What's Love Got to do, got to do with it...

Usually Valentine's Day is uneventful. Celebrating out with my hubby is out of the question on a day like this because I hate the rush by all the other couples. So, we usually stay in and I make something that everyone loves for dinner.

This year......Chicken Asparagus Stir Fry

Requested by: My son who wants to use his chop sticks.

I'm not posting the dinner.

But I did make some homemade marshmallows this morning. Pink to be exact.

The whole process is wonderful. I love making them and seriously, I have not eaten

a store-bought marshmallow since I tried the recipe for the first time several years ago.

They melt in your mouth. They are soft and supple. They can be made into any shape with cutters.

But, Today...

they will be pink hearts.

Now not everyone in my family likes popping them in their mouths

as some form of dessert. But, everyone agrees that fresh marshmallows in Hot chocolate is

a definite treat!!!

HOME MADE MARSHMALLOWS

by Alton Brown

Ingredients

• 3 packages unflavored gelatin
• 1 cup ice cold water, divided
• 12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• Nonstick spray

Directions

Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by.

In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.
Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

For regular marshmallows:

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.

When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks

I hope you have a chance to make these little dreams sometime soon.

Happy Valentine's Day

Pre-game Pizza Muffins- if they last until tomorrow!

I'm just about to run out the door to a crab feed in town, but wanted to post some food I am making ahead for the Super Eating Bowl. I found this recipe, but of course, couldn't leave well-enough alone to follow their recipe on Pinterest, soooo....
Pepperoni Pizza Muffins:

• 3C. AP flour
• 3 t. baking powder
• 2 1/2 T. Italian Seasoning
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. red pepper flakes
• 3 Cups of whole milk ( I actually used 1 can of evaporated milk and 1 cup 2%)
• 4 eggs
• 4 C. Mozzarella Cheese
• 1 C. Pepperoni, either chunks or sliced that has been cut up
• about 1/2 cup store bought pizza or spaghetti sauce
• about 1/2 C. Parmesan Cheese finely grated (fresh)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray 36 muffin liners with a little Pam. I didn't do this and they all stuck to the liners, so go ahead. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning, salt, and red pepper flakes. Mix milk and eggs together then add to the flour mixture and whisk until all is moisened. Add the pepperoni and cheese and stir. Line Muffin tins with sprayed liners. Use 1/4 cup to scoop mixture into the tins. Take about 1 t. of sauce and gently put in the middle of the mixture in each tin. Bake for about 25-27 min. Remove and sprinkle each with Parmesan Cheese. It makes 36 regular size muffins for a crowd.

Ok, I'm off to enjoy some crab and hammer the heck out of the little suckers.

Donuts Combat Depression....news at 11

Even better, these donuts are easy peasy.

After the last few weeks of me dieting, my kids are a little droopy.

My husband is trying to cut calories as well so to make things easy on him and I, I found this recipe from Paula Deen. Yup. Good ole' canned buscuits.

Its really quite easy.

Lay out the eight buscuits and cut small center holes in each.

Heat oil in a dutch oven to about 350 degrees.

Drop the donut/buscuit dough into the oil, and turn once it's brown.

(the first one was not done all the way through, so I turned the heat down a bit and cooked the others longer)

After I removed them from the oil, I placed them on a paper towel.

I used 1/2 C. sugar and mixed with 1 T. cinnamon in a bowl to then coat the each donut.

Yummy. I ate a few of the holes, which was cheating on the diet, but just what I needed to hit the craving but not ruin the whole day!!!!!

I seriously could have eaten several hearing all the "Oh man,"s and the "So good!"s.

Back to the leans and greens.