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.

Recipe that warrents a party!

I rarely make something in the kitchen and then say, " I need to have a party just to serve THESE!"
But, I said it today.

Who wouldn't want a party with these beauties.

I found the recipe, sort of, on Pinterest. I kept clicking on the picture, but no recipe came up. I researched further with google and found that it was as easy as pie...so to speak.

What do ya need?

White Cake Mix

Neon Gel Food Coloring

Some sort of white frosting

Rainbow Sprinkles

I made the cake as directed. Then I separated the batter into 5 small dishes. The Neon allowed me to make pink, orange, green and purple. I had to use a blue from my other gel food coloring pack in the pantry. I used liners that were a little different so I could see how each would react. 6 were a wilton white liner, and the other four were regular liners. Yes, the recipe only made 10.

I placed a little less than 1 T of each color directly on top of each other in this order:

purple

blue

green

orange

pink

They turned out lovely. Actually the smaller liners worked better, just be careful not to overfill.

I did frost them with just a plain vanilla frosting (Pastry Pride) which I whipped up after they cooled, and then sprinkled them with rainbow sprinkles.

I was in a hurry so I packed them up in a shoe box and hauled them to a basketball game at my kids High School. I gave several out to the delight of many high schooler. My friends son, who just finished playing and was famished, said they were the best cupcakes he had ever had.....it's amazing what a little pizzazz can do to a plain white cake mix!!!!

And....we're off...busy night meals

If you are married, with kids, with a life, you know how some days just get away from you and before you know it you're standing in front of the fridge with the door open at 5:00pm saying, "Why didn't I do this earlier?"
So what's your standby dinner.
Sometimes I go Mexi-German and have Chili Smothered baked Potatoes. It's crazy easy and I can actually get something done while those potatoes are baking for an hour in the oven.

Simple Chili:
1 lb. ground beef
2 cans diced tomatoes
1 can black beans
1/2 onion diced
2 cloves of fresh garlic minced
2 T. Chili Powder
2 t. salt
fresh ground black pepper to taste
cayenne pepper to your liking

Dice onion and mince garlic. Saute onion until translucent. Add garlic and saute for 1 min. Add beef and cook until no longer pink, then drain the fat. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer for about 10- 15 min.

Bake one clean russet potato for each person at 400 degrees for 1 hour.
Serve chili over split potatoes and add grated cheese.
Decent with a little fruit to go along with it all.
What's a go to dinner you make on busy nights?

Avacados on Bruschetta with Sardines! Yes, Sardines.

If you read an earlier post about my New Year's Resolution (don't like that word) you will know that I promised to eat better this coming year. I also am starting to see some very visible lines around the eyes and am hoping that this recipe will aid in better skin and heart health with it's high Omega 3 oils. If you are not a fan of fish...look away, and move along.
If you are curious, read on if you dare.
This is an Alton Brown inspired recipe. He calls it Sherried Sardine Toast. Too uninspired that name!!!
I will tell you that I thought I might get this down and then see it again, since I've never consumed a sardine.
Good news. It all played well with my tummy and actually had a very smooth, creamy texture and salty taste that wasn't overwhelming. All flavors melded together well.
So I dare you to try it!!!!

Sardine Avacado Bruschetta (makes 4)

2 (3.75-ounce 2-layer) tins brisling sardines in olive oil

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley leaves, divided

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

1/4 teaspoon lemon zest, reserve the lemon and cut into 4 wedges

Freshly ground black pepper

4 (1/2-inch) thick slices crusty bread, such as sourdough, country loaf or rye

1 ripe Hass avocado

Coarse sea salt

 

Drain the oil from 1 tin of sardines into a small bowl and set aside. Drain the oil from the other tin into another small bowl and whisk in 1 tablespoon of parsley, vinegar, lemon zest, and black pepper, to taste. Add the sardines, stir to combine and set aside for up to 1 hour.
After 45 minutes, put a rack 3-inches from the broiler and heat the oven to the broiler setting on high. Brush each slice of bread on 1 side with the reserved oil. Put the bread, oil side up, onto a cooling rack set inside a half sheet pan and broil 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown and crisp.

Halve the avocado and remove the pit. Smash the flesh in each half with a fork.
Spread the avocado evenly onto the toasted bread. Top evenly with the sardines. Pour any remaining dressing on top and garnish with the remaining parsley.
Season lightly with sea salt and serve with lemon wedges.

Potato Pie...Oh My!!!

With potatoes on my mind and pie dough in the freezer from a previous day, I set out to experiment with making a pie worthy of dinner but not too difficult time-wise. Voila! Sausage Potato Torte!

 The family went gaga because I taught them well that anytime you put a pie crust around dinner it's gonna rock. I served it with a simple salad. I could have used bacon like the original recipe , but didn't have any so go crazy if you prefer a different form of pig.

Sausage Potato Torte : (adapted slightly from Brown Eyed Baker)

2 pie crusts
3 german sausage, fresh, casings removed and cooked until no longer pink
3 medium baking potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup grated Swiss cheese
2/3 cup heavy cream
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
1 egg yolk, whisked with a splash of water

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Roll out the 1st pie dough to fit a large, deep dish pie plate. I sliced the potatoes very thin.  Working in circles, arrange the potato slices in the pie crust to cover the bottom. Season with salt and pepper, crumble 1/3 of the sausage over the potatoes, and add a little cheese. Repeat the layers two more times. The pan should be nearly full. Top with the remaining shredded cheese.
3. Whisk the dried thyme into the cream and slowly pour the cream around and over the entire pie, allowing it to seep down between the potato slices.
4. Roll out the remaining disk of refrigerated dough. Cover the pie with the dough and crimp the edges closed. Brush the top and edges of the crust with egg wash. Make a few slits in the center of the top crust, for the steam to escape, and put the pie pan on a baking sheet.
5. Bake the torte until the crust is browned and crispy and the potatoes are cooked through, 50 to 60 minutes. If the crust edges get too brown, cover them with some strips of aluminum foil. Remove the pie from the oven and let rest at least 15 minutes before serving.

This German girl was happy with the results!!!