inner Justin Wilson

OOOh-weeee! How Ya’ll Are?

I’m going Cajun on ya’ll today.  Ahem….Excuse me.  I seem to be channeling Justin Wilson. Give me a sec to shake him off.

*sigh* All better now. So, Cajun – It’s a favorite at my house. Don is a Louisiana native so it’s home cooking for him. For me, well it’s just good stuff. Louisiana is as well known for food as it is for Boudreaux jokes, bayous and crawfish boils.

Imma start taday wit Gumbo an finish wit da jambalaya.  I done shared wit ya’ll my grillades. JUSTIN! I taut  I tole you ta git on outta here!

Ahem…Gumbo.  There’s a story behind this gumbo. It’s a long one and I’ll tell it in another blog post. But, thank you Mr. Neil for giving me the base for a dish that would become a favorite at my house and in many others. It’s a warm your body and soul kind of good. I warn you though – You’re going to dirty every pot and pan in your house and you’re going to spend about ½ a day working on this.

You will need:

1 pound chicken thighs

1 pound andouille or smoked sausage cut into bite sized pieces

1 tube breakfast sausage *any variety is fine*

1 pound peeled shrimp

Large can of low sodium chicken broth

3 stalks celery chopped

1 onion chopped

1 bell pepper chopped

Butter

Chopped okra (I use ½ of a 16 oz bag of frozen)

1/3 cup of flour and/or some Tony Chacherez Roux mix (Which one I do depends on how much time I want to spend standing over the stove to make that roux magic happen)

Big can (it’s 28 oz I think) of diced tomatoes

2 ½ to 3 tablespoons of Creole seasoning.

First, place chicken in a large pot and cover with the chicken broth. Allow chicken to cook at a low boil for about 1 ½ hours. Remove chicken to cool and set the pot with the broth on a back burner. At some point during this entire process you will need to find time to allow the chicken to cool enough to debone it and shred it.

Next – sauté your veggies in a couple tablespoons of butter. When tender set them aside. Brown the breakfast sausage, drain and set it aside.

Let’s talk roux. (roo) This is important folks. It’s the base of all quality Cajun gravies, sauces and bases. Cajuns don’t thicken with cornstarch. They use roux. You can’t skimp on it. You can’t rush it. You burn it and you’ve ruined everything.

So, follow closely here. Don’t sully my good kitchen reputation by ruining the roux. I will never speak to you again, I will hereafter refer to you as a jackwagon and you will be forever banned from creating any Cajun dish ever again.  Besides, I still have that handy dandy wooden spoon I mentioned a few recipes ago and I still know how to use it.

Understood? Good. Now let’s get on with the show.

In the bottom of a large stockpot, add your sausage drippings and a few tablespoons of butter. Now, grab your handy dandy wooden spoon, a 1/3 cup of flour and make sure your arms ain’t tired.  Stirring CONSTANTLY (yeah, I just yelled at you for emphasis) with heat on MEDIUM, slowly add the flour to the melted butter. You want to add flour until you are just past paste consistency. You  might not use all the flour. Use good judgment. I’m watching you. It still needs some of its liquidity but still needs to be able to properly thicken your gumbo too.

Stand over that pot and stir until your roux gets really dark brown. I’m not talking khaki brown here. I mean good and brown. Almost like milk chocolate. It’s an art to be able to do this so that your roux is just cooked into brownness and not burnt into brownness. Burnt roux is terrible. So, keep your heat around medium and keep stirring.

NOTE: You’ll be standing there a long time so make sure you pee and wash your hands before you get started on it. Just sayin’.

When your roux finally reaches the right color slowly add (stirring constantly) the broth back to the pot. Increase the heat to medium high.  Now, add the tomatoes and creole/Cajun seasoning and give it a good stir. This is the point to test your seasoning. You may find you like more or less of the seasoning. However, if you choose to use more, keep in mind the salt content of all the items you’re using. This can really mess with the overall flavor of the finished dish.

Next, add your sauted veggies, the sausages, chicken and the okra. Give it another good stir. Just before serving add your shrimp.

Serve over rice.

The thing with gumbo is you don’t have to use all these meats. I always use the sausages and the chicken.  The shrimp is hit or miss depending on whether or not I can find it on sale. Some folks like to add some crawfish. Some folks don’t like sausage. Do what you like. That’s the cool thing about gumbo. It was a dish that was made from using a little of whatever you could find. Gumbo means “mixture or hodgepodge”.

So get out there and get creative. You’ll be a hit. I promise.

Next is Jambalaya.

Now, my jambalaya isn’t traditional by any means. Who cares though. It’s good and it’s easy. The best part? I do it in the crockpot.

You will need:

1 lb of boneless skinless chicken cut into 1” cubes

1 lb of andouille or smoked sausage

28 oz can tomatoes

1 sm can of tomato paste

3 stalks chopped celery

1 onion chopped

1 bell pepper chopped

½ t basil

½ t oregano

½ t thyme

1 bay leaf

3 t. Cajun seasoning

1 can beef broth

Dump it all in the crock pot. Turn the heat to low. Give it a good stir. Go to work. Come home. Make rice. Serve jambalaya over rice. Beg your husband to do dishes.

See, I told you it was easy. Besides, you deserved that after reading the gumbo recipe.  I'm looking out for you. Really! I am! 

Soup Anyone?

I’m on a soup thing lately. Maybe it’s the cooler weather? There was the Vegetable Soup, the Potato Soup, I’ve made chili and then last night was….Hmmm…what to call this one? My best guess is…OH!  I got it!

Forget Campbell’s Chunky! My Chicken Corn Chowder Is Better! 

Too long you say?  Well, guess what?  This is my blog. This is my recipe. I can do what I want.  *sticks out tongue for emphasis*

 You will need:

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

½ a large onion chopped

3 small or two large potatoes diced

3 chicken boullion cubes

3 stalks celery chopped

3 small or two large potatoes diced

3 large carrots sliced

1 stick of butter

2 cups of heavy cream

Salt and pepper to taste

1 can of corn

2 Tablespoons of cornstarch

½ cup of COLD water

Place chicken breasts in a large soup pot or dutch oven. Add onion, boullion, and celery.  Add water until just covered.  Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and cover. Allow to cook for about an hour. Remove chicken breasts and add potatoes and carrots to the pot.  Cut chicken into bite size pieces or shred with a fork. 

I prefer to shred so I don’t have big chunks of chicken. I like to have a little of everything on my spoon when I go for a bite. It’s a ‘me-thing’. You do your ‘you-thing’.

Add the chicken back to the pot and increase heat to high. Return the mixture to a boil and add the stick of butter and salt and pepper. When the butter is melted add your cream. Honestly, my guess here was that I added two cups of cream. I just poured until it looked creamy enough. *shrugs* Sorry….that’s another one of my ‘me-things’. I’m sure you’ll find a way to cope.

Add the can of corn with the liquid. Mix together the corn starch and ½ cup of COLD water. I cannot stress enough the COLD part! For you non-cooks…the reason is when the mixture is hot it will clump. This is why people have lumpy gravy and soups. COLD water is essential. It doesn’t have to be ice water. Water from the COLD water side of the tap is fine. Good grief.

One more time…only COLD water with cornstarch!

Add the cornstarch mixture slowly to the pot, stirring constantly.  Allow to cook at a boil for about 5 minutes. If, at this point, you feel your soup is not thick enough then mix a little more cornstarch with some COLD water and add it to the soup.

Just before serving test the salt and pepper content. Don’t just stand there and look at it! Taste it!

And -- If you want to be pretty you can sprinkle a little parsley in there. But, seriously? Why bother? Parsley just sits there pretty. I don't think it really adds much to the taste.

Seriously, all sarcasm, dry wit and insulting humor aside --This was perfect for our snow day yesterday. I dumped Goldfish Crackers into mine and a little shredded cheese – croutons and/or garlic bread go great too.

Then, after enjoying my culinary wonder do you know what Don had the NERVE to do? He asked me how to make liver and onions. So I told him. Then I made the gravy for him gagging all the while. Then I nearly got sick as he ate it. In fact, I think I’m gonna go get sick now. But you enjoy your soup, OK?

Christmas, Vegetable Soup, and Grillades

First, let me apologize if this post is disjointed, unclear, or otherwise strange. I'm a little off kilter today. That being said...

So, Christmas has come and gone. Who else is relieved?

Somehow, I managed to complete my insane list of tasks and did not lose my mind in the process. I did, however, send myself into a fibromyalgia flare. This, my friends, is why I’ve been silent. No blogging and no facebook status updates. I just couldn’t manage it. By the time Sunday night rolled around I was barely able to walk and ready to curl up somewhere and have myself a good little cry. Instead, I spent the next two days alternating naps, yoga stretches, heating pads and muscle relaxers.

I say that Christmas has come and gone; however, in my house it really hasn’t. Tomorrow, my brother and his family are coming for the weekend and we will celebrate another Christmas at my mother’s. This means that tomorrow I will be grocery shopping, helping mom with food for Saturday and baking another pecan pie with another batch of whiskey cream sauce.

J’s Christmas was great. Between Don and I, Mom, and bio-dad I believe he got everything he asked for. It’s great that he’s such a cool kid and so easy to please. His list of things he actually wanted (not talking of those random “I wants”) didn’t include anything extravagant.  It was comprised of simple things like a Nerf Blaster, Star Wars action figures and a Paper Jams guitar. The family gift was DJ Hero for the Wii.

I’m currently exploring work from home options to supplement my income. As of now, there are no plans to make this my sole source of income. We just need a little boost.  I’ve found several good options. I’ve even found some where I can get paid to blog. I just don’t think I’m interested in posting website and product reviews to my blog. Freelance writing is another option.  

This evening I plan to finish a dictation test for a company to see if I’m good enough for that. The audio clip they sent is difficult though. Some guy with a British accent that says “uh” and “umm” a lot. He also is fond of mumbling larger words. I had to listen to a portion of the clip 6 times last night before I realized he was saying “paradigm”….ooh…or was he saying “per diem”? Thinking on it, I believe per diem better fits the context. Guess I’ll be listening to that again tonight.

I haven’t been posting recipes because I can’t take photos. It seems my camera has died. L Anyone want to start a “feel sorry for Erica and buy her a good digital camera fund”?  No? Ok…I’ll grab my mason jar and start saving.

In the meantime here’s a couple for you without pictures to back up the yumminess. Sorry.

I made an awesome pot of vegetable beef soup the other night; kind of a cross between my mom’s recipe and pasta fajiole. You will need:

1 lb ground beef

½ small onion diced

2 cloves garlic minced

1 large or two small cans beef broth

½ large can tomato juice

1 can rotel

10 oz frozen mixed vegetables

salt and pepper to taste

8 oz uncooked macaroni or other pasta. Shells would be nice here too.

In a large pot, brown the ground beef. Drain the fat and set the beef aside. Add onions to the pot and sauté until translucent. Add the garlic and saute 2 minutes more. Add the beef back to the pot with the broth, and all the remaining ingredients EXCEPT the macaroni. You get that? Just forget that darn pasta for a minute. :) Bring the mixture to a boil and THEN add the macaroni. When pasta is tender remove from heat, salt and pepper to taste and serve. We had hot ham and cheese sandwiches with ours.  I was happy. Don was happy. Ashes was happy. J ate peanut butter and jelly with the neighbors. Would also be nice with cornbread, garlic bread, or even crackers.

I also made something called grillades (gree-yads). It’s a Cajun beef dish that is traditionally served over grits. It’s good, it’s cheap and it’s a great use for tougher cuts of steak. I pulled this together from a couple of traditional recipes to create my own version. We served over rice simply because I didn’t have any grits. It was really good too. Next time I will be making it with the grits.

You will need:

3 medium sized round steaks cut into 2 inch pieces and pounded flat

½ green bell pepper diced

1 stalk celery diced

½ onion diced

Cajun Seasoning (i.e. Tony Chacherez)

½ c flour

2 T vegetable oil

Salt and pepper

½ t. thyme

1 or two bay leaves

Tony Chacherez brown gravy mix (comes in a big yellow can)

1 large or two small cans beef broth
1 (14 oz) can of tomatoes

Cut round steaks into 2 inch pieces and flatten. (If you don’t have a meat tenderizer then just whack the crud out of it with a rolling pin or the bottom of a pot…Caution: make sure all family members you care for maintain a safe distance. The ones you don’t care for…have at it. I won’t tell)

Add oil to large pot on medium heat and allow it to preheat. Meanwhile, toss the steak pieces into a bowl. In a separate small bowl mix together the flour and Cajun seasoning. I can’t tell you here how much Cajun seasoning. Remember, it’s salty and spicy!  It’s a matter of preference and everyone has a different preference. After flour and seasoning are well mixed, pour it over the steak pieces and toss to coat.

Brown the meat in batches in the hot oil; setting each batch aside as you go. You only need a couple minutes per side. Remember, you’re just browning here. No need to get it done. It will have plenty of time for that later.

Once all the meat has been browned add the diced vegetables and canned tomatoes to the pot and cook just until tender. Add the meat back to the pot along with the seasonings and the beef broth. Bring the mixture to a boil, cover, and reduce heat to simmer. Allow to simmer for approximately 2 hours.

Just before serving remove the bay leaves and bring the heat back up.  Add brown gravy mix, sprinkling a little at a time and stirring constantly, until you reach the desired thickness. *clears voice for Emeril impersonation* Remember, a mixture never achieves its full thickening power until it comes to a boil.

Serve over rice or grits.

I guess I’ve carried on long enough. Hope you enjoy the recipes.

Thanksgiving leftovers, Barbies, kitchen strikes, football and prayers

The Thanksgiving gluttony is over. Hallelujah! Now, what to do with those leftovers? Thankfully, I didn’t over cook this year like I usually do. I kept the menu small and simple. As a result, I had just enough leftovers to make a couple of meals with.

For leftover turkey I made turkey salad. I diced up a couple of cups worth of turkey and added 1 stalk of chopped celery, one handful of dried cranberries, one diced apple, a few chopped pecans and about ½ cup of mayonnaise. I lightly salted and peppered it.  Then I made little sandwiches with the leftover bread from dinner. It was great and I didn’t feel like I was eating leftovers.

I also used leftover dressing with leftover turkey and gravy. I cut up about 2 cups of turkey and placed it in the bottom of a small casserole dish. Then I topped the turkey with leftover dressing and covered with foil. I baked it at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. I served this topped with the gravy. For sides I made a green vegetable and used the remaining bread dough I had to make fresh parker house rolls.

For leftover mashed potatoes I handed “J” a large bowl and a fork. I had him mix in ¼ cup of cheddar cheese, a sprinkle of garlic powder, ¼ cup of milk, crumbled bacon and ¼ cup of softened butter. I put this in a casserole dish, covered it and baked at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes. I served this with fried pork chops.

There were no leftover Brussels sprouts. I told you they were good!

Friday night was a good night. We hung out with my lifelong friend Sara and her family. Sara let me make chicken scaloppini for her family. I was tickled to death when even the kids loved it and cleaned their plates. Then we played cards and talked about women who should learn to pluck their eyebrows and about silly things we did when we were kids.

For the record, I still insist that all Barbie dolls are built exactly the same and there was no reason whatsoever that Golden Dream Barbie’s pants should have ripped when I put them on Pink and Pretty Barbie. It’s been 29 years and that’s my story and I’m sticking to it. *sticks tongue out at Sara*

 Golden Dream Barbie...1981

Pink and Pretty Barbie 1982

The remaining pie was finished off Saturday night. Don brought me more pecans because he wanted another pecan pie. The pecan pie was amazing. It was blissful. It was beautiful. It was the most perfect pecan pie I’d ever tasted. Then….then….I topped it with the whiskey maple cream sauce. I can’t even describe how good it was. There just aren’t words to describe “better than perfect”. It was so good it was sinful.

In the past four days I have spent so much time in the kitchen and washed so many dishes that I’m pretty sure I won’t be having any new recipes for at least a week. I don’t care to see the kitchen again. In fact, I’m letting the crock pot do my cooking today. They’ll get roast beef tonight. Tomorrow, and possibly the rest of the week, they’ll be lucky to get bologna sandwiches and red kool-aid. I’m on strike.

This was a fantastic football weekend! The Saints won. The Hogs beat LSU! AND! AND! AND! …. For the first time EVER little J insisted on watching football all weekend, and knew what the heck was going on, and kept up with the score, and loved it! 

*happy dance* I’ve created a football fan!!!!!   Yipee!!!

Speaking of football…There are a couple of football players that I’m just sick to death of.  These are supposed to be “men” (used lightly) that our little boys look up to. They are viewed as role models. Most of them are pretty good guys.

However, you also have guys like Michael Vick who is a completely disgusting life form. I don’t care how good he is on the field. He’s abhorrent enough off the field that I feel that off the field is exactly where he should stay. Why does the NFL keep singing this sub-human being’s praises? Send him back to prison where he belongs. Better yet, inflict upon him some of the abuses he inflicted on those dogs.

Or, let’s talk about the Tennessee Titan’s cornerback, Cortland Finnegan. He’s another disgusting life form. He is currently ranked the sixth dirtiest player in the NFL. He has openly stated it is his goal to be THE dirtiest player in the NFL. Read this: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Texans-coach-gives-Andre-Johnson-a-game-ball-de?urn=nfl-289983  and then watch the video and decide for yourself.

Now there’s something to be proud of, huh?

What kind of raising did these idiots have? Who taught them that this was acceptable behavior? Where are their mothers? I’d like to have a word with them.

In other news… Don is trying to bid on a big job. It would be just the boost we need to get the business moving along. I can’t provide any more detail than that. We’re just asking that you please pray on that for us.

That’s all I’ve got today. I hope I wasn’t disappointing. I have surrounded myself in a drama free zone. It’s paying off. However, it can be a little boring sometimes. Sorry.

Thanksgiving Dinner....new recipe

I'm making dinner tomorrow. I have to. Jack loves Thanksgiving and he would be heartbroken without turkey and cranberry sauce.

The menu?

Roast Turkey, homemade dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, brussels sprouts, homemade Parker House rolls.

Dessert: Pecan Pie with Whiskey Maple Cream Sauce. Courtesy of The Pioneer Woman and
             Nantucket Cranberry Pie also Courtesy of The Pioneer Woman

Now, I can hear you saying, "Brussels sprouts? Really? ewww....Why? Well, I'm about to share. These are good even for the most picky eater. J asks for more when I make them.

You will need:

Fresh Brussels sprouts Let me stress again... FRESH! FRESH! FRESH! If you use frozen I will know.

See this?

I have one of these here wooden spoons. I will find you and smack your hand with it!

So...let me start again....

FRESH Brussels Sprouts
4-6 slices of bacon
1/2 an onion diced
2-3 teaspoons or so of Balsamic Vinegar (depending on how much you like. I never measure)
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup of chicken broth
salt and pepper
oven proof skillet with a lid

I use one similar to this:

It's cast iron and belonged to my grandmother. It's one of the few belongings of hers that I have and I treasure it. It's coated on the outside with a beautiful turquoise gloss. It makes amazing pot roast and great fried chicken!

First, clean and trim your brussels sprouts. Cut each sprout in half lengthwise. Preheat your skillet using medium heat. Cut bacon into small pieces and place in skillet. When bacon begins to brown  add the onion and cook until translucent. Remove bacon and onion from the skillet leaving enough drippings in the skillet to coat the bottom.

Increase heat to medium high. Add brussels sprouts cut side down in a single layer. You may have to do it in batches depending on how many brussels sprouts you have. If you need more oil just use a little olive oil or the remaining bacon drippings you previously removed. I use the drippings. Emeril says, "Pork fat rules" and I believe him.

Set your oven to preheat at 400 degrees. Remove the sprouts and set them aside. Add the bacon and onion mixture back to the skillet (with heat still on).   Add the broth, sugar, and balsamic vinegar and bring to a boil. Allow it to cook for 2-3 minutes and reduce a little. Remove from heat.

Add brussels sprouts back to the skillet and salt and pepper to taste. Stir the brussels sprouts well to coat with the liquid.

Cover skillet and roast in the pre-heated oven for about 20 minutes. You want the sprouts crisp tender. This simply means soft enough to chew but not mushy. Mushy vegetables are gross and have no nutritional value. Mushy green vegetables are exceptionally nasty. Plus it makes them that ugly "army green" color. If you make mush out of them I will not share any more recipes with you. Please don't disappoint me. Vegetables should at least slightly resemble what they started out like.

These are great and my family actually gets excited when I make them. Even the 18 year old and Dylan  hates most green vegetables. Of course, they have bacon on them and he thinks bacon makes anything taste good.

Enjoy!

Writing prompts, recipes, and such...

I keep thinking about what I want to write about today but just can’t seem to settle on anything. So, over the next week or so I would like for you guys to post comments about what you would like to hear about. Writing prompts, if you will.

I was craving something sweet and decided last night to make cookies. I didn’t have a recipe. I just winged it and added ingredients until the consistency looked right. I’ll post that for you sometime this week. They were a hit. I may still have to tweak them a little. I didn’t have brown sugar and had to use all white. I was, at least, smart enough to write down how much of each ingredient I added. When sharing the recipe that seems to be better understood than, “Add some ___ until it looks and/or tastes right”. 

In the meantime…here’s my Lemon Pasta recipe. I adapted this from two other recipes. I combined my favorite parts of each and ended up with my own creation.  Darn, I should have taken pictures. Give me time guys.  I’ll pull it together. J

So, again I tried a recipe, liked it, and then altered it to make it my own. I served this with eggplant parmesan. Guess I should give you the recipe for that too?

Lemon Pasta

1 lb Angel Hair pasta                                       1 tsp capers

1 pint heavy cream                                          salt & pepper to taste

2 lemons (zested)                                            parsley

3 cloves of minced garlic                               parmesan

2 tbsp olive oil                                                   2 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Boil 1 pound of angel hair pasta; drain and set aside. I usually put the water on and when it starts to boil, add the pasta and start the sauce. You want the pasta al dente. VERY al dente…It’s going to soak up a little more liquid when you bake it and you don’t want mushy pasta.

In a non-stick skillet heat the olive oil and butter. Add the garlic and sauté about a minute. Add the lemon zest, the juice from the two lemons, and the capers. If you don’t have a lemon zester I have two things to say to you –

1: for the immediate purpose of this recipe you can use the fine grate part of your cheese grater.

2: The next time you’re in a department store buy a lemon zester or a microplane!

Let the sauce cook another minute.  Add the heavy cream and cook about 3-5 minutes to reduce it a little. Add about ¼ cup of parmesan.

Don’t use that icky powdered parmesan. You want real grated parmesan…you know, the kind actually grated from a block of cheese.

Cook another minute and salt and pepper to taste. This doesn’t mean put in salt and pepper and hope for the best. Salt and pepper it…then taste it. Add more if needed. Repeat until it’s right.

Toss pasta and sauce together and place in a lightly greased casserole dish. (I just use a little bit of cooking spray. It makes clean up easier.)

Sprinkle with a little more parmesan and fresh chopped parsley. The parsley makes it pretty. That’s about it. If you don’t want it you can leave it off.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes or until the top just starts to brown.  Good stuff.