Cast of characters... half of an onion, jalapeno, salsa, white rice, oil, shredded cheddar cheese, corn tortillas, tomato bouillon, chicken bouillon (not pictured), enchilada sauce, a tomato and cilantro (optional and not pictured)...


Dice up the onion... you can use a whole medium onion if you like a lot of onions... If you have access to fresh jalapenos, just buy one or two (unless you want more spice, I never use more than one) and clean them and dice them up as well.

Next you will want to put two table spoons of oil into a deep skillet or a pot over medium heat. I use a skillet that is two inches deep, probably ten inches wide. Heat oil slightly, not to where it wants to explode when you throw something in there, just enough to where it moves around in the pan easily. Add one and a half cups of rice and stir occasionally to keep it from burning. Making Spanish rice is an art, I swear. Half the time I make it, it's fabulous and sometimes it flops, it's like the first pancake, except you don't get to make two :-) See how the rice is starting to turn white, that's what we want.

Now we are going to add the onions and jalapenos. You can add a diced fresh tomato here as well if you like, but we are going to add salsa later so you don't have to. You'll want to stir almost constantly because the onions and tomato will want to stick and you don't want to. Also, at this point, everything's gotten pretty hot so you want to keep it from burning. Your rice should start to brown a little, but not too much. Maybe two or three minutes of stirring before we add the bouillon.

You want one cube of chicken bouillon and one cube of tomato bouillon. Mush them up with your stirring spoon as quickly as possible and get them mixed in. As soon as you do, you may notice everything is wanting to stick at this point, add three cups of water, stir it all up and lower the heat to medium low.

Now I have a theory that you should only have the rice covered up about three fourths of the time that you are cooking it so that it doesn't end up mushy. I want it cooked all the way but not too much. So I usually uncover mine several times through out the process and check on it. When I think it's time, I leave the lid off so the rest of the liquid can escape, like I said, it's an art. In the bottom left photo, you can see what the consistency of the rice was when I uncovered it. I added 1/3 to 1/2 cup of salsa to it and stirred it up and lowered the heat to low to cook the remaining liquid out of it.

Now, while you were letting the rice cook, you needed to be starting the enchiladas. For this, you will want a 9x13 glass pan. It doesn't have to be glass, but it's better this way. Trust me. Poor a third of the can of enchilada sauce into the pan and make sure it is coating the bottom.
Wrap about fifteen tortillas into a few paper towels and microwave them for about two minutes. You want them to be hot enough to be pliable but not so hot that you make them hard. If you roll it, it shouldn't break. In each tortilla, put about two tablespoons of cheese and roll it up and set it in the pan. You can do two layers of enchiladas for a total of thirty. Drizzle remaining sauce over enchiladas and then sprinkle with cheese.

Bake in the oven at 350 for about twenty minutes or until the cheese on top is melted and you are confident that they are hot and then EAT! SOOOO good :-)

Labels: cooking, recipes, sisters, stuff I like

(for two servings)
1 tbl olive oil
1 leek, roughly chopped
1/3 red bell pepper, diced
1 head of kale
2 tbl basil pesto
2 tbl almond milk, unsweetened
1 package soba rice noodles

Heat olive oil over medium heat and saute leeks and bell peppers for about five minutes. Lower heat to medium/low and add kale, stirring occasionally until tender. I added some white pepper, herbs de Provence, celery salt and a little garlic powder here, you can spice as you'd like.
Add two tablespoons of basil pesto (I make mine with basil, pumpkin seeds, garlic and olive oil) and a few table spoons of unsweetened almond milk, more if you want it more sauce like.
Serve over rice noodles.

Labels: cooking, recipes, stuff I like

2 cups unbleached white wheat flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
6 tablespoons vegan margarine, chilled
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
rosemary, optional

Using a food processor, combine sliced margarine with flour, baking powder and salt until crumbly. Add almond milk until just combined... with biscuits, the less you mix, the better. Spray a twelve count muffin tin with non-stick spray, divide the batter evenly. I like really big biscuits so I will use a larger six count tin. Sprinkle the tops with rosemary.

Bake at 450 for ten to fifteen minutes, until golden brown on top.

Labels: Being Vegan, recipes

Ok, so I don't think you can say "being" when you are entering your second week BUT I have to say that I could seriously see this as a lifestyle change for me permanently. It wasn't hard like I thought it would be.
Whenever one considers a diet change, you always see yourself with the little food journal and a calorie calculator and you know it will be work.
But not so much for this one... I had to change what I buy at the store and the fact that Amanda and Trin are not on board blows because I have to make more than one dinner but as far as will power? Cake. Well, cake with no eggs anyway.
There are a gazillion awesome websites out there where I can find recipe ideas but with the exception of baking, it isn't rocket science. Substitute soy, almond, coconut or rice milk for just about everything calling for milk... and so far, there hasn't been anything I can't use ground flax in to cover for a lack of eggs in baking.
No meat? No problem. I don't even really miss it. The other day I was baking some chicken strips for Trin and Amanda and I didn't want to pop one in my mouth at all ;-)
Last night, I reheated a frozen brisket that The Cake Lady's husband made the last time we bbqed and as I was cutting it up for Amanda, it didn't bother me at all. Although I did stick my finger in the bbq sauce that he made to go with it because that shit is gooooooooood.
I can't do a freaking thing with tofu yet... how did something like tofu become intimidating?
The coolest thing? I can eat pretty much whatever I want and kind of feel guilt free about it. Second helping of salad? Yeah, well, it's SALAD. lol
Oh and I love cous-cous and quinoa a bunch!
Since I am only going into week two, I am not feeling secure enough to host my girl's night dinner with a vegan menu that will knock anyones socks off so we will be taking a break this weekend so I can make Chicken Spaghetti and a Mandarin Orange cake, both recipes from Mow's bag of old recipes that I finally finagled away from my Aunts who were keeping them hidden away.
I will be posting both recipes here with photos and reviews.

Labels: Amanda, Being Mommy, Being Vegan, cooking, Emilee, recipes, Triniti

At my last Halloween Party (you know, the party that confirms I've lost my mind every year?), Jiffinner brought a cheeseball shaped like a pumpkin.
It was super cute.
And, unlike all the other cheeseballs I've had in my life, this one was GOOOOOOOOD.
So on Friday when she and I went on the Mad Shopping Spree for Fairy's baby shower, we decided at the last minute to make one for the party. We got all of the stuff and then Saturday night, when Jiffinner came over to help with the food, we decided we couldn't have it be shaped like a pumpkin... we wanted it to be baby themed.
A bottle of sangria later, I was all BABY HEAD! BABY HEAD! Alas, Amanda and Jiffinner said heck no, that would be weird... instead, Jiffinner tried to sculpt a rattle out of cheese ball.

I'm all, "uuuhhh, shouldn't the rattle part be bigger and the shaft handle be skinnier?"


I practically had to leave the room.
Jiffinner says, "let's add the handle part and maybe it will look better..."
Jiffiner mentions a piercing and I did have to leave the room.


A much more rated G cheeseball.

Recipe:
16oz sharp cheddar cheese (buy the big block and shred yourself)
8oz cream cheese
8oz container chive & onion cream cheese
1tbsp paprika
1/4tsp ground red pepper

Mush ingredients together w/hands.

Labels: Being a Chic, cooking, recipes, soul sisters

The other night I made salmon.
My kids were gone and I had one in the fridge and it had been calling my name. And the brown rice in my cabinet was singing "me toooooo"....
So I threw my brown rice into my rice cooker (one part rice to three parts liquid) and took the salmon out.
I took a baking sheet that The Cake Lady had sent me home with the other day and drizzled olive oil all over it and sprinkled salt and pepper on it.


Then I took my beautiful salmon friend and laid him ever so nicely on the cookie sheet. The one that belongs to The Cake Lady. I didn't realize after I cooked the salmon that there would forever be an imprint of the salmon on her cookie sheet. I am sorry TCL. Please forgive me?


Then I grab the lemons.
I [heart] lemon.
I [heart] lemon a lot.
I zested two lemons and rubbed the zest on both sides of my salmon.


And then I squeezed the juice from one lemon ALL OVER the salmon.


Then, sliced lemons inside.
I also put about a third a stick of butter on the inside.
Butter + Lemon + Salmon = HEAVEN


Then I took the remaining slices of lemon and put them on top and sprinkled with salt and pepper...


Ok, so the real reason I was cooking?
I had to try out my new stove.
My new stove that has electricity and buttons.
*sigh*


My new stove that has a WINDOW.
*double sigh*


I covered the salmon and cooked for about twenty minutes at 325F.
And when it came out it was all pretty...
TCL - did I mention I was sorry about the fish imprint on your cookie sheet?


Yum.

Labels: cooking, recipes

I hate grocery shopping.
It's no secret to those of you who know me... I try and only go every other Friday and occasionally I can stretch it even more if I really try. And I do.
So, I should have gotten groceries this past Friday but shot the grocery store my not so friendly finger as I drove by and decided we would eat cereal all weekend if it meant I didn't have to freaking shop.
This meant I had to get super creative over the weekend because, well, let's face it... your kids aren't going to eat just cereal all weekend no matter how much you try.

I knew I had all of the stuff I needed to make salmon patties so I logged onto Tasty Kitchen to see what the brilliant minds over there had posted and I found this fabulous recipe which I happened to have everything I needed to make.
Score!

And now, I feel like I really need to share this with you.
Why?
Three reasons:
1. Soooooooooooo good.
2. Pretty easy.
3. Inexpensive.

Here is what you need for the whole thing:
2 strips bacon (I used turkey bacon... Melissa d'Arabian is a really wonderful cook... she does a show called Ten Dollar Dinners which I TIVO religiously. I don't always like the idea of some of the stuff that she makes but her salmon patties and her Shrimp Scampi are SUPER good.)
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 egg
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 lemon, zested
1 (14-ounce) can wild salmon, checked for large bones
1 baked or boiled russet potato, peeled, and fluffed with a fork
1/4 cup bread crumbs
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
3 cloves Garlic
7 cups Low-Sodium Vegetable (or Chicken) Broth (I had to use boullion because I was out of broth)
¾ teaspoons Kosher Salt
½ teaspoons Crushed Red Pepper Flakes (I used cayenne pepper because it turns out it is the same thing and I was out of flakes - don't be scared of the spice it is EXACTLY the right amount of spicy-ness)
1 pound Angel Hair Pasta Or Pasta Type Of Your Choice
1 can (15.5 Oz. Can) Chickpeas, Drained And Rinsed
1 cup Flat-leaf Parsley, Chopped
½ cups Grated Parmesan

What I love about this is that I had pretty much all of this on hand and would have just about all of it on hand on any given day. One thing about Melissa d'Arabian's show is that she really gives you some good staples for keeping in your fridge or pantry so that you can make just about anything by adding just a few extra ingredients. Because of her I always have: garlic, lemons, parsley, cilantro, bacon in the freezer, onions, breadcrumbs and parmesan. I can't even begin to tell you the things you can pull off if you always have those on hand. ALSO at Sam's Club you can buy a two pound chunk of parmesan for ten bucks!!!

Here is the recipe for the chick-pea pasta. If you like chick-peas, make this. In fact if you don't know if you do or not, make this. It is really very good.


Here is the recipe for the salmon cakes. First of all, I use light mayo and two potatoes because I think it is too liquidy to hold together right. I also use more than a quarter cup of breadcrumbs. If any of you know a good way to bake these, I'd love to know about it because frying them is messy.

Ok people, there you go. Go and eat and enjoy :-)

Labels: Being Mommy, cooking, recipes, stuff I like

This post should be titled: How I didn't follow the rules while attempting to duplicate Olive Garden's Chicken Gnocchi Veronese recipe.
For starters, I didn't EVEN have time for the two hour marinade time the chicken required since I decided to make this yesterday right before I left work. I get off of work at 3:30p. So I ran to the store to get a few things that I didn't have at home that I needed for this. Like gnocchi... because I wasn't even about to attempt to make that from scratch on a Tuesday.
I am not Super Woman people.
I got home at 4:30p.
My girls get home, starving and cranky at 4:45p... Clearly, two hour marinade was not happening.
I threw the chicken in a bowl with the lemon, rosemary (mmmmmmm rosemary) and garlic (which I wanted to add SO MUCH MORE OF... I love garlic) as soon as I walked in the door.
Like before I even unloaded the groceries.

Then I got to work julienning (Is that even a word?) my zucchini...
Now, a month or so ago, Ryan over on This Is Reverb did a post about a breakfast casserole and he used a mandoline slicer.
That is what I retained: MANDOLINE SLICER
I did not retain: JULIENNE ATTACHMENT
So for Christmas, Emilee got me a plain old, no attachments mandoline slicer. I naively thought yesterday that I could use it for this soup.
Oh, the things I learn.

Now here is where I really just threw the directions out the window.
This recipe calls for two things that I did not want to do:
1 small Vidalia onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, sliced (julienned)
Ok, let's start with the onion. While I was IN Wal-Mart, I called my mom. The conversion went like this:
Me: Hey, what the hell is a vidalia onion?
Mom: It's a sweet onion, like a Georgia onion.
Me: Uhm, ok. Do they have those at Wal-Mart?
Mom: Sure.
Me: [standing in front of the onion selection] Uh... what color are they?
I usually buy one of the three major onion types depending on what I am using it for: Yellow, White, Purple
I didn't know Yellow = Sweet.
Now I do.
Additionally, onions make me cry when I cut them.
A LOT.
So, I usually try and scam a daughter into doing it for me... usually Amanda because she says if she chews gum, her eyes won't water. And guess what! I have gum she can chew. But here was the dilemma: I needed the onions VERY. FINELY. CHOPPED. so that the daughters wouldn't bitch about them being in the soup and I knew Amanda would do a rough chop so I wasn't sure how to proceed.

Then I looked over at the stupid red bell pepper. Here's something you may not know about me - I loathe and abhor bell peppers, any color. I know that when a recipe calls for them, it is important to include them because they bring flavor, but I don't want to bite into them.
Not at all.

So, as it happens, I received a Bullet Express for Christmas. I love my Bullet Express. We use it just about every day. And I had the brilliant albeit not following the recipe idea to throw my onion and red bell pepper into the food processor attachment and chop them up that way. Into teeny tiny pieces.
It didn't go down like that.
It turned them into an onion and bell pepper smoothie.
So, you know, do with that what you will.
I did what any fly by the seat of your pants cook would do and say Oh Well and moved on. I threw the zucchini into my oil and started to saute it. As it was cooking, I slowly added the onion and red bell pepper mix to it. It smelled heavenly.


As it was cooking, I mixed my heavy cream, ricotta cheese and parmesan together into a bowl and checked the directions.


And realized I had a problem.
The problem was two fold. First, I had doubled the recipe. Second, I didn't have a pan large enough to combine all of my ingredients. I had a pot, sure, but the recipe called for a pan.
I also realized I needed to start boiling some water for the gnocchi.
And start my chicken.
I did both simultaneously. Because I rock.
When the little gnocchi started to float, I poured them into my strainer and then took the pot I had cooked them in and put my cream and cheese mixture in it with my sauteed veggies and the gnocchi and turned it onto medium.


The chicken with the rosemary smelled so good.
It didn't brown though because I was cooking it too low.


I stirred the cream and veggie mixture pretty constantly to keep it from sticking or burning or exploding. As the cheese melted, it went through some interesting texture changes.


I added the chicken pieces as they cooked since I had crammed so many of them in there and all...


Then it was done... and so very good. We ate it with HUGE chunks of garlic bread with parmesan melted on it. There is no picture of that though because WE WERE HUNGRY.


I, being such a good follower of recipes and directions and rules, didn't add anything additional of course.


What? I didn't do that! Who put that picture there?
I would never do that... even if it's...


From the Olive Garden recipe website...


Ingredients
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
1 small Vidalia onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, sliced (julienned)
½ zucchini, sliced, (julienned)
Salt to taste
4 chicken breasts, sliced in ½” strips
2 small branches rosemary
1 garlic clove, minced
Juice of ½ lemon

Veronese Sauce
1 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
½ cup ricotta cheese
14 fl oz heavy cream

Gnocchi
2 qt water
6 oz all-purpose flour
2 eggs
2 lbs russet potatoes
2 tsp salt
OR (if you are in a hurry and can't cook worth a crap, like me)
1 lb gnocchi (potato dumplings), cooked according to package directions

Procedures
NOTE: You may make your own gnocchi by following the steps below, or you may purchase them already made.

Gnocchi
WASH potatoes and place in water. Cook potatoes until soft (cook time will depend on size of potatoes). Remove potatoes from water and cool in refrigerator.
PEEL cooled potatoes and push them through a fine grater (rice grater) until mashed; do not over-mash potatoes or they will get tough.
COMBINE potatoes, flour and eggs in a mixing bowl. Mix well until dough does not stick to hands (add small amounts of flour at a time if needed).
DIVIDE dough into 4 sections. Roll out each section into a long rope. Cut each rope into ½” pieces. Push fork tines on each piece for the classic gnocchi appearance.
BRING water to a boil in a sauce pot. Drop in gnocchi and cook until they float.


Chicken & Sauce
COMBINE garlic, lemon juice, rosemary and chicken slices in a mixing bowl. Let marinate for at least 2 hours.
COMBINE Parmesan cheese, ricotta cheese and heavy cream in a mixing bowl and set aside.
HEAT sauté pan on medium high. Add extra virgin olive oil, onions, bell peppers, and zucchini. Saute until onions are translucent (do not brown).
ADD marinated chicken slices and cook until slices are brown on all sides and internal temperature is 165°F. Reduce heat and add sauce mixture. Bring to a simmer.
DRAIN cooked gnocchi and add to pan with chicken, vegetables and sauce. Stir to coat gnocchi with sauce.
SERVE gnocchi topped with extra Parmesan cheese.

Labels: cooking, recipes, stuff I like

Chocolate Cobbler Recipe:
6 tablespoons butter
1 cup self-rising flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups boiling water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Melt butter in an 8x8 inch baking dish while the oven preheats. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, 3/4 cup sugar, and 1 1/2 tablespoons cocoa. Stir in milk and vanilla until smooth. Spoon this batter over the melted butter in the baking dish. Stir together the remaining cup of sugar and 1/4 cup cocoa powder. Sprinkle over the batter. Slowly pour boiling water over the top of the mixture. Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, until set. Serve warm with whipped cream and realize that you will never have a desert better than this one as long as you live. SOOO good.

Labels: cooking, recipes

In my search to try and find some predone menus for one to two weeks that also come with shopping lists, I came across this site.
I guess I'll have to send them to Woman Atop Her Soapbox for translation though because everything is in the freaking metric system and I have no idea how many grams of tomatoes I buy.
Nonetheless, a lot of these recipes look very good and very kid friendly and since they seem to hail from the UK, some of them are new to us altogether.
And we need to mix things up a little.
I am so bored with eating.
Check them out, see what you think.

Labels: cooking, menu planning, RBATOTD, recipes

Now, I am no Pioneer Woman, so I barely even thought to grab my camera while Amanda was making these Monday night. And even then, it was less for the purposes of putting the recipe here on LOC and more about taking pictures of Amanda looking all grown up and rolling biscuit dough.
*dabs tear*
Amanda's chief complaint about me as a mother would involve a lack of cooking and meat. Amanda is a MEAT-EATER. No joke. She likes red meat and a lot of it. She'd have it every night if ONLY HER MOTHER WOULD BUY IT FOR HER!!
I, on the other hand, am more of a chicken eater.
Hence, we clash.
Since I am such a horrible border line vegetarian of a mother, Amanda has had to take some things into her own hands in the kitchen.
And thank goodness because I am so ready to hand over my apron and keys to the kitchen.
So, Monday night, she took on the VERY time consuming task of making pigs in a blanket. And while very, very good, I rarely make these because it takes SO LONG.
But she decided the reward was worth the time and got busy.
And in getting busy, she quadrupled the recipe.
And they still only lasted two days.

So first, here is our biscuit recipe, which is REALLY good.
You need:
2 cups self-rising flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 cup milk
a couple sticks of butter (depending on how many times you double the recipe)
all-purpose flour

We often run out of self rising flour but if you have baking powder and a couple other ingreients, you can make your own.
Mix all your dry stuff together and then add the milk.
Once combined, Amanda covers her hands in butter so the batter doesn't stick to her and goes to work rolling them out.

Once rolled out, she cuts strips with a butter knife that is also coated in butter.
I help by watching, taking her picture, keeping her company, telling her what a good job she's doing and trying to decide whether to use my flash or not.
I know, I'm such a giver.



Now we use either Little Smokies or skinless pork sausage cut into strips.
And by "we", I mean Amanda.
she rolls the sausage into the strip of biscuit dough and then sets them on the tray. Now this is where I help out.
I use a basting paint brush thingy and brush them with butter. We used to dip them in butter but then I realized butter has calories in it and maybe we should use a little less.
Then we bake at 425 for like ten or fifteen minutes until golden brown.
Then we clean up the ridiculous mess and eat them all :)

Labels: Amanda, Being Mommy, cooking, recipes

I am attempting to make Crispy Orange Beef, which was something we ate when Lola and I went out to our fabulous dinner at The Spice Route.
As I always do when I get back from Toronto, I start telling the girls about the awesome food we had and then I either buy or attempt to recreate it.
The Naan bread I tried to recreate last time I went to Toronto didn't go so well.
Anyway, I found a not-to-hard recipe for the crispy orange beef and bought all of the stuff I needed yesterday and told the girls about it last night.
THis morning while I was making breakfast, I noticed the beef in the fridge and told Amanda, "oooohhh, we're having crispy orange beef for dinner!"
And Amanda rolled her eyes (as almost thirteen year old girls are prone to doing no less than 387,865 times a day).
Emilee, who is a lover of all things food, asked me what it was.
Amanda jumped in and said, "Oh just something Mom had in Toronto. Everything is better in Toronto." Then she looked at me and said, "Maybe we should just move there EH?"

Labels: Amanda, cooking, Emilee, recipes, Toronto trip

Monday was a bad day. I will tell you the story soon, once it has a conclusion. But just take my word for it, it was a bad day. So bad that on Monday night I couldn't sleep and on Tuesday I was so effing mad that I couldn't sit still. This led to two good things:
1. I got a BUNCH of work done.
2. I baked three different kinds of scones.

And I have to tell ya'll, I am turning into quite the little scone baker.
I'm doing CRAZY things like changing the recipes.
And they actually come out better.
It's shocking.

One recipe I tweaked yesterday turned out so freaking good that I need to share it with you. I encourage you to go to the store TONIGHT and get the ingredients for this and make it immediately. In fact, make two. Make one to eat by yourself and one to take to work so everyone will refer to you as "that goddess" for the rest of the year.

Trust me, no one is more shocked than I am right now that I am about to post a recipe. I can see The Cake Lady in the back of the room dabbing away a tear.

Apple Scone Pie
(or Scone Apple Pie... or Scone thing with apples in it... or Round Scone of Goodness...)

You will need for the sconey part:
A glass pie plate pan thing I don't even own one of these but luckily I hadn't returned the one I borrowed from TCL yet so I had one.
2 cups of self rising flour
1/2 cup of white sugar I don't know how much it affects the recipe but I only use raw sugar which is completely unprocessed and tastes different to me. You can buy Sugar in the Raw on your baking isle... I use another brand and the name escapes me right now...
1/2 cup of unsalted butter, cold (1 stick) I don't know what the difference is between salted and unsalted butter but I almost always buy unsalted because I figure it is easier to put salt in than take it out.
2 eggs
1/2 cup of heavy cream or whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla

You will need for the yummy apple filling:
Three large apples of your choice, peeled, cored and in bite sized chunks... I used gala because I like those. I think I'm going to try it with pears... or peaches...
Cinnamon, 1 tbsp I never measure cinnamon. You know how much you want on there, go nuts... In fact, you could probably add nuts if you like them. Which I don't. Apparently you can add whatever you want when you are baking! Craziness.
Sugar, 3 tbsp Again, I used the raw sugar, not processed.

Ok, here is where you actually have to pay attention.
Preheat oven to 375. I don't know what that is in Celsius. And quite frankly, the metric system is starting to get on my nerves. (Sorry Lola!!)
I started by mixing together my flour and raw sugar and then you need to cut up the butter and mix it in with your hands. I don't know if there is another way to do it if you have one of those awesome mixers that I can't afford. But you want the butter to be blended it well, kind of like your making a graham cracker crust...
Set aside.
Peel, core and chunk your apples and then toss in a bowl with the sugar and cinnamon until coated. Eat a few pieces. Good right?
Set aside.
Get the first bowl with the flour mixture in it and add the cream, eggs and vanilla to it. You can mix yor liquids together first if you want, I didn't. And mine came out really good so I don't think you have to.
Now for some reason you don't want to over mix. I don't know why but The Cake Lady told me not to, the other scone recipes I've tried told me not to, so just don't do it.
Over mixing is bad.
Mix it together enough to be combined. I did this with a wooden spoon because I love wooden spoons. Which is kinda weird since that was what my mom would pop us with when we were bad as kids. No, really. Noah and I used to hide them when we knew we were in trouble.
Once you've got it mixed together, you'll want to butter or grease or spray your pie pan so it won't stick to it. Then you will need some regular flour for your hands because this stuff is sticky. Take about half and pat it into your pan and up the sides. Once you've got it all lined like a pie crust, put your apples in. Take remaining scone batter and cover apples. I patted it in my hands and just laid it on top.
Now this part is optional. I was making another batch of scones that called for an egg and a tablespoon of heavy cream was mixed and then brushed on top and since I had some left over, I used the rest on here. It made the top all glossy and pretty. Then I sprinkled, VERY generously, with sugar.
Probably a quarter of a cup.
Hey, when I'm mad, calories don't get counted.
Then I baked it for about forty-five minutes give or take, the top is all golden brown at this point.
It stayed in the oven all night and then this morning I brought it to work where I microwaved it for about four minutes and cut into it.
It was freaking amazing.

Go forth and make an apple scone pie thingy.

Labels: At work, Being a Chic, cooking, Noah, recipes

This past weekend, on Mother's Day, the girls and I set out on a cooking slash baking adventure. Amanda had been begging me for pot pie and I had recently read Smitten Kitchen's post on scones made with heavy cream. So rather than clean the kitchen, which is what I normally do on Sundays, we destroyed it.
In fact, half way through Sunday when I was thinking about blogging about this, I wasn't sure if I wanted to recommend it since the mess is so astronomical.
As. tro. nom. ical.
The food was stunning but I have to be honest, I am not meant to be a kitchen chic. I do not like can't effing stand cleaning up the kitchen. If the dishwasher has to be ran more than once, I'm out.
BUT since I had promised Amanda a freaking pot pie and it was Mother's Day and I wanted to spend time with the girls, I sucked it up and endured the destruction of my kitchen and the impending cleanup job that lurked in the not so distant future.
Where I failed you as a blogger, I did not take pictures.
I thought about it several times through out the day but my camera was in the car and I didn't want to leave and go get it. I was really enjoying the time with the girls.
Anyway, we made the following three things, all of which I can recommend as being really good!

Chicken Pot Pie
We didn't change much about this recipe or process except that we didn't have any baking bowls so we made one large pot pie in a 9x15 glass pyrex dish. Oh and we added corn. My kids really loved it. If I make it again, I will prepare everything in advance instead of all on the same day.
We also made one for Ruthie with no meat. We used cream of celery soup as a base and used pretty much all the veggies in my house including soy beans and zucchini. It was made in the smaller square pyrex pan and she liked it.

Dreamy Creamy Scones
We used strawberries. I'm sure we broke all kinds of baking rules but we thawed about a half cup of strawberries and cut them up and threw them in. They definitely added to the moisture and we probably should have cut some of the cream out but we didn't. They fall apart pretty easily but are really good.

Chocolate Scones
We didn't change ANYTHING about these... they were sooo good. We made all of our scones in muffin tins instead of cutting them though. Make these as soon as you possibly can. I had dreams about them. Sooo goood.

Labels: Amanda, Being Mommy, Emilee, Mother's Day, recipes, Triniti

I'm done. Finished. It's over.
Thank. You. Universe!
The last three months of insanity have finally come to an end. The homes here are completely redone (pics soon, I promise), my Halloween Party is done AND cleaned up (thank you Jiffinner, The Cake Lady & Fairy for all your help!!) and yesterday I took my Certified Office Manager test!
The Big Three Things that were sucking up all of my time and attention are done.
Finally.
And do you know what dear reader? I'm already getting out of sorts with the thought of all that free time. I'm already trying to book it up. I'm having to make serious effort to not book it up. What is wrong with me that I just can't accept some stillness? Some down-time? I have issues. (As if that is news to ANY of you :P)
Here is what the rest of my year is looking like:
Amanda turns twelve on the 19th. *gasping for air* Give me a second. *grabs paperbag, deep breathing* Ok, I'm all right. So Amanda turns twelve and has opted that instead of a huge birthday party, she wants a huge present. This is cool with me. In fact, in my house we kinda have this teared birthday party option chart. It goes like this:
Big party and little gift
Medium party and medium gift
Small family party and huge gift
I'm cool with any of the three options seeing as how they cost me the same amount of money and it really is up to the girls how they want to do it.
But get this, the kids is trying to Out-Electronic me. She wants an Ipod touch. It was that commerical, the one where you are driving the car or whatever by moving the Ipod as if it were a steering wheel that pushed her over the edge. So I have to get a small party together at home where she is awarded a mack daddy mp3 player and I push down my jealousy.
Thanksgiving is on the 27th. This one isn't too bad for me since The Cake Lady usually just tells me what to bring and when to show up. I do want to try out a few recipes first as I am feeling brave and Fairy is begging me to make a pumpkin cheese cake (DB?!?! WHERE ARE YOU?) which I've never done before but I think I should attempt like a hundred times before Turkey Day since cheesecake is gooooood :)
Christmas is in seven weeks! You know, I really enjoy Christmas. It's the one holiday that I do not attempt to do anything except for be home with my family. I don't typically travel and there have been a few years where it is only the girls and I which I really love. I cook (I know, shocking!) and we all spend time together which is so nice. However, I freaking hate the shopping part. I hate trying to figure out what to buy the girls and how to be fair in shopping for everyone. I hate trying to figure out who else I need to get gifts for and what to get them. It stresses me out and I think half of the reason I love Christmas is that when it finally happens, it's such a relief to be done. It's a lot of work.
I leave for Dallas on December 30th. This year, I somehow got tricked into going to Dallas to spend New Years with my mother's family. Although traveling by car for anything over an hour is usually an excuse for a temper tantrum in my book, it will be a significant improvement over that year when that guy I did the whole New Year's Eve Blind Date Thing with bit me.

And then that's it people. 2008 will be over. I'm tempted to start my recap post now since this has been such a huge year for me but I will save that for another day.

Labels: Being Mommy, Christmas, Dallas Trip, daughters, family drama, my crazy life, My pathetic excuse for a love life, recipes, Thanksgiving, The Cake Lady, The Universe

Now I am the LAST person you should ask for recipes, the very last. I know how to make a handful of items well and the rest usually ends in catastrophe and occasionally loss of life.
But, seeing as how I have three little humans who are dependant on me for food for survival, I do try. And one of the rather awesome websites I use is Family Fun which has all sorts of arts and craft and best of all, kid friendly recipes :) Thank you Disney!
Since school starts next week and we doing this year sans daycare, I need to not only have snacks available for Em and Trin when they get home at 3:15p but also some new dinner ideas wouldn't hurt one bit. So I was browsing around for ideas when I came across this recipe which I had to share and really, who better to share it with than ya'll?

Colorful Cupcakes
The first surprise here: there's not a grain of sugar in these cupcakes. The second surprise: your kids will love them anyway.

RECIPE INGREDIENTS:
Meat Loaf
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
3 tablespoons ketchup
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon celery salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Potato Frosting
3 cups mashed potatoes
Food coloring

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Line 12 muffin tin cups with foil bake cups.

2. In a large bowl, mix together all of the meat loaf ingredients until well combined. Divide the mixture evenly among the lined cups (the liners should be about three quarters full).

3. Place the filled muffin tins on cookie sheets and bake the cupcakes for about 15 minutes or until cooked through.

4. Divide the mashed potatoes among three small bowls and stir a few drops of food coloring into each batch to create blue, yellow, and pink pastel frostings. Spread a generous dollop on each cupcake.
Makes 12 cupcakes.

Oh man, how FREAKED are my kids going to be the first time they come home and these are sitting on the table for dinner??

Labels: Being Mommy, recipes

Hey guys, this isn't something I ususally do since I am typically a dangerous cook but I am going to give ya'll two recipes to try should you feel so inclined.
The first of which is a soup that one my work-dudes brought in the other day which was straight up yummy.

Cream of Jalapeno Soup
5 jap peppers, stemmed and seeded
1.5 tablespoons unsalted butter
3/4 cup finely chopped red onion
3 cloves minced garlic
1 avacado, peeled and sliced
2 cups diced tomatoes
7 cups heavy cream
1 bunch cilantro, stemmed and chopped
salt & pepper to taste

Mince jalapenos and set aside. In large heavy sauce pan, heat the butter over medium heat. Add japs, onions, and garlic and saute, stirring until vegetables are soft. Temove the pan from the heat and stir in the avacado, tomatoes, and cream. Lower the temp and return pan to the heat, watching and stirring so the cream does not separate. Bring the soup slowly back to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes to reduce by one third and to blend the flavors. Continue stirring. Just before serving, stir in chopped cilantro.

Strawberry Pie
1 (9 inch) pie crust, baked
1 quart fresh strawberries
1 cup white sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

Arrange half of strawberries in baked pastry shell. Mash remaining berries and combine with sugar in a medium saucepan. Place saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring frequently. In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and water. Gradually stir cornstarch mixture into boiling strawberry mixture. Reduce heat and simmer mixture until thickened, about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour mixture over berries in pastry shell. Chill for several hours before serving. In a small bowl, whip cream until soft peaks form. Serve each slice of pie with a dollop of whipped cream.

That should keep you busy for the rest of the afternoon :)
The soup isn't too spicy and I don't like spicy so you can trust me on that one :) The pie was a hit with my boys at work.

Labels: At work, recipes

Dude - I totally made a cake today.
From SCRATCH.
As in, not out of the effing Pillsbury box.
And not just any cake... An awesome cake.
A cake that is so unbelievably good, it's very existence cancels out every bad thing I've ever cooked. Possibly every bad thing I've ever done.
And let me tell you, I've cooked some seriously nasty, burned shit in my life.
But this... this piece of heaven on a plate?
Yeah, it undoes all of that. It rights all the evil food wrongs I've inflicted upon the Universe.
It may be perfection in cake form.

If The Cake Lady could see me now... she'd dab her eyes and say, "my little girl's all grown up!"

If you want the recipe to this awesome thing, shoot me an email... link's on the right.

Labels: cooking, recipes