Enjoying My Favorite Things

Sweet and Spicy Peanut Soup with Ellie

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 20:40:00 +0000

Oh my goodness where did the time go? So as I mentioned earlier, my resolution this year is to get back into the blogging routine. So I jumped right in with Sweet and Spicy Peanut Soup. Well really I made the No Bake Lemon Bars last week which were delicious but of course did not post them. So here's to cooking, photographing AND blogging!!

On to the Sweet and Spicy Peanut Soup which was....
Good but different. A nice change. Unexpected flavors. It was sweet and spicy. I added a few peanuts which I think did quite a bit for the texture. Scallions and quite a few herbs and greens have been nonexistent in my grocery store for a while but would have been a great addition.
Wonderful soup on a cold night which it was. Go see what the rest of the group thought about the recipe. Thanks to the host the week Mary from

Popsicles and Sandy Feet for the great pick. Go get the recipe here Have a great week!

Tuesdays with Dorie - Tarte Tatin

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:13:00 +0000

Yes it has been forever since I posted and sadly the tarte was eaten before I could take the picture. But, Happy belated birthday Tuesdays with Dorie Group!! I made it on December 29th to celebrate my brother's birthday as well. My resolution this year was to start updating again. Updating because I have been baking at least twice a month along with you all but sadly not posting. ISo here's to a new year and a new resolution to post.

I will post the pictures of the tarte because I am making another one on Jan 7th for my mother's Birthday! My husband requested another tarte because it was so delicious. I will try to have them up there Friday.

Happy Birthday to the Tuesdays with Dorie Group. Please go get the mouthwatering recipe here.

CEiMB - Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Lemony Cream Cheese Frosting

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 14:45:00 +0000

If someone would have told me ten years ago that I would be up at 11:30pm baking carrot cupcakes with wheat flour just to take pictures of them and blog them for a group called CEiMB, I would have thought they were crazy. However, it seems that is exactly what I was doing. Any other week I would have been a SLACKER. Okay it seems that is most weeks lately but this week was my pick so tornados and lack of electricity be darned, I have cupcakes to make. And since the electricity finally came back on after not having any since 3:45 AM, I was gonna be baking even though I would have rather been sleeping.

On to the cupcakes which were my pick! I love carrot cake and was excited to see it turn just a bit to the healthier side and of course Ellie came through with another recipe I enjoyed. Of course, I was the only one who stayed up to sample them, but that just meant more for me.

Look at what a great job I did measuring them out. Did I mention, I didn't have electricity at work today and spent the day taking claims for grumpy customers in a hot office? Please forgive give my CEiMB. I really am a horrible host, but I promise I had planned to make some stunning carrot cupcakes with mouthwater pictures.

Wait a minute, this might have worked to my advantage. I mean some of them are 230 calories but see that little one, it is way less than the big one, right? This means less than 230 calories which means I should have two of them. Okay that philosophy might not work....

Thanks for baking along with me and of course allowing me to stay on in the wonderful CEiMB group that I enjoy. Now go see what the other bakers did and then if you haven't yet, make this recipe. You won't be sorry. I mean cream cheese and carrot cake, YUM even at midnight after a sleepless night in a storm cellar with 15 people and five dogs.

Ingredients
3/4 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 cup natural applesauce
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups finely shredded carrots (about 2 medium carrots)
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts
4 ounces 1/3 fat cream cheese (recommended: Neufchatel)
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.
Sift together the first 6 ingredients. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, brown sugar and eggs until well combined. Whisk in the applesauce, vanilla and carrots. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Stir in 1/4 cup of the chopped walnuts.
Divide the batter between the muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
With an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese, confectioners' sugar and lemon zest until smooth and creamy. Frost the cooled cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts. The cupcakes should be stored in the refrigerator.

Oven Baked Onion Rings with Ellie!!

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:28:00 +0000

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE onion rings. Onion rings, onion blossoms, onion straws. Doesn't matter what they are called, I love them.I went so far as to buy that onion blossom tool that was featured on an infomercial.

Like all those other GREAT things as seen on TV, it was an onion disaster. I could have saved money on the experience and went to Outback.

But, leave it to Ellie to come up with a wonderful recipe to feed my onion addiction without the need for the Fry Daddy.

There was only one flaw with the entire Baked Onion Ring experience.... they didn't last long enough for the picture. See my mom showed up as I was pulling my rings out of the oven. She promptly walked over to sample one. That is what my family does, they come to your house to show or tell you something around dinner time. Then they eat your food. In this case, I knew I had a problem after she was pleased with the first onion ring she ate. If I left the room for the camera, I left the onion rings. Mark and I looked at each other, nodded and shoveled the rest of the onion rings on our plate. Picture be darned. Mom looked a little miffed but seriously, onion rings are not meant for sharing.

Well, I felt a little bad so all those onion scraps that Ellie tells you to leave for something else, I made more onion rings. We ate those too. Well all but two of them. I knew I didn't need them since I ate way more than one portion so I asked my mom if she wanted them. She said that she ate before she came. Imagine that! So I put the last two rings in the trash. Mom looked horrified by my action and dug them out of the trash. She said they were on top of some plastic. I was too scared to look.

I will make more Oven Baked Onion Rings tonight for pictures. Well provided no one else shows up to eat them.

Go see Mary Ann's Blog Mare's Food and Fun to view her wonderful pictures and pick up the recipe.

Aromatic Noodles with Lime Peanut Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 20:24:00 +0000

Aromatic Noodles with Lime Peanut Sauce? Yes I believe I will. After all this time, I will have to come for the Aromatic Noodles with Lime Peanut Sauce. Not sure what that says about my food choice. Actually I have made a few of the recipes and I will try to go back and post them. I really remember the Breakfast Cookies being delicious. An unexpected healthy type of delicious.

But anyway, the Ellie recipe for this week was from Supplicious and it was wonderful. I was able to throw this recipe together in under 20 minutes and enjoy every bite of my effort. On my way out the door to take our disobedient, quite dopey canine, I mean Lab, to dog training class.

This recipe was quite tasty both before class with Mallie when I had it hot and after class with Mallie when I photographed it cold. No wonder it has such rave reviews on the Food Network!

However, I do have to disclose - Do Not... skimp on the lime. I forgot to add the lime in mix on accident and when I sampled the sauce and was so disappointed. After rechecking ingredients, I realized my mistake. The lime completes the sauce. Just take my word for it. And do also take my word that it is a perfect meal to eat before and after dog training class. As you can eat two servings of this and not feel too guilty. At least I didn't.

As for dog training class. It just wasn't as successful. I felt Mallie tied with Marley in the World's Worst Dog. Seems class unleashed the beast in my adorable, slightly dopey, completely unobedient, never aggressive, socialite Mallie. Now all of Mallie's 80 pounds are completely submissive to our heavy weight six pound, Dixie. Mallie is frequently bitten on the nose and abused during rough play instigated by Dixie. Mallie is usually the self appointed babysitter to my fifteen-month old niece and only wags her tail when Maddie pulls her tail or grabs her ears. Mallie adores my children. But put in her a class of seven other dogs that are interacting together and she freaks. Not when the other dogs are sitting and calm but when the other dogs interact together. Oh My Goodness. Katy bar the door! Mallie was kicked out of class and is allowed in another class with two other dogs. Folks that's bad. Now mind you I was only trying to teach her to come back when called. That's it. She was wonderful in every other way. Okay that's a parent's point of view. But... it seems she has more to learn that I anticipated. Out of seven dogs there, five were Labs. Is that saying something?

Tuesdays with Dorie Cinnamon Squares

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 20:46:00 +0000

I baked and I took pictures for Tuesdays with Dorie this week... It feels so good to be back baking again. My family is ever so happy to have me baking again too. This week's recipe was Cinnamon Squares. What an easy recipe to come back to baking. Easy and delicious. The recipe was chosen by Tracey from Tracey's Culinary Adventures. Wonderful pick. You must go get the recipe.

I followed the recipe with the exception of the pan. My metal pan has disappeared. So I had to use a retro corning ware pan that was a little larger than called for. So the squares were a little shorter but still a delight.

I also used chocolate chips because I didn't have minis and milk chocolate because I don't do bittersweet. So my beautiful swirl featured in most cakes was nonexistent.

But nothing is going to get in the way of the fact that I baked and so enjoyed it.

Now go get the recipe!

I ♥ Faces Week 19 - Blurb Photo Book Contest Entries

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 19 May 2009 18:33:00 +0000

Because I need to be about more than food and I ♥ faces, I have decided to move along from being a total foodie and add a little bit of photography. I clearly have taken way more pictures of food this year than my family. So here's an attempt to add a little family in with the food!

This week's contest over at I ♥ Faces is to enter your favorite photo. I don't know that I have a favorite photo. I love all the imperfect pictures of my family that I have collected. So here is one of my favorite pictures that I have taken of my youngest daughter. It defines her sandy face and all and I believe that is what I love about it. It was also one of the first pictures I took when I got my DSLR back when I took pictures all the time. I gotta start doing that again.

Thanks for looking and join in the fun at I ♥ Faces

I am submitting this photo into the www.iheartfaces.com Blurb Book photo contest. I am granting I ♥ Faces permission to use my photo in a printed version of a book for commercial use and possibly advertising of a photo book on both the Blurb and I ♥ Faces web sites.

Tuesdays with Dorie

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 19 May 2009 14:15:00 +0000

So I make up my mind to continue with Tuesdays with Dorie even though it wreaks havoc with any dieting attempts and I am just plain weak when it comes to desserts. I was so excited this week to get back to baking just to.... BAKE the WRONG recipe. Just so you know the recipe for next week is AWESOME. I ate way to many of them. I will tell you about them next week. Until then, enjoy looking at every one's mango bread. It really looks good not that I would know because I baked the WRONG recipe.

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Late, Late, Late CEIMB - Jerk Chicken with Pineapple Salsa

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Fri, 15 May 2009 19:49:00 +0000

PLEASE don't count me out yet. I am sorry that I have missed the past two postings. I have struggled with balance over the weeks wondering where this blog thing fits in with busted water pipes that means no water for a few days, a trip to CT and NYC to visit friends that were laid off from their job where I worked for over eight years, daughter's dance competition with twice as many practices, two finals, end of the school year field trips, trying to maintain a 70 pound weight loss, dogs escaping the pen, and I am sure there are many other things that have happened over the span of time, but I don't even want to remember them. The funny thing is I made some of the recipes, just couldn't find the time to blog them.

But, I apologize that I have missed posting while other members of the group have faithfully posted. Thank you for keeping the group going. I will try to remake meatballs and get to the risotto. I have to say upfront that I might have to slow down on some of the postings. It seems it is harder now to balance family, work, school, cooking, exercise and posting. Just not enough hours in the day. However, I love that this group helps me to cook healthy recipes and keeps me from offering hamburgers and veggie burgers yet again.

So off to Jerk Chicken. I love anything Jerk! I think I even liked that movie, it's been awhile on that one. Well, I hate dealing with a jerk, but more specifically, I love jerk seasoning. So I was excited to make this recipe, but wondered where the cucumbers fit in.

However, I thought everything fit together wonderfully. I actually loved the salsa minus the mint. I turned my back on the chicken when I put in the sauce. It got a little brown from the soy but was still really good.

Definitely a recipe I will make again. Please go visit Jen from Notes from the Table to get the recipe. Also be sure to visit the members of the Craving Ellie In My Belly.

CEiMB - Balsamic Chicken with Baby Spinach

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 20:09:00 +0000

It's Healthy Living Recipe Day with the Craving Ellie in My Belly Group. Today's pick is Balsamic Chicken with Baby Spinach which was chosen by Culinary Delights. I am always up for a new chicken recipe especially one that requires minimal effort! The recipe was pretty easy to put together. I added italian style tomatoes from a suggestion from the food network ratings where they had written that the dish was bland. I also added just a few more seasonings to the chicken such as rosemary, thyme and a little garlic.

When I gave it to my kids, minus the spinach obviously, I explained that it was chicken with couscous. My youngest translated that into Kuzco from Emperor's New Groove and burst into a round of laughter. I patiently explained the difference in Kuzco and couscous . She then looked at the dish and replied, "No touchy." The phrase is not so cute when it comes from your child instead a talking llama. Dinner conversations with children are oh so pleasant.

Back to the couscous. We enjoyed the dish. Really, what's not to enjoy. It was easy, healthy and delicious.
Although I have a secret. I took a few bites and then added some freshly grated Parmesan cheese. I know, I know, I have a problem with cheese. Everything is so much better with cheese. And according to Ellie, milk is important. Milk fights the vitamin D deficiency epidemic. Cheese has milk. I gotta fight the epidemic. That's my story and I am sticking to it.

Tuesday With Dorie - 4 Star Chocolate Bread Pudding

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:36:00 +0000

Another Tuesday, another TWD recipe. This week's pick was 4 Star Bread Chocolate Bread Pudding. The recipe was chosen by Lauren of Upper East Side Chronicle You can pick up the recipe there and enjoy her lovely photos as well. But back to bread pudding. Bread pudding is one of those things that I must say I have skipped at all the family functions. Yep, that and mincemeat pie. Those are my grandfather's favorite things and are always in attendance. I am certain why I skipped out on mincemeat but not sure why I never chose the bread pudding. But this 4 Star Chocolate Bread Pudding sounded different. A bit elegant compared to the traditional bread pudding made in our family. My grandmother makes hers with Sunbeam white loaf bread and adds just as many raisins as she does bread chunks. Not that I don't love Sunbeam bread. Heck it's got energy, nutrition and flavor, what can you not like? But, paired together with eggs and floating raisins it wasn't calling my name in the dessert line up. But this week I was ready to change all that with the taste of my first bread pudding featuring chocolate and no raisins! I used Egg Bread which I admit was one step up from Sunbeam. Sorry Little Miss Sunbeam. I used Egg Bread because that's is all my WalMarts featured. I am pretty sure to locate a good loaf of challah or brioche in AR which Dorie called for, I would have to travel 45 miles and since bread pudding was created out of frugality, I stuck with egg bread. Egg bread and milk chocolate. Which I must say was not a bad combination. Not a bad combination at all.

Now had a read the P & Qs before I made my grocery list, I would be writting about finding love at first taste. I am certain. But since I wasn't smart enough to think about using doughnuts, I must say that I enjoyed my bread pudding. Especially with whipped cream. You knew I was going to say that! My bread pudding was a little more pudding consistency. This made it really good warm and covered in whipped cream.

Now you want to see some 4 Star Chocolate Bread pudding go see Upper East Side Chronicle She has a wonderful layer of chocolate that looks most delicious. Or go see the other bakers because that's where I hear they got doughnuts. Doughnuts!

Tyler Florence Fridays - Blueberry Blintzes

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 15:46:00 +0000

Another week, another Tyler recipe! So this week Mark and I watched The Ultimate Cuban Sandwich Episode right after I completed my new Jillian Michaels Banish Fat Boost Metabolism workout. Now why I complete a workout and watch Food Network, I do not know. It makes no sense. But, after the show Mark said, "We must make that." Well, Mark thinks anything with a pork shoulder in it must be made and since I agree with him, I went to the grocery store and bought the supplies. Then I did not make it. I couldn't find my pressure cooker. The one that I was taught to make beef stew with extra fat in. It is a treasured item in the kitchen. Now I know when I can't find kitchen utensils that Mark or my mom have them. Except for spoons, my oldest daughter has those. While serving Christmas, I realize my spoon shortage. When school started back, I picked up her lunch box and she had, I kid you not, 15 spoons in the front pocket of her lunch box. The thing was heavy or I would have never looked.

But back to the case of the missing pressure cooker. I called my mom and sure enough. She had it. She can never, never keep up with her pressure cooker lid. She promises to have it back tonight so I can make Cuban sandwiches this weekend. This is the part of giving my mom a key to your house, that makes me think twice about the arrangement. Not only does she take pressure cookers but she is also infamous for stealing leftovers. Remember the Coconut Butter Thins story. I have now made them six times. Both she and my grandfather put in orders.

So now I quickly tried to figure out what I could make with things on hand. I had printed a Crepes Suzette but when I began putting the crepe batter in the pan forgot I used all my oranges in the stew. Then I remembered seeing the round up with the Edible Symphony and Blueberry Blintzes. I didn't have any blueberries either but did have some syrup left from the Cracker Barrel. I decided this might be as close as it was going to get this week for poor Tyler.

Phew. I almost didn't make the roundup. But one bite of this...
And so glad I did. Wonderfully delicious!
My kiddos covered them in chocolate. But I stuck with blueberries. They were also great plain for sure!

Then all was wonderful until the next morning when the kiddos went looking for leftovers for their breakfast. It appears I have to call my mom again.

Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
Basic Crepe Batter:
1 cup milk
1/4 cup cold water
2 eggs
1 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch salt
1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for sauteing the crepes
Cheese Filling, recipe follows
Blueberry Sauce, recipe follows
Directions
Combine the milk, water, eggs, flour, salt and sugar in a blender. Blend on medium speed for 15 seconds, until the batter is smooth and lump-free. Scrape down the sides of the blender and pour in 3 tablespoons of melted butter. Blend it again for a second just to incorporate. Refrigerate the batter for 1 hour to let it rest. If the crepes are made immediately, they have a tendency to be rubbery; when you let the batter rest, the crepes have a better texture and a softer bite.
Put an 8-inch crepe pan or nonstick skillet over medium heat and brush with a little melted butter for added assurance. Pour 1/4 cup of batter into the pan and swirl it around so it covers the bottom evenly; pour back any excess. Cook for 30 to 45 seconds, until the crepe batter sets. Lightly bang the edge of the pan with a wooden spoon to loosen the crepe; then flip it and cook another 30 seconds. The art of flipping a crepe in the air takes practice, so make sure no one is looking when you get the first one going. If this intimidates you, use a heatproof rubber spatula to loosen and flip the crepe. The crepes should be pliable, not crisp, and lightly brown. Slide them onto a platter and continue making the crepes until all the batter is used. Cover the stack of crepes with a towel to keep them from drying out. This makes 10 crepes.
Assembly: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Forming the blintzes is kind of like making burritos. Spoon 1/4 cup of the cheese filling along the lower third of the crepe. Fold the bottom edge away from you to just cover the filling; then fold the 2 sides in to the center. Roll the crepe away from you a couple of times to make a package, ending with the seam side down. Put an ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Brush with melted butter. Pan-fry the blintzes for 2 minutes per side until crisp and golden.
Transfer the pan to the oven and bake for 10 minutes so the egg in the filling cooks slightly and the cheese sets. Using a spatula, transfer the blintzes to serving plates. Spoon the blueberry sauce on top, dust with confectioners' sugar, and serve right away.
Serve with chopped banana and remaining blueberry sauce. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.
Cheese Filling:
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese (I used 1 cup)
4 ounces cream cheese ( I used 8 oz. I needed to use the whole block up.)
3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
1 lemon, zested and finely grated
1 egg
In a food processor, combine the ricotta cheese, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, lemon zest, and egg and blend until smooth. Chill the filling to firm it up a bit so it doesn't squirt out of the blintzes.
Blueberry Sauce:
2 tablespoons butter
2 pints blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 lemon, juiced
Melted unsalted butter, for sauteing blintzes
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Combine the butter, blueberries, sugar, cornstarch, and lemon juice in a small pot over medium-high heat. Bring up to a low boil and stir gently until the berries break down and release their natural juices. The consistency should remain a bit chunky. It will thicken up when it cools down slightly.

Please go check out the wonderful, wonderful Tyler Florence Friday Roundup.

CEiMB - Beef Stew with Orange

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:28:00 +0000

Another healthy recipe day with Ellie. CEiMB was hosted by Confessions of a Novice Baker this week. Her stew looks wonderful! The choice was actually Lamb Stew with Orange. Since I had a hard time finding lamb, I we chose some lean stew meat. And just to clarify, I only added lean stew meat. I did not purchase any additional soup bone or extra fat to add. Do you know how hard this was for me? I have never made stew without it. It's ingrained in my upbringing. I felt like I was disrespecting everything my grandmother has tried to teach me. She could be defined as a Soup Nazi. I possibly might be banned from ever learning the secrets of how to cook proper from her again. Banned from her kitchen. Banned from her expansive collection hand written recipes. *Gasp* Do you know how much I have longed for those vintage recipe cards?

I was also a little scared that my husband would find out that it lacked the extra "flava" and refuse to eat it. However, the orange must have concealed the lack of fat. I admit I was little nervous about the lack of fat but then when I added the orange, I almost knew the soup was doomed to fail. Orange in stew?

But Ellie - she knows her stuff. Because it worked. Not sure how. Maybe orange chemically responds to chickpeas so the stew can be tasty. Maybe I shouldn't worry about it and start adding more oranges to recipes.

Now I also modified just a bit more too. I left out the parsnips. I felt like I pushed the envelope enough with what my family would eat. Adding the parsnips would push them over the edge for sure. I also used crushed tomotoes instead of tomato sauce. The pantry featured no sauce. Not sure how that happened. I usually have a can or two but it was bare this week. Then I forgot the mint. Please don't judge how it looks to how it taste. It was really good. The reviews at the Food Network state five stars.

Go see what the others in the CEiMB group did this week. See ya next week!

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound lamb cubes (lean, from leg and shoulder)
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch ground black pepper
1 medium onion, diced
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons low-sodium tomato paste
2 stalks celery, rinsed, trimmed and diced (about 1 cup)
2 large carrots, cut into coins (about 2 cups)
2 parsnips, roughly chopped (about 2 cups)
1 (14-ounce) can low-sodium chick peas, drained
3/4 cup dry red wine
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water
1 (15-ounce), can low-sodium tomato sauce
1 teaspoon orange zest
1 large orange, segmented, juice reserved
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons freshly chopped mint leaves
Directions
Heat oil in an 8-quart Dutch oven or other large pot over high heat until hot but not smoking. Season meat lightly with salt and pepper and sear in oil until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add onions and garlic and cook an additional 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir to incorporate, cooking for 2 to 3 minutes. Add celery, carrots, parsnips, chick peas, wine, chicken broth, tomato sauce, orange zest, segments and juice, and cumin. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer until lamb is tender, about 90 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat, cool slightly, and ladle into bowls. Top with fresh mint and serve.

TWD - 15 Minute Magic: Chocolate Amaretti Torte

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 13:27:00 +0000

Let the chocolate feast begin! Holly at Phe/MOM/enon chose the 15 Minute Magic: Chocolate Amaretti Torte this week. I was excited when I read 15 minutes in the title because sometimes the steps to get the thing in the oven can be so time consuming. Since we are already on a sugar high from Easter, I wasn't really sure if I should even make this but, Dorie assures that if you can push a button you can make this cake. If it is that easy, surely I can do it too. It really was pretty much that easy too except finding the Amaretti.

Those little cookies were a joy though. I hadn't ever tried them. That TJ Maxx aisle is just brimming with new found treasures I tell you. After I tried them, bought some almond paste and can't wait to make them. Did anyone find any prize winning recipes for making them? If so, please tell.
The verdict.... First let's talk about the batter. The batter was out of this world. Gracious it was good. So naturally I expected excellence after tasting a sampling like that; however, I wasn't that impressed with the finished torte. Not to say it wasn't good because it was good. Something to indulge in for sure. However, I think - brace yourself - that it could have been a bit too much chocolate. Now my husband loved it. My kids loved it and I really liked it with a healthy dose of whipped topping but I loved the batter. Since I have some more of those great cookies left, I am going to try to make it again maybe without the ganache and served as the basis of hot fudge sundaes like Dorie mentions. Now I bet that is out of this world!

Get the recipe from Holly at Phe/MOM/enon. Please go see all the other bakers and admire what they did at Tuesdays with Dorie!

Tyler Florence Friday - Caramel Apple Pie

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 15:12:00 +0000

It's Friday which means it's Tyler Florence Friday. This week I went back to the desserts. It least this recipe featured a fruit. A fruit drowned in caramel but nevertheless a fruit. We love apple pie so I have been meaning to try this one. I love caramel so I was especially excited.

I decided to make mini pies because we love apple pie a little too much and with Easter around the corner we just didn't need that much pie in the house. The verdict.... the crust wasn't as good as the crust used on the banana cream pie from Dorie. Just not as light and flaky. Could be the crust maker because I am no pastry crust expert for sure. The filling was delicious. The caramel right out of the pan was amazing. I should not be left alone with this caramel recipe. EVER.
It was especially good with a bit of whipped cream.

But, I like the regular apple pie my grandmother taught me to make better. Mark did too. Not that this wasn't a good pie because it was. It just didn't have that apple pie familiarity. That american apple pie feel. Maybe there is just too much of a good thing here.

Go check out the other Tyler fans. I just know they have something wonderful in store this week.

Happy Easter!

CEiMB - Salmon with Sweet and Spicy Rub

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 09 Apr 2009 16:15:00 +0000

Hooray for another healthy, easy CEiMB pick! This week's pick was chosen by Lobster and Fishsticks. I do not cook enough fish so Salmon with Sweet and Spicy Rub was a great recipe for me to try. Truth be known I am not a huge fish fan. Unless of course you count fried catfish with tarter sauce and hushpuppies, then I can be a pretty big fish fan. But really who counts fried catfish as fish anyway. It certainly doesn't fall into the healthy fish category. It's those healthy fish that I really need to focus on adding to my diet.

But I am newbie to cooking fish. I am not sure why because could there be an easier meat to make? Seriously, rub the fish and put it on the grill.

Somewhere during that put it on the grill part, my fish came apart in peices except this one lonely peice at the back. The peices that fell apart had a nice blackened layer and were quite delicious.

I need to get over my cooking fish prejudice. This was a simple and tasty recipe.

Go see what the other CEiMB fans did this week! Go get the recipe at Lobster and Fishsticks.

Cooking Light - Chipotle Sloppy Joes

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 19:45:00 +0000

With all the extra baking it seems I have been doing, I've been trying to come up with some healthier dinner recipes. Make that healthier dinner recipes that do not demand much time because I need that extra time to bake. Priorities! So I resubscribed to Cooking Light and found a quick recipe that would please my family. Now if you can get past Adam Sandler's edition of the Lunch Lady Song, their Chipotle Sloppy Joes were a good take on the regular sloppy joe.

Not that we don't like the occasional sloppy joe around here but amp it up with chipotle peppers, caramelized onions and call it healthier, and well we're pretty happy to replace our old ones for sure!

Mark had his with fried potatoes but I went with Baked Lays. I would have loved to have tried their slaw but just didn't have the fixins. Here's the recipe and nutritional stuff.

Ingredients
Cooking spray
2 1/2 cups presliced Vidalia or other sweet onion
1 (7-ounce) can chipotle chiles in adobo sauce - I added two but we like spice
1 pound ground sirloin - I also added some garlic here to help jazz the beef
1/2 cup prechopped green bell pepper
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 (8-ounce) can no-salt-added tomato sauce - I went with at least another half a can
5 (1 1/2-ounce) hamburger buns, toasted
Preparation
1. Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add onion to pan; cover and cook 8 minutes or until golden brown, stirring frequently. Remove from heat; set aside.

2. Remove 1 teaspoon adobo sauce from can; set aside. Remove 1 chipotle chile from can; chop and set aside. Reserve remaining chiles and adobo sauce for another use.

3. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add beef to pan; cook 4 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add bell pepper to pan; sauté 2 minutes. Stir in chopped chipotle chile, adobo sauce, tomato paste, and next 3 ingredients (through tomato sauce); cook 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spoon 1/2 cup beef mixture over bottom half of each bun, and top evenly with onions and top half of bun.

Plate with pickle chips and a simple slaw. Combine 1/3 cup canola-based mayonnaise, 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar, 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon dry mustard in a large bowl; stir with a whisk. Add 3 cups packaged cabbage-and-carrot coleslaw, tossing well to combine.

Nutritional Information
Calories:273
Fat:6.1g (sat 2.1g,mono 2.1g,poly 1.3g)
Protein:23.3g
Carbohydrate:32.1g
Fiber:3.4g
Cholesterol:48mg
Iron:3.7mg
Sodium:724mg
Calcium:84mg
5 servings

sloppy joe slop, sloppy joe yeah
sloppy joe slop, sloppy joe yee-ah
sloppy joe slop, sloppy joe uh-huh
sloppy joe slop, sloppy joe

now me and sloppy joe got married
we got six kids and we're doin' just fine
down in lunch lady laaaaaauuuuuuunnnnnndd!

TWD - Banana Cream Pie

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:20:00 +0000

Quick story from last week's most wonderful cookies. My grandfather called me Thursday morning to tell me he got up really early because he couldn't sleep. As he made coffee, he got the last two cookies which he had hidden from my mom and grandmother. He ate one cookie and was saving the last cookie but fell back to sleep in his chair. When he woke up, his cookie was gone and in it's place was the newspaper. My mom took the last cookie from him when she brought his newspaper in. He asked for more cookies again. No, I haven't made him more cookies but I will and soon. But on to this week, the Banana Cream Pie which I didn't share with them because Mark's most favorite type of dessert in the whole world is pie.

So since this was pretty much Mark's pie, I made it into tarts so he could carry them in his lunch better.
But he only has three to carry in his lunch.
Because we ate nine small pies last night. I say we lightly. My daughters had one a piece. Now I wanted more than one because this was a really nice pie. My goodness homemade banana cream pie is lovely from the crust to the whipped cream. But I only had one pie.
Mark loves banana cream pie. Now I must make more cookies and banana cream pie.

Go see what the other TWD bakers have to say. Go get the recipe from Amy at Sing for Your Supper. You won't regret it.

Tyler Florence Friday - My Big, Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 21:11:00 +0000

Hooray for Friday. It seems I am saying this every Friday lately. But anyway it is Tyler Florence day and I made Big, Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies which makes any Friday a day to look forward to. Actually we made the Big, Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies kinda small. We tend to need more than one of anything so big, fat cookies not a good idea at our house. This is the second Tyler Florence cookie that I have made and thought both were good. I did personally like the white chocolate macadamia nut better, but these were good cookies. I wish I would have used milk chocolate instead of dark chocolate. I probably would have been a bigger fan.

They were especially good warm.Basically we have no complaints about this cookie. Several in the group have made them. Please go see thier reviews as well. Here's the recipe:

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup white sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 (8-ounce) block dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.
Place the butter, sugar, and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer; cream together on medium speed until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Beat in the vanilla and eggs. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and continue to mix until a smooth batter forms. Turn off the mixer and fold in the chocolate chunks using the spatula.
To form the cookies, scoop about 1/4 cup of cookie dough into your hands and roll it around into a ball; place them about 3-inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets; you should get about 4 cookies on each pan. Press down the tops of the dough slightly and bake until the cookies are light brown, 12 minutes for chewy cookies, or about 15 minutes for crispy cookies.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough/cookie sheets.

I also have to say that I made his Chicken and Dumplings featured on Oprah. They were a bust. I didn't even take a picture because well chicken and dumplings aren't exactly attractive to begin with and mine were even more unattractive. I couldn't get the dumplings quite done enough in the crock pot. I had to break them up smaller pieces after about 50 mins when it called for only 30 minutes. This created a kinda thick soup. Not a bad dish. It was a little bland which the reviews said and mine was very unattractive for sure! However, Mallie didn't think so.

In fact, she was really excited. I remember reading that one blogger threw a failed dish, I think it was a turkey, out the back alley. Me I just threw them out the window. Bella had the same reaction to chicken and dumplings as I did. She didn't even get out of the doghouse to brave the rain for them!

Buffalo Chicken Salad

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 20:32:00 +0000

Hooray for another edition of CEIMB. Today's healthy pick was Buffalo Chicken Salad hosted by You Eat Now. I admit I was excited about this pick. I love, love, love buffalo chicken! My favorite appetizer is definitely boneless buffalo chicken wings. I also love Buffalo Chicken Salad. However, I cannot remember the last time I ate either of them because I decided to look up the calorie count. Talk about a way to ruin a favorite appetizer. I won't ruin it for those that haven't looked them up but let me just say it is bad. Real bad. My husband however, orders boneless buffalo chicken wings almost every time we go out and I sit in a daze created by the smell of the hot sauce until he eats them all.

So enjoying today's pick was a given except for maybe the dressing. I admit I prefer ranch. I have learned to like Blue Cheese paired with Buffalo Chicken. It was definitely a learned experience brought on by inept wait staff. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. You ask for ranch and they bring Blue Cheese because that is what is listed on the menu. Then you don't notice the wrong dressing until they have disappeared. Then you sit waiting for them to reappear, but David Copperfield had more luck making the Statue of Liberty reappear so you just eat Blue Cheese. Then before you know it, you kinda like Blue Cheese. I mean it is thicker and you get a better per bite ratio of dressing to chicken.

But back to the salad which is my new favorite salad. The one that I have made twice because I needed more chicken to go with my dressing.

And the verdict on the dressing, it is good even made with low fat blue cheese. Maybe not that restaurant blue cheese but again I've looked up those calorie counts too and yes siree this fills the need well!

All buffalo chicken fans should try this recipe. The second time I made it I left one chicken breast whole and Mark had it on a sandwich topped with extra hot sauce and the dressing. Chili's, the king of buffalo chicken, offers this on their guiltless menu and I can say from experiencing both the homemade one is a success. I just love copycat recipes!

Now go make see what all the other CEiMB members have to say and make this recipe!

Ingredients
2 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper hot sauce (or other hot sauce), plus more to taste
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 hearts Romaine, cut into 1-inch strips (about 8 cups)
4 celery stalks, thinly sliced
2 carrots, coarsely grated
2 scallions, green part only, sliced
1/2 cup Blue Cheese Dressing, recipe follows
Directions
Preheat the broiler. Put the chicken between 2 sheets of waxed paper and pound with a mallet or hammer so the chicken is an even thickness of about 3/4-inch, then cut the chicken crosswise into 1/2-inch strips. In a large bowl, combine the hot sauce and the oil, add chicken and toss until the chicken is well coated. Arrange the chicken on a baking sheet and broil until it is cooked through, about 4 to 6 minutes, turning once.

In a large bowl combine the Romaine, celery, shredded carrots and scallions. Toss with the dressing. Divide the greens between 4 plates, top with the chicken. Serve with extra hot sauce.

Blue Cheese Dressing:
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 cup lowfat buttermilk
1/4 cup plain fat-free yogurt
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Fold a full sheet of paper towel into quarters and put it into a small bowl. Spoon the yogurt onto the paper towel and place in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to drain and thicken. In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk and thickened yogurt into the mayonnaise until smooth. Add the vinegar and sugar and continue to whisk until all the ingredients are well combined. Stir in the blue cheese and season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Yield: 3/4 cup

Cookie Perfection = Coconut Butter Thins

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 21:11:00 +0000

Hooray for Tuesdays with Dorie and a cookie pick. And a wonderful cookie pick it was! Many thanks to Jayne of Barefoot Kitchen Witch who choose the most delicious cookie for her pick. You must go get the recipe here and make this cookie immediately. She also features a wonderful post with her daughter this week too. As usual, this would have been a recipe that I would have skipped if it was just me and a cookbook. I mean the recipe doesn't sound enticing but just one taste and you will be hooked. There is something about this cookie that is absolutely wonderful.

You can't see the deliciousness here because they are deceptive cookies. They don't exactly look amazing but trust me on this people, the treasure is within.

My mom who lives about a half mile down the road can tell when I am baking something fantastic. She shows up just in time to sample. This time she not only grabbed enough for herself but some for my grandparents too.

Then I got a call that not asked but demanded more cookies. My grandfather demanded more of the most delicious cookies that he had ever tasted be delivered to his house immediately. Since we pretty much do what he says, I slipped on my running shoes and literally ran them to his house. I chose this method because I had eaten probably ten too many cookies and figured it was a good method of transportation. However, I was wrong. My neighbors intercepted me half way there and asked what I was carrying. I had to once again share my cookies. I felt a little like Little Red Riding Hood being accosted on her way to grandma's house.

By the time I had jogged back home, I had a voicemail needing the recipe because there weren't enough cookies left at my grandmother's house. That was one of many calls that I received over these cookies. The last call demanded more cookies because I didn't produce the recipe soon enough so I have dough chilling in my refrigerator right now. I

Don't trust me my verdict on this cookie? Go see what the other
bakers have to say. I am pretty certain it is all good! Oh, I almost forgot, I used lemon not lime. Didn't have a lime.

Bake Along - Root Beer Bundt Cake

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 21:54:00 +0000

Did y'all see the bake along Nic and Megan were having? I was excited about a Root Beer Bake Along. I like root beer as an occasional treat and thought the sound of a root beer cake would be deliciously unusual! I couldn't help but join in. Nic from Bakeologie chose this time and Megan from My Baking Adventures so graciously shared the recipe.

And how was the cake or in my case cupcakes? Delicious but I didn't taste the root beer.

They were however, chocolaty, moist and did I mention delicious. So even though they lacked the root beer flavor they were a winner in my house. We did enjoy drinking the root beer with the cupcakes for sure! Thank you so much ladies for sharing your bake along! Megan thanks for helping with the recipe! Go visit Megan's Blog for the recipe.

Tyler Florence Friday - Chicken Noodle Soup

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 19:37:00 +0000

Hooray for Friday! There are some weeks Friday just cannot come soon enough and this was one of those weeks! So last night I was trying to catch up on a previous Craving Ellie recipe of fish tacos and was going to make Tyler's Kettle Chips with Parmesan and Herbs. Did anyone catch that episode of Ultimate? I want to make the pulled pork too! But anyway since the tacos were a healthier recipe I figured I could off set that with some tasty Kettle Chips. I really was excited about those kettle chips until the mandoline bit me. Yep. I know. Even Tyler warns you about it. I am usually ultra careful as well. I had the guard on my potato and every thing. I am still not sure what happened. The Kettle Chips were delicious but I ran out of steam after wounding myself and just didn't get the picture. Now I survived the night and even finished preparing the dinner after injuring myself but I only had Shrek band aids which was loosening this morning which put me at my grandmother's to get a bandage. My mom, my grandmother and my grandfather were all there. They were arguing about how I should handle it. One says go to the Dr. The other says that the doctor can't do anything. One needs to see the wound again. The other is scared I am going to get an infection. One is giving advice on how to cut a potato. One is sure I need some pain medication. Seriously, I made it this far with not even a Tylenol, so stop the bleeding for the love of pete and put the bandage on me and get me out of here! I get to work and my boss promptly asks me about my last tetanus shot which puts me at the Dr. SHeesh. After all this, I am seriously thinking about throwing the mandoline in the trash.

But since I skipped a few weeks ago, I will present you a previously made and photographed Tyler recipe of Chicken Noodle Soup which I modified a bit. I was trying to be a bit healthier that day. I used only one pound of tortellini and skipped the meatballs and used up some rotisserie chicken. Let me just say that this was a great chicken noodle soup!

Ingredients
For the soup:
Extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, smashed
2 large carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 ribs celery, sliced
1 bay leaf
4 fresh thyme sprigs
3 quarts low-sodium chicken broth
5 parsley stems, plus 1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, for garnish
4 black peppercorns
Kosher salt
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, for garnish
For the meatballs: - I skipped and used rotisserie chicken. I had it on hand.
1 medium onion, diced
Olive oil
6 links organic chicken-apple sausage meat
1 egg
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 handful fresh parsley leaves
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
2 pounds frozen cheese tortellini, store bought - I used only one pound and some No Yolk Noodles for the rest.
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
For the soup:
Set a large stock pot over medium heat. Add olive oil, half the garlic, carrot, onion, celery, bay leaf, and thyme and gently saute until fragrant, about 5 to 7 minutes. Pour in chicken broth, add parsley stems, black peppercorns and salt, to taste. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer while you work on meatballs and tortellini.
For the meatballs:
Caramelize the diced onion in a saute pan with a little olive oil over medium heat. Add the sausage, egg, onion, thyme, parsley, and cheese to the bowl of a food processor and pulse until they all come together. Season with salt and pepper. Heat a skillet with a few tablespoons of olive oil until just smoking. Use a small ice cream scoop to drop meatballs onto skillet. Cook, turning, until golden brown.
Drop tortellini straight from freezer into soup. Cook until they float. Once meatballs are browned, add to pot of chicken broth. Bring to a simmer and cook for 2 or 3 minutes. Give soup a final seasoning and serve in shallow bowls with a small shower of Parmesan, olive oil, and parsley.

Even after my modifications, it was delicious. Very, very good. The tortellini was a great addition even if it was only half of what the recipe called for. Now go visit the other great Tyler Fans and see what they cooked up this week. You know it will be good!

Craving Ellie - Chicken with Mango Barbecue Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 15:03:00 +0000

It's time for another new healthy recipe attempt. This week's pick was Chicken with Mango Barbecue Sauce. Since chicken didn't seem that complicated, I tried to pay a little more attention to the actual recipe instead of inventing my own due to forgetting important things like the ingredients! But anyway we are serving up Chicken with MANGO Barbecue Sauce this week. Now I am always up for chicken and think that you can't go wrong with adding Barbecue sauce but the mango threw me. I've had alot of barbecue sauces that range from having ingredients like ketchup, beer, mustard, vinegar, and even Dr. Pepper but never mango. But since it also had vinegar, Worcestershire sauce and jalapeno, I thought it couldn't be that bad so off I went to find mango. I ended up with a 7 pound frozen bag of fruit that had mango. So fruit it was for breakfast all week and if nothing else went right with this recipe, I have had my allotted servings of fruit every day since last Friday. HOORAY!

So I followed the recipe perfectly but grilled my chicken on my grill instead of in the house. It's spring and from hence forth, the grill pan is off limits until winter or torrential rains.
Mango Barbecue Chicken is different. Not bad at all, just very different. Since I went with three jalapenos it was also SPICY, but spicy is good at our house. My husband and I enjoyed it. I just don't know if it would be a regular rotation. We liked the sauce, but not as much as regular barbecue sauce. I loved that it had less sodium and didn't involve large quantities of ketchup, but don't love it as much as regular barbecue sauce. I am very glad I tried it! It was a snap to put together. We still have some sauce and will try it with grilled pork chops maybe.
I recommend that it would be a recipe to try. An easy, healthy recipe can't be beat! It might be the "one" you've been looking for. Visit Aggie's Kitchen for the recipe. She has some wonderful recipes so stay around awhile too.

Next up Buffalo Chicken Salad with Blue Cheese Dressing. Can't wait for this one!

TWD Blueberry Crumb Cake

noreply@blogger.com (leanne) — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 21:01:00 +0000

It's Tuesday! This weeks's
Tuesday's With Dorie recipe is Blueberry Crumb Cake. It was chosen by Sihan of Befuddlement. Which is of course where you can get this recipe and enjoy some of her wonderful recipes and photos. I was excited for this pick because I love blueberries and adore coffee cake.

So given the fact that I love blueberries and coffee cake, I really have nothing bad to say about this recipe. Maybe not the best I have ever had but darned good.

My husband came in from the kitchen with half the cake on his plate to ask if there was something special about the blueberry bread. This meant that he wanted to know if he was allowed to eat it. I told him it was blueberry cake and of course he could eat it. He tasted it and said, "This isn't bad. Actually this is really good."

You know why it was really good? Because he hollowed out the cake. Yep. I had to combine two pieces to take the picture. He hollows out everything including ALL the homemade cinnamon rolls that my mom made me for my birthday a couple years ago. AND he does this before I get to have any. Needless to say, I was really upset about not having any middles in my cinnamon rolls.

I guess I deserved being robbed the middle of my cake. The same morning, I had just gotten back from taking the kids to school and was enjoying the new spring weather and I let this happen.

I even took pictures of this poor little bird being robbed his breakfast and giggled as it happened. Actually, I was giggling at Dixie because she thinks she has a chance at catching a bird, but...

Now this would have been a wonderful recipe if I could have cut the middle of the cake in half and enjoyed just the crumbs and middles.