Boulanee

Boulanee is a food commonly made in Afghanistan. I love Middle Eastern food and I love to prepare these. When my daughter lived at home, this was her favorite thing for me to make. Now she doesn't eat meat so I can't make it for her anymore :(
I made quite a few of these and since I am attempting Weight Watchers....needless to say I had way too many left! I took some to my neighbors house and they really enjoyed them. Sharing food with people, to me, is a way of sharing a little piece of myself.
* I know this photo does not do these justice but believe me when I tell you that everyone loves them!

1 pkg egg roll wrappers
1- 1 1/2 cups potatoes, boiled and mashed with a fork
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 bunch chopped cilantro
4 green onions, chopped
1 lb. ground beef
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp coriander
Vegetable oil

Directions:
Boil potatoes and mash with a fork. Add salt, coriander, cayenne pepper, cilantro and green onions to the mashed potatoes.
In a skillet, brown ground beef with pepper, salt and coriander until done. Drain well. Mix ground beef with potato mixture.
Take an egg roll wrapper and place a spoonful of filling into the middle. ( I fill mine quite large with quite a few spoonfuls). Dip your finger into a small bowl of water and wet the edges of the egg roll wrapper that is filled.  Fold it closed, making a triangle. Fold the ends of the triangle into the center, making a small envelope. Flatten with your hands.
Heat vegetable oil and deep fry the boulanee until golden brown on both sides.

Oreo Truffles

I have to say a big thanks to my friend Joyce who inspired me to make these candies. I have eaten Oreo truffles many times through the years when friends have made them, but never made them myself. I have always wanted to buy a candy dipping tool and have never gotten around to doing so. I'm not sure why, since they are only a couple of dollars. I just never seem to think of it when I am at the store. Anyway, I got super creative today and made one out of a meat fork I had at home. It took me awhile to bend it, but I finally go the task accomplished! This made it so much easier to drip the excess chocolate off the bottom of the candy.

Recipe:
1 8 oz block cream cheese, softened
1 16 oz package Oreo cookies
1 or 2 bags semi sweet or dark chocolate chips
1 tsp shortening

Place all the Oreo's into a food processor. Combine until crushed. Place block of cream cheese into crushed cookies. Combine with food processor until no white is left. You should have a gooey sticky chocolate paste like texture. Roll into balls. Place in refrigerator for at least one hour until firm. Melt chocolate chips and shortening together. Dip balls into melted chocolate. Drizzle with white chocolate if desired.


Onto the decorating....the fun part :)
I dipped most of them in semi sweet chocolate and drizzled white chocolate over the top.
I dipped some of them in white chocolate and drizzled semi sweet chocolate over the top.
Next I mixed some peanut butter into the white chocolate and into the semi sweet chocolate and dipped the remaining truffles  into those mixtures and then sprinkled peanuts on the top!

Watermelon Cookies

When it's winter and it's 80 degrees outside, do you get inspired to make comfort food? NO...you make shortbread cookies with a summer theme! They don't taste like watermelon, they are a yummy shortbread cookie with a fun shape! Tomorrow is a special day. My amazing father in law will be celebrating his birthday. I wanted to bring something to the party, so I whipped these up this morning. They were super easy and actually fun to make.

1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 tsp almond extract
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 tsp green food color
3/4 tsp red food color
1/4 tsp yellow food color
1 egg white
1 ounce semi sweet or dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

Mix butter and sugar in mixer till creamy. Mix in flour, almond extract, salt and egg. Remove 1/3 of dough and place in a bowl. Tint the 1/3 of dough with green food color. Knead the dough until all the green is mixed in. Tint all the remaining dough with the red and yellow food colors. Knead until colors are mixed through. Shape red dough into a roll that is 2 inches in diameter and 5 1/2 inches long. 

Gently roll green dough to 1/4 inch thick on lightly floured surface into a rectangle that is 8 1/2 x 5 1/2 inches. Beat egg white in a bowl. Brush egg white over the top of the rectangle. Place red dough on short end of green dough and roll up. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 2-4 hours or until thoroughly chilled.

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Cut roll into 1/4 inch slices. Cut each slice in half. Place on ungreased cookie sheet. Sprinkle chopped chocolate over each cookie to resemble "seeds". Bake 10-12 minutes.
* My  thoughts are that next time I make these I might consider adding just a bit more sugar to sweeten them up a bit!

Turkey Pesto Panini

Tonight seemed like a good night to try my Panini press that I got for Christmas. It worked great and made an amazing sandwich. John and I both loved it and I will definitely be making this one again. If you don't have a Panini press, you could definitely make this by grilling the bread in a skillet and then assembling the sandwich and cooking it in the same skillet you grilled the bread in.

I love to make home made pesto sauce, but I was under time constraints tonight and chose the store bought brand. It was really tasty and I would use it again!

To make this sandwich:
1 loaf french baquette (or I used french rolls)
Original flavored Pesto (store bought is fine)
Mozzarella cheese slices
Turkey slices
Tomato slices
Fresh Basil leaves
Salt (to taste)
Pepper (to taste)
Olive Oil

Lightly brush olive oil on the outside of the bread. On the inside of the bread, spread pesto sauce. On top of the pesto, layer: turkey, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and fresh basil leaves. Season with salt and pepper. Place sandwich on Panini grill. Push down on grill for approx 30 seconds. Let grill for about 4-5 minutes.

*If you don't have a panini press,  just lightly brush olive oil on outside of bread. Assemble the sandiwch. Place the sandwich in a skillet turned to med-high. Use a plate or something hard to press down on the sandwich for 30 seconds. Let the sandwich cook in skillet for approx 4-5 minutes.

Chocolate Banana Sherbet

Who doesn't love chocolate and bananas? That's like an American classic combination. This sherbet is so refreshing, and a great way to end a meal if you are looking for a dessert that is light and still tastes great.
I made this earlier today and it's in the freezer right now and I can't wait to serve it to John after dinner tonight. I think this will be my new summer "stand by" dessert because it's so easy to make. It's a little time consuming in that it has to be in the freezer for awhile, but so, so easy!!

Here is a link to the Hershey's recipe. It even has the nutrition info on there if you are interested.
http://www.hersheys.com/recipes/8571/Chocolate-Banana-Sherbet.aspx

Citrus Coconut Shrimp and Scallops

This was an official "no recipe" seafood night.I had laid out some shrimp and scallops and racked my brain with what to make with them for dinner. After looking in my fruit basket and realizing that I had a lot of citrus fruits, I decided to attempt something new. My daughter had given me some grapefruits, my co-worker had shared her lemons from her tree (as we all know from all my previous "lemon" posts) and another co worker today shared some tangerines from her tree. With all these beautiful fruits and knowing that citrus and seafood go together so well, I came up with something that tasted really good. I made a marinade for the seafood out of lime juice, tangerine juice and grapefruit juice. I marinated the shrimp and scallops for approximately one hour. I then toasted some coconut in a skillet. I dredged the seafood into the coconut and placed it under the broiler until it was all cooked through. Simple huh? I had some extra of the citrus juices so we squeezed that onto the seafood to give it that extra citrus flavor! The side dish is a wonderful sweet corn cake! John  and I love brussel sprouts and they are extremely healthy, so I cooked a few of those for a vegetable tonight.

Mint Chocolate Chip Filled Cake

Well, last night I could not sleep at all. I laid in bed tossing and turning and just couldn't shut off my brain. So when John left for work early this morning (4:30) I decided to just get up and start my day. I had plans to make a
"mini" cake today for my neighbors birthday, using my new fill and frost pans I bought for Christmas. They are pretty handy, and make filling a cake so simple! Anyway, I made a chocolate cake, filled  it with an amazing mint chocolate chip buttercream filling. Making filling was fun and I would definitely make it again, and I can't wait to try different variations on the flavors! I had plans to frost it with a home made buttercream frosting, but suddenly the thought hit my brain to try making home made fondant. I have never  tried anything like this. It was super easy to make and covered the mini cakes very well. I know that I didn't get it smooth and it doesn't look "professional" but hey....not only am I running on 3 hours of sleep, but I have never done this before. I guess it's not too bad for a first attempt. Fortunately I had all the ingredients here at home and didn't have to run out to the store. After I frosted the first cake and decorated it, I threw together the second one, (which is obvious from the pictures), threw some coconut on the top, just to finish it off and sliced it so you could see the filling on the inside. Yes, I will definitely take the "unsliced" one to my neighbor for her birthday haha! When all was said and done, I had extra cake batter so I made chocolate cupcakes with the leftover batter and frosted them with my leftover filling. The filling would not pipe through the decorator tip, because of the big chocolate chips, so I had to improvise, which is why the cupcakes are not the best decorated either!

 Here is the finished mini birthday cake!

This is what the filling looks like in the above pictured cake, though this is just the filling on a quickly thrown together one for the picture

This is my new cupcake batter pourer. It really helped. No muss...no fuss. It's great for pancake batter too :)

These were the cupcakes I made out of the leftover batter

Glazed Lemon Pound Cake

This will probably be my last lemon post for awhile as I'm currently on lemon overload. I have tried to use the Meyer Lemons that were given to me in many fresh, creative ways, but I think I'm burned out on lemon about now. I found this recipe on the Internet for lemon glazed pound cake and I was pleasantly surprised at how moist and delicious it is. So for now it's going to be wrapped up tight in my freezer until company (or kids) come over and ask for something sweet.
The holes in the cake are created by using a chopstick and poking the holes in the cake while it's still warm. Then as you drizzle the glaze over the cake, it absorbs into the cake itself creating a more moist texture!

Here is where you can find this recipe!
http://worththewhisk.com/2009/06/26/glazed-lemon-poundcake/

Ginger Lemon Noodles

For those of you that read my prior post earlier this morning, you will know that I was going to make a few things using Meyer Lemons today. The second recipe using the  lemons today turned out really great! These are noodles with a light lemon/ginger dressing. Next time I make this, I just might add chicken or shrimp to the noodles and make it more a meat type main dish. This is super easy with  no cooking skills required. If you can boil water for noodles, then you can make this one!

Dressing:
1/4 cup Rice vinegar
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 Tbsp honey
3/4 Tbsp freshly grated ginger root
 1 1/4 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
Zest of one lemon
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 Tbsp sesame oil ( don't substitute this with other oils...it has a very distinct sesame flavor that is unique)
3 Tbsp olive oil

Noodles: 
8-9 ounces whole wheat noodles of any kind ( you don't have to use whole wheat it's just what we prefer)
Chopped cilantro
Chopped Green onions
(here is where you can add any of your favorite things to this dish)
Toasted sesame seeds

Combine all dressing ingredients except for both kinds of oils in a food processor or blender. Mix until thoroughly combined. After it's mixed, drizzle in both oils, while machine is running. Set aside.

Cook noodles according to package directions until done. Drain and set aside.

Toss the noodles with the dressing in a large bowl. Mix in chopped cilantro,green onions and sesame seeds.

Lemon Waffles with Lemon Icing

So can I just start by saying that I am still on a "lemon" kick? Every time I open my refrigerator, I see these beautiful, fresh lemons calling out to me to be made into something. So today I am going to have a lemon cooking day. It started with lemon waffles with lemon icing for breakfast. I am going to attempt to make a lemon pound cake with lemon glaze. I'm also going to try making noodles for lunch with lemon/ginger dressing. We'll see how it all turns out. But as for the waffles....YUM! They had a very light taste and I was very happy with the way they turned out. This is when I wish my girls still lived at home, so they could try all these things along with us. I guess maybe my neighbors will get the rest of the waffles :)
As for the picture....well if I had some fresh berries and whipped cream it sure would have been prettier, but I didn't, so this is what you get. I obviously didn't "drizzle" my icing very well haha.
Yes I DO Have a heart shaped waffle maker. Cheesy? Maybe...but I thought it was sweet about 20 years ago when I purchased it to make waffles for my hubby! ;)

 

Lemon Waffles

• 4 eggs, separated
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 1-2 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• Zested peel of 1 entire lemon
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 1 and 1/4 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

In bowl, beat egg yolks with the sugar and salt. Blend in the milk, lemon juice, lemon peel, and butter. Beat well. Add the flour and baking powder. Beat egg whites until they are stiff and fold into the batter. Cook in a preheated waffle iron until golden brown.

Lemon Icing

1 cup powdered sugar

1 tsp lemon juice

Zest of ½ lemon

3 Tbsp milk

Mix together in a blender until smooth.  If you don’t have a blender,  just be sure to sift your powdered sugar very well and you can stir it together in a bowl.  Just make sure there are no lumps!

Macaroni and Cheese

I am not a fan of Macaroni and Cheese, but I think it's maybe because of that atrocious stuff on the market called Kraft Mac N Cheese. UGH....I probably have not had macaroni and cheese of any kind in years. It's just not a food I typically choose to prepare. Well, I wanted to try something new and somewhat simple for tonight. This is definitely simple and it was quite tasty! I would make this again for sure. I know the picture doesn't really show much of what's on the isnide, but hey it's Mac and Cheese, what else can I say? ;)

Here is a link to the recipe!
http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Traditional-Macaroni-and-Cheese/Detail.aspx

7 up Jello

I know this sounds like a weird title for a food, but it's a jello salad my mom used to make when I was growing up. I think it was popular at church pot lucks back in the day because almost everyone had or has this recipe! The recipe calls for pineapple and I did put pineapple in it, but I think next time I will make it without the pineapple for a smoother texture. I also think I will substitute miniature marshmallows in place of the pineapple as some of the 7 up jello recipes on the Internet, call for mini marshmallows in this jello.You can make this jello with lemon or lime, but I happened to choose lime because it's my favorite of the two choices.

1 small package lime or lemon jello
1 cup boiling water
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese, broken into small pieces
1 small can crushed pineapple, drained
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup 7-up

Dissolve jello in boiling water. Add cream cheese. Beat with an electric mixer at low speed, until smooth. Stir in pineapple, sugar and vanilla. Add 7-up. Stir. Refrigerate until set.

Moroccan Tilapia with Mango and Cilantro

Wow it couldn't have been more beautiful today in Southern California. It was a perfect 75 degrees and a very nice change of pace from the cold weather we have been having. (well...cold for So Cal). Most of the country is digging themselves out from under the snow, floating away in rainstorms and gathered around fireplaces tonight eating soups and hot comfort type foods. Not in Southern California. The kind of weather we experienced here today called for a light refreshing dinner. Combining two of my favorites, seafood and mango, could only come out great in my opinion. I have made this dish once or twice before, but it's been a very long time. Wow...it came out great! So light and yet filling at the same time. I cooked some fresh mushrooms and broccoli in olive oil...threw on some garlic salt and pepper, tossed some parmesan cheese on the top and had a light side dish also. Fresh fruit (blueberries and grapefruit sections) rounded out the dinner.

Here is the link to the recipe from the food network site if you would like to try it also!


http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/robin-miller/moroccan-style-tilapia-with-cumin-mango-and-cilantro-recipe/index.html

Texas Won Tons

My sister in law introduced me to Texas Won Tons a couple of years ago. Ever since then, I have been making these for my family and they love when I make them. You can add as much or as little jalapeno as you like. Our family likes things very spicy, so I add quite a bit!

Ingredients:
Won Ton Wrappers
1 block cream cheese, softened
Diced jalapenos (from the can)
Jalapeno Jelly (bought at the grocery store next to the regular jellies. I buy Reese Brand)
Vegetable Oil

Mix together cream cheese and jalapenos. Place a small amount in the middle of a won ton wrapper. Fold wrapper over from corner to corner, creating a triangle. Seal edges with water.
Heat vegetable oil in skillet until very hot. Drop a few won tons in at a time and fry until golden brown. Remove from oil and drain on a paper towel. Serve warm with jalapeno jelly to spread on the top.

Avocado Salad

This is such a simple, light and refreshing salad. It requires no cooking at all and serves as a great side dish.

Chop up as much of each ingredient as you would like!

Avocado
Red onion
Cilantro
Jalapeno
Tomato

Squeeze fresh lime juice over the salad and season with salt and pepper to taste!

Baked Potato Soup

Who doesn't love home made soup on cold days like this? John is at the shooting range with friends and I am at home in the cozy, warm house making soup. I tried a new version of potato soup tonight. I used to make a family recipe, which I love the taste of, but I have never  been a fan of the thin consistency. This recipe is definitely a thick potato soup that reminds you of eating a big stuffed baked potato. I am looking forward to everyone coming home from the shooting range so we can finally eat! After the dinner is leftover chocolate peppermint ice cream cake. Yummy!

*Sorry if this picture doesn't do it much justice. John has my camera at the shooting range and I had to use my phone camera.


Ingredients:
1 pkg bacon
2/3 cup butter
7 cups milk
8 small- medium or 4 ex large potatoes (baked, peeled and cubed)
1 whole stalk green onions
2 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper


Directions:
Fry bacon till crisp. Drain, crumble and set aside.
In a large soup pot, melt the butter over med-high heat. Whisk in flour until smooth. Gradually add milk, whisking constantly while adding and whisk until smooth and a little thickened. Stir in potatoes, half the green onions. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently.
Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Mix in 3/4 of the bacon,  1 1/4 cups of the cheese, sour cream and salt and pepper. Continue to cook, stirring frequently until cheese is melted.
Serve with the extra bacon, cheese and green onions garnished on the top of the soup.

Kung Pao Chicken

Chinese food? mmmm...one of my favorites. I love eating it when we go out and I love making it at home. It's not too time consuming and generally it's healthy. Tonight I made kung pao chicken. If any of you decide you want to have this recipe, just let me know and I will post it.

Garlic Lime Bacon Wrapped Tilapia

I love seafood so much and am not a big fan of bacon, but I do have to say that these flavors went together very well. I've had this recipe for a long time and it is actually a shrimp recipe. I had a lot of Tilapia in my freezer, so I decided to try to adapt this recipe for Tilapia. It worked very well.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 Tbsp lime juice
1 clove garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
10 Med shrimp (or Tilapia cut into smaller pieces)
5 slices bacon, cut into half
1 (4 oz) jar whole green chilies, drained and sliced lengthwise
1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced (optional)
1 lime, cut into wedges (optional)

Directions:
1. Whisk together the oil, lime juice, garlic, salt, and pepper in a mixing bowl. Toss the fish in to marinade. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
2. Preheat an indoor grill (or skillet) to med-high heat.
3. Remove fish from marinade and shake off excess liquid. Wrap each piece of fish with a strip of chili pepper, than half a bacon slice. Cook on preheated grill (or skillet) until the bacon  is crisp, and the fish is hot. Approximately 6-10  minutes. Sprinkle the fish with diced avocado and garnish with lime wedges to serve.

Cuban Steak Sandwich and Broccoli Salad

So I mentioned in an earlier post this morning that I was not going to attempt grocery shopping in the rain today. Well, I did it anyway. My need to have food in the house superseded my need to stay dry and warm. So another week or two worth of menus are planned out and ready to go. Tonight I made Cuban Steak Sandwiches with a side of broccoli salad. I must say that even though I don't care for red meat too much, this sandwich tasted really good. The marinade  that  goes on the meat has a great citrus (lime) flavor and the cilantro and the basil add a pleasant mix to the flavors. The broccoli salad is a side dish I used to make a long time ago and hadn't made it in years. I forgot how good it was. I substituted fat free mayo and made it a little lighter and healthier.

Cuban Steak Sandwich
1 1/2 lb flank steak
1 cup olive oil
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley (Italian parsley, not the curly kind)
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
5 cloves garlic
1 Tbsp salt
1 loaf ciabatta bread
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, thinly sliced


Directions:
Place the olive oil, cilantro, basil, parsley, lime juice, garlic and salt in a blender. Mix until smooth. Reserve 1/2 a cup of the mixture for later. Place meat into a large gallon size baggie or into a container you can marinade in. Pour the remaining blended mixture over the meat. Marinade for at least 3 hours.
Preheat oven to 375. Slice Ciabatta in half lengthwise.
Remove the meat from marinade and discard the marinade. Heat a grill to med-high and grill until medium rare, about 4-5 minutes on each side. ( I cooked mine longer as John does not like rare meat). Remove from heat and cover with foil to allow the meat to rest.
Place bread directly on oven rack and toast for about 5 minutes.
Cook onions in 1 Tbsp olive oil, just  until they start to turn brown, but are still crispy. (about 1 minute)
Remove the onions from heat and season with salt to taste.
Take the reserved olive oil/herb  mixture and brush both sides of the halves of toasted bread. Slice steak thinly and place on the bottom half of the bread. Top with onions and then remaining half of bread. Slice into quarters and serve.


Broccoli Salad

2 bunches fresh broccoli florets
1 cup salted sunflower seeds
1 small red onion, chopped
1/2 cup bacon bits

Mix the first four ingredients into a large bowl.

dressing:
1 cup mayo ( I use non fat)
2 Tbsp white vinegar
1/4 cup sugar

Blend the dressing ingredients together and pour over salad. Mix well.

Soft Pretzels

Wow, it's been almost a week since I posted anything on my blog. It was busy around here with Christmas. I woke up early this morning and realized there are not very many groceries left in this house, which is very unusual for me and I have no intentions on going grocery shopping in the rain today. So we will make due with some meat in the freezer and a few vegetables we have left. Since I am tired of snacking on "sweets and goodies" from Christmas I decided to tackle a not so sweet snack for today. These soft pretzels were super easy to make and require very few ingredients. As I was rolling the dough out I couldn't help but feel like a kid again rolling play dough.

Soft Pretzels

1/4 oz pkg active dry yeast
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups warm water
5 cups flour
8 cups water
3 Tbsp baking soda
Coarse salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 475. Grease baking sheets
2. Combine yeast and brown sugar in large bowl. Gradually add 1 1/2 cups warm water, stirring until yeast is dissolved. Let stand 5 minutes.
3. Stir in flour. Blend well. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic,
about 5-10 min.
4. Pinch off a ball of dough and form a ball. On lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a rope and shape into a pretzel. (makes approx 12 pretzels)

5. Combine 8 cups water and baking soda in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil. Lift pretzels with a spatula and drop them into boiling water a couple at a time. Boil until pretzels rise to the surface, about one minute.
6. Place pretzels on greased baking sheet. Sprinkle with coarse salt if desired. Bake at 475 for 8 minutes.
Serve warm!

English Toffee

Well I am officially done baking and making candies to prepare for Christmas. Now if I can just stay out of them until company arrives. ;)
This morning was a great day baking in the kitchen. The house was quiet except for some music playing in the background. Worshiping and baking, can't beat that when it happens together!

This is a great recipe for English Toffee. So easy to make and oh so yummy....

 

Here is the Paula Deen recipe for this candy...

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/english-toffee-recipe/index.html

Crock Pot Meatballs

I'm sure many of you already have made or have tasted these crock pot meatballs. They are a pretty standard recipe that everyone seems to know and love. I decided to post it anyway, just in case someone wanted something for an easy appetizer that is always a hit. The ingredients sound like they wouldn't go together, but they really do and they taste GREAT!

1 bag frozen meatballs (any brand will work, even turkey works, but just make sure it's original flavor)
1 large jar grape jelly
1 jar chili sauce (this is sold by the ketchup and the seafood cocktail sauce in most stores)

Place frozen meatballs, chili sauce and jelly in a crock pot. Turn the crock pot onto high. Cook for approx. 3-5 hours or until heated all the way through. Stir occasionally to mix the jelly and chili sauce together. Enjoy!

White Chocolate Peppermint Bark

I'm sure all of you already know how to make this, but it's super easy and a pretty addition to a Christmas "goodie" tray. Just melt some white chocolate and crush up candy canes in your food processor! Spread the white chocolate out and toss the candy cane crumbs and powder onto the top and let it harden.

Caramels

As you know, I have been making home made caramels over the past few weeks. Today I took the easy way out and bought a block of caramel at the candy store by my house. I came home and used heart shaped cookie cutters and round cutters and cut them into cute shapes. Then I dipped them in dark chocolate and white chocolate. Some I left plain for people that don't like the extra sweetness added. I threw a few toppings on and voila....a varietey of caramels!!

Chocolate Dipped Chili Mango

Just when I thought I would be done making candies and baking for the holiday season, I decided to make some more home made goodies for Christmas day with my family. Brianna came over today and helped me with these. We had fun making them, but it sure would have been easier if the baby took a nap! ;)

For these, I bought chili mango at the store and just dipped the ends in dark chocolate and drizzled white chocolate over the top. YUMMY!!!

Tilapia with Garlic, White Wine and Butter Sauce

I'm in my office at home listening to the pouring rain and watching as red Christmas lights flicker on a house in the distance. The pool is about a half inch from overflowing and my dogs sit looking through the window in anticipation of playing outside again on a sunny day. They will have to wait awhile.

This morning as I got ready to lay out meat for our dinner tonight, I had every intention on just making a good old chicken stir fry. I haven't been making as much seafood lately and I was craving a good seafood dish. So after  having a tuna sandwich for lunch, I decided to make seafood for dinner also. I have so many seafood recipes, but I wanted to try something new. I searched the internet for a good recipe to try and found one that sounded really good. I combined it with a vegetable stir fry and I was so pleased with how it all turned out. This is a recipe keeper and I hope to make it again very soon!

Ingredients:

• 2 lemons

• 1 lemon, zested
• 1/2 cup white cooking wine
• 1 shallot or onion, minced
• 1 garlic clove, crushed and finely chopped
• 1/2 cup butter room temperature

FISH

• 2 (8 ounce) white fish fillets (or tilapia)
• 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper, ground

Directions:

1. Juice both lemons and set aside. In a small pot, whisk together lemon juice, lemon zest, wine, shallot and garlic.
2. Cook over high heat until reduced to half. Remove from heat, cool slightly. When lemon mixture is warm, cut in butter and whisk together. Season with salt and pepper.
3. Brush fillets with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill fish for 4 minutes per side, until golden brown and fish flakes easily with a fork.
4. Place fish in plates and top with lemon butter sauce. Serve immediately over warm pasta or with shrimp instead of fish, if you prefer.

Cranberry Pineapple Yams

I found two yams left in  my refrigerator that really were asking to be used before they expired. I contemplated just making the good ole holiday yams, but then the side of me that likes to experiment kicked in. I boiled the yams, then mashed them with a little bit of butter, some whipping cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, cranberry juice and pineapple juice. I also took some dried cranberries and coated them in flour (in order to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the dish) and tossed those into the mashed mixture. I baked them until they were heated through, then I put mini marshmallows over the top of them and stuck them under the broiler until they were golden brown. Voila...a new sweet potato dish that I really like!! Sometimes my experiments surprise even me ;)

Red Cabbage and Mango Slaw

Last night I didn't get home until really late in the evening. I was hungry and needed to throw something together quickly. I found a recipe for a red cabbage and mango slaw that was easy and healthy. I ate a few quick bites of it last night and liked it, but it's much better today after the flavors have sat overnight. I think if I make this again I will add A LOT more mango, extra lime juice and maybe zip it up with some extra seasonings of some kind, but it's extremely light and refreshing. John really liked it also.

Ingredients:
1 head red cabbage, halved and finely shredded (about 8 cups)
1 tsp salt
1 large mango ( I would suggest using 2)
1 Tbsp cilantro, chopped
1/4 cup lime juice
1 Tbsp cider vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar

Directions:
Place the cabbage in a large bowl and toss it with the salt, using your hands to press down firmly on the cabbage to encourage the cabbage to release some of it's moisture and better absorb the salt. Transfer the cabbage to a colander and let it sit for 20 minutes to drain. 
Using paper towels squeeze as much liquid as possible from the cabbage and place it into a large clean bowl. Toss with the mangoes, cilantro, lime juice, vinegar and sugar. Let the slaw sit at room temp for 15 minutes  before serving. ( I suggest letting it sit overnight in the fridge)

Christmas Desserts

Being in my kitchen baking or cooking brings me such a sense of comfort and peace. Not the kind of comfort and peace that Jesus brings me, but it's still a great feeling! This morning I awoke early with the thoughts of baking for our early Christmas gathering tomorrow. Where do I start? Which dessert do I bake first? How many do I tackle at once? With all these questions running through my head, I decided to tackle my Christmas Tree Brownies first. I got them baked and cooling off on the counter top while I prepared my home made fleur de sel caramel candies. Once the caramels were cut and on the tray, I began to put together my Peanut Butter Truffles. These were fairly easy, but time consuming while I waited for the mixture to cool to a "rollable" consistency. Now I'm taking a break from the kitchen to type this, before I go tackle my pumpkin rolls....one for tomorrow and one for a friend at work who wants to buy one. I have decided that I definitely need to invest in a good apron as I am sitting here typing this looking like I've been dipped in chocolate! ;)

These are my Christmas Tree Brownies

This is a picture of my Peanut Butter Truffles dipped in various toppings....

Chocolate Peppermint Ice Cream Cake

Today we had our Christmas pot luck at work. I signed up to bring a dessert. Since I had never made an ice cream cake, I thought it would be fun to try. I loved the taste of this dessert, but next time I will definitely try to make the crust thinner as the cookies got to thick around the inside bottom of the crust and it was kind of difficult to cut through. The candy brittle on the top was fun to make and made for a nice design, but next time I think I will just sprinkle some crushed candy canes or starlight mints on the top and save all the hard work and effort that went into the candy brittle.

Fiesta Shrimp Skewers with Cool Cilantro Dip and Apple Charlottes for dessert

Today we got our Christmas tree. I would love to tell you that I put on Christmas music, made hot cocoa and put on my favorite winter sweater and scarf, but that would be far from the truth. Instead, we got home with our tree, I quickly changed into a tank top and shorts. I guzzled some ice water to cool off from our trek out in the 85 degree weather and felt like I should be playing some Beach Boys surfer music in the background while I hung ornaments. Gotta love a Southern California Christmas! Anyway, I decided to make a light refreshing dinner tonight to "beat the heat." I made Fiesta Shrimp Skewers over brown rice and made Apple Charlottes for dessert. This was my first time making Apple Charlottes and I really thought they were yummy! I have made the shrimp skewers before and we always love those.

Fiesta Shrimp Skewers
1 lb large shrimp (approx 24)
1/2 cup Newcastle Amber Ale
1/2 tsp shredded lime peel
1/4 cup lime juice
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
1 small jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
2 fresh Poblano peppers, seeded and cut into pieces for skewer
2 limes, cut for skewer

Peel Shrimp. Rinse shrimp and pat dry with paper towels. Place shrimp into a plastic bag that is set into a baking dish. In a small bowl, combine ale, lime peel, lime juice, cilantro, jalapeno, cumin, red pepper and garlic. Stir together and pour into bag containing shrimp. Marinate for 30-60 minutes, turning the bag occasionally. Drain the shrimp but reserve the marinade. Onto a metal skewer (or if you use wood skewers make sure you soak them thoroughly, 30 min. in water before placing over the fire) thread alternately, shrimp, poblano pieces and lime pieces. Brush with the reserved marinade. Discard any unused marinade. Grill the skewers for 8-10 minutes on your grill or until shrimp turn opaque. Turn them once while cooking. Serve with cool cilantro dip. *Recipe following
** I didn't want to grill tonight so I placed my skewers into my broiler set on high. They cooked in approx 6 minutes.


Cool Cilantro Dip

8 ounce carton light sour cream
2 Tbsp chopped cilantro
1 Tbsp salsa
1/2 tsp shredded lime peel
1 garlic clove, minced

Stir dip ingredients in a bowl until mixed thoroughly. Cover and chill for at least until ready to serve.


Apple Charlottes


This is the link to the Apple Charlotte recipe. It was a really good dessert and fairly easy to put together. I will definitely make these again!!     http://www.womansday.com/Recipes/Mini-Apple-Charlottes

Here is a link to a "how to" site for the Apple Charlottes  
http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Food/Mini-Apple-Charlotte-How-To.html

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Cupcakes

Well, I did it! I cheated and used a boxed cake mix and a tub of store bought frosting. Somehow I feel like I've committed a crime haha. I never use boxed mixes or store bought frosting, but I've had these sitting in my house for quite awhile now. I bought it on a whim one day when cake mixes were on sale for one dollar along with the frosting being one dollar! So I decided to do a little something different than just bake a dark chocolate cake. I like chocolate and peppermint together, so after I whipped up the cake mix, I added some peppermint flavoring to the batter. I baked them, cooled them off and then stirred more peppermint flavoring into the tub of frosting. After they were frosted, I drizzled melted choc chips (with a very small amount of oil stirred in) over the tops. Shake some pink sugar over the top and you are finished! I took them to my neighbors house so their grandkids and great grandkids could enjoy them. I think that's what I love about cooking and baking the most is giving it all to other people to enjoy!

Italian Stromboli

Mi piace cucinare!! ( I love to cook), but you probably already guessed that by now. Have you ever thought that cooking Italian food required too many skills and too much time? Not Stromboli. I got this recipe from a friend at a Bible Study years ago. If you want to make an extremely easy Italian meal for dinner....try this recipe for a quick and easy Italian dinner. This requires almost no cooking skills. If you like pizza, you should love this!! If you try it, let me know what you think!

1 tube refrigerated pizza dough
2 Tbsp flour
24 slices pepperoni (the large sliced that the deli slices for you at the grocery store)
6 slices provolone (also from the deli, sliced for you)
6 slices cappicola (Italian hot ham, also sliced for you at the deli)
8 slices Genoa Salami
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp sesame seeds
2 tsp Italian seasoning blend
2 Tbsp grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 tsp garlic powder

Preheat oven to 400. Break open the tube of pizza dough and remove it from container. Dust your hands lightly with flour. Coat work surface with a dusting of flour and place dough on work surface.. Stretch dough out, gently, spreading out the rectangle shape it has been formed into already. Cut the dough into four equal pieces by cutting the dough in half and then in half the other direction. Cover each piece of dough with 6 slices of pepperoni, 1 1/2 slices cheese, 1 1/2 slices cappicola ham, and 2 slices of Genoa Salami. Roll each piece at an angle from corner to corner, making a long roll that is thicker in the middle and thinner on each end.
In a bowl, mix together sesame seeds, Italian seasoning, Parmesan or Romano Cheese,  red pepper flakes and garlic powder.
Brush each roll lightly with olive oil. Sprinkle seed mixture onto the top of each roll. Gently push the seed mixture onto roll so it will stick. Bake until evenly golden, 12-14 minutes. Serve warm.

Mini Peanut Butter Cheesecakes

Today my mom and daughter are coming over to help us decorate our home for Christmas. I was awake at 4:00 and couldn't sleep, so what better to do except bake to have something for my company today. I made these mini peanut butter cheesecakes. They turned out really good. I am going to take a few to work and test them out on fellow employees. I'm sure they won't mind! ;)

Here is the link to the recipe I found online. 
http://www.womansday.com/Recipes/Mini-Peanut-Butter-Cheesecakes

* I had to adapt some on this recipe. I couldn't find the kind of cookies that the recipe calls for, so I bought Mothers fudge filled cookies and threw some peanut butter into the food processor along with them. I also added butter to the crust mixture because I thought it was too dry.

French Banana Pancakes

Breakfast for dinner? That's a funny concept since I don't even eat too many breakfast foods at breakfast time. But....tonight, after a long day of work, exercise, errands etc, I decided to make something quick and easy. I love pancakes, but I thought that these French Banana Pancakes would be awesome! I was right!! John loved them too. They might not be the healthiest thing on my menu at home for the week, but hey it's got a fresh banana in each one....that makes up for all the bad stuff, right?  ;)

Pancakes:
1 cup flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 cup milk
2 eggs
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

Filling:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup light cream
5-6 firm bananas, halved lengthwise

Whipped cream and additional cinnamon, optional

Sift flour and powdered sugar into a mixing bowl. Add milk, eggs, melted butter, vanilla and salt. Beat until smooth. Heat a greased 6 inch skillet over med-high heat. Pour in approximately 1/4 cup batter. Swirl to cover bottom of pan. Cook until lightly browned. Flip with spatula and brown the other side. Remove to a plate or wire rack. Spray Pam in skillet after each pancake is removed, to grease it for the next one. Repeat with remaining batter until all pancakes are made.

For filling: melt butter in a small saucepan.l Stir in brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir in cream and cook until slightly thickened. Add half a banana at a time to the skillet, heat for 2-3 minutes, spooning sauce over them. Remove from heat. Roll a pancake around each banana and place on serving tray. Spoon extra sauce over top of pancakes. Top with whipped cream and a dash of cinnamon if desired.