Sangria!

J & I are going camping this coming week with another couple and we're slim on cash. I hate beer and liquor is so expensive so I decided to make a Sangria to take with us so I and S can have something to drink with the guys. I got the recipe from here and it had many great reviews. I cant wait to try it.


Ingredients:
1 Bottle of red wine (I used Barefoot Merlot b/c Merlot is sweeter)
1 Lemon cut into wedges
1 Orange cut into wedges
1 Lime cut into wedges
2 Tbsp sugar
Splash of orange juice or lemonade (I used OJ NO PULP)
1 Cup of raspberries (I used fresh & will add some blackberries)
1 Small can of diced pineapples (with juice)
4 Cups ginger ale

I poured the Merlot into a pitcher and cut up the orange, lemon, lime, and I added an apple (Golden Del.) Make sure to get as many of the seeds out as you can, you don't want to choke on those bad boys. Major party foul. Add pineapple & juice. Then add the 2 Tbs. of sugar. Mix and chill in the refrigerator. The longer you can let it sit the better :)

Before serving add the ginger ale and berries. Serve over ice if prefer ed.

Delish Porkchops

I always make these when we have pork chops. We love this. It's so simple, easy, and takes no time at all.


Ingredients: -Plus your chops



Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spoon mixture over shops (both sides). Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 15-20mins. Uncover, and bake for about 5-10 more mins.



Serve with your favorite sides. We served it with Lima beans & the blue box mac-n-cheese!

Homemade Strawberry Shortcake

J & I went to his grandma's house the other day and her son had brought back a heap full of fresh picked strawberries. Of course, she gave us a heap. They were Delicious! I pondered on what to make with the ingredients I had on hand. I found this recipe for an old fashion type of shortcake. I read many mixed reviews on it and decided to give it a try. Boy am I glad I did.

Ingredients:
(For the glaze) Chop up strawberries and put in container with 1/2 cup of strawberries. Set aside in the fridge for later.

For The shortcake:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder (Reviews said to cut down to 2Tbsp)
2 tablespoons white sugar (Reviews said to up the sugar to 1/2 cup)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup shortening (I used butter)
1 egg
2/3 cup milk


Directions:
First, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease & flour one 8" round cake pan.

Next mix the dry ingredients: the flour, baking powder, 2 tablespoons white sugar and the salt. Once mixed together place the shortening(or butter) and cut into ingredients. I used a fork but you can use a pastry blender. Blend until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

Make a well in the center and add the beaten egg and milk. Stir until just combined.
Spread the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool partially in pan on wire rack. You can slice partially cooled cake in half, making two layers. Place half of the strawberries on one layer and top with the other layer. Top with remaining strawberries and cover with the whipped cream. I just made the cake and sprinkled it with a little powder sugar and sliced as we ate it and topped with strawberries & ice cream.

Chocolaty Cherries Jubilee Cheesecake

Wow, it's been awhile eh? Ive not blogged anything Ive cooked recently for some unknown reason. I thought to myself since I've never done a cheesecake I'll blog about the one I recently was asked to make. My mother saw this recipe in a magazine ( I think it was Women's First) and asked if I would make it for Mothers Day. I said sure I like a challenge and my mom wanted it so off I went to the store to gather the ingredients.

Ingredients:

10 Chocolate wafer cookies (I only found them at Ingles)

1 cup granulated sugar, divided

1/4 cup melted butter

1 envelope (.25g) unflavored gelatin. (I used Knox)

3 Tbs. Cherry-flavored Liqueur (I didn't have any so I used some grenadine & cherry syrup)

10 oz bittersweet chocolate, melted & divided (I used Ghirardelli bittersweet chips)

3 pkgs. (8oz each) Cream cheese, at room temp.

1/2 cup sour cream

1 container(8oz) Cool Whip

1 can (21oz.) Cherry pie filling, drained.

1 8" well greased spring form pan

I forgot to lay out the cream cheese when I got home from the store. So to help move the room temp. along I cut up the cream cheese so the surface area wasn't so large :) Oops

Directions:

Heat oven to 350 Degreed F. In food processor, pulse cookies until they're fine crumbs. The directions said about 20 cookies. Once crumbs are formed stir in 1/2 cup of sugar and the melted butter. Press into the bottom of a WELL GREASED 8" spring form pan. (I totally forgot to grease the pan... and yea it stuck like crazy. I was so nervous about making it turn out right) Bake for 12minutes and let cool.

In a microwave safe bowl, combine gelatin and 1/2 cup water; let sit 2 minutes. Then stir in liqueur. Microwave for about 30seconds or until the gelatin is disolved. Once disolved stir in 8oz melted chocolate.

In a bowl ofelectric mixer (I used my KA Mixer, thankgoodness for this invention) on medium speed, beat the cream cheese for about 1 minute. Add remaining sugar and sour cream. Beat another 1 min. Add gelatin/chocolate mixture and beat 1 min.

Pour batter into prepared crust and chill for 4 hours. Top with whipped topping, melted chocolate, and cherries. Cut, serve, and enjoy. I'm glad this was such a hit. Simple & a great dessert. I'm not a fan of cheesecake but this was pretty good. The Ghiradeli chocolate brought out the flavor of the cherries.

Candies!

I've had these candy molds since our wedding when I was naive and thought I could make a bunch for our wedding.. riiight. Needless to say I made some tonight just to see how they would turn out. Great first trial. I think next time Ill find some strawberry filling or raspberry. I had an assortment of chocolate, white chocolate, both, peanut butter, and a mix of all three! Super easy too!

Dinner With What I Had

Well I went to the store to get stuff to stock up our cabinets (ie: cornbread mix, mac n cheese, can goods, etc) Well I forgot to look to see what I wanted to make for dinner before I went to the store so I could get some special ingredients if needed. Needless to say, this is what dinner consisted of (green beans, chicken, spices, and Kraft Blue Box):

This meal turned out pretty well :) It wasn't like I could mess it up or something. I was a bit nervous because I had never made a pouch out of aluminum foil to cook meat in and I have a hug texture thing with my food. Esp, chicken. If it doesn't even look right I refuse to eat it. J could say it tastes amazing and I still wont touch it. I put lemon pepper, a tad of garlic salt and some lemon zest in the pouch and cooked it on 375 for about 45mins. I also put a little bit of brown sugar in our green beans and it was overall a good meal. J approved.

And this was the final meal. Minus the Mac N Cheese, I don't like it to touch anything else lol.

Farmer's Porkchops

Since J and I were off for two days together I wanted to make a meal we had never tried before. We were tired of chicken and beef recipes so we went with pork! I looked and looked through my recipe books and found this great recipe in Paula Dean's "The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook". I had never made a white sauce before and was terribly intimidated. I don't know why but I was. Any who this turned out to be a great meal & def. added to the list to make again.

Ingredients:

8 medium potatoes (I used red potatoes)
1/2 medium onion (I omitted this, we hate onions)
Salt & pepper, to taste
White sauce (see recipe below)
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp Lawry's Seasoned Salt
8 center-cut pork chops, about 1/2 inch thick (We used 4)
1/3 cup vegetable oil

White Sauce:

8 Tbsp (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 to 2 tsp salt
1/2 to 3/4 tsp pepper
4 cups milk
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley or chives (optional)

Directions:
Melt butter; remove from heat. Stir in flour; add salt and pepper.
Return to heat and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly.
Add milk, 1 cup at a time. Bring to boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.
Reduce heat and simmer 1 to 2 minutes, then let stand at least 1 to 2 minutes.
Stir in parsley or chives, if desired, we didn't desire :)

Directions For Meal:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel potatoes; slice 1/4 inch thick and cover with cold water. If you are going to use onions slice them into thin slices & then cut the slices in half. Start the white sauce now so it will be cooking and thickening as you prepare the potatoes in the dish.

You can either use a well-greased 15x10 casserole dish or if you don't have one like me I sprayed Pam into a large 13x9 glass bake ware dish. It was pretty full but never bubbled over the top.

Next, drain potatoes and layer them in the bottom of the desired dish. If you're adding onions place 1/2 over the potatoes and then layer more potatoes and then more onions, etc. Once all of the ingredients are in place salt & pepper them to taste.

Once the white sauce is done and has thickened up quite a bit pour the sauce over the potatoes and place in the oven & bake uncovered for 15 minutes. Start the pork chops by dredging them in the flour/season salt mixture. Lightly fry the chops; however, don't cook them all the way. Once the chops have browned place them directly on top of the potato/white sauce mixture and place uncovered in oven for about 45 minutes. Serve & enjoy!

Tie Dye Cupcakes & Valentine's Day Cupcakes

While searching on the the web I saw where someone had posted a lady's blog, The Omnomicon that contained the following recipe for a tie dye cake. It looks amazing and so fun. So with J at work today and knowing that he MAYBE got 3 hours of sleep before he had to be at work I decided to bring him cupcakes and the rest of the crew as well.

I made two batches of these. The tie dye version and red/pink/purple version for Valentines Day coming up. Ingredients:
1 Box of Betty Crocker's White Cake Mix (sure go ahead and make it from scratch if your heart so desires.. mine didn't :)
2. Sprite Zero You'll Need 16oz (I never knew you could cook with soda :/ It was strange to me but then I found out a lot of people do it to cut out fat and such.. I bought a 2L because it was more cost effective and lets face it $1.98 for a L is cheaper than paying $6.00 for the 6pk of 16ozs)
3. Food Coloring (Recipe suggests gels but I had the liquid kind so I used it and didn't have a problem.
4. Cupcake Sheet (I used a 12 silicone cupcake pan & a 12 metal mini cupcake pan.)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350F. If you have a KA Mixer, use it. First dump the cake mix into large mixing vessel. Second add 16oz of the Sprite Zero. (You can def. omit this and follow the cake mix's directions to add the 3 egg whites, 1/3 cup of Veg. Oil, and H2O.) Mix together. Mixture will be lumpy, that's okay.

After batter is prepared have 4-6 different small mixing bowls ready to portion out the batter. Portion about 1/2 cup into each small bowl. I had 5 Colors, Red, Blue, Green, Orange, & Purple.
Purple: Red & Blue Orange: Red & Yellow.. FYI.

Spoon about 2tblspns of 1st color into each cupcake hole. Then use the next and use less of that color, spoon next color using less than 2nd color..etc..



Follow baking directions on box. If you are using the soda method then add 5-10 more minutes to baking time checking every few mins. I used a silicone baking pan and for the large cupcakes it took about 23mins.



Here Are The Pictures Of My Valentine's Day Cupcakes.




To make chocolate designs just melt semi sweet chocolate in microwave for 30seconds and then 15second intervals until melted. Place in piping bag, cut small tip and draw designs on wax paper. Let cool and place :)

Devils Food Cake Balls

I love trying new recipes, especially desserts. I was on a food forum and found this wonderful recipe for Devil's Food Cake Balls. Her name is Cathy and I owe it all to her for these wonderful little delights. Check out her wonderful blog at Cathy's Kitchen Journey for her pictures/comments/and other wonderful recipes. (She made her frosting from scratch and has that lovely recipe on her page)

Ingredients:
1 Box of Devil's Food Cake (Prepare as directions say)
1 Can Chocolate Frosting (because I was in such a hurry to make these I admit I used store canned frosting)
1 Package Chocolate bark (I used 1/2 package of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Almond Bark)

Directions:
Prepare cake as instructed on the package. After cake is cooked and cooled completely, crumble into large bowl and add can of frosting. I used my KA Mixer to blend the cake and frosting together and it worked wonders.

When everything is mixed evenly shape the balls and place on cookie sheet. I used an ice cream scoop since I didn't have a cookie scoop. Roll into balls and placed on cookie sheet lined with wax paper. Chill for a few hours (you can place these in the freezer if you need them quicker).

Once these little balls of joy are chilled, melt the chocolate almond bark as the directions instruct. I just placed the choc. bark into a glass bowl and put in the microwave and it worked for me. Watch very carefully so the chocolate doesn't burn. Once melted, top your goodies with the melted delight.

Zesty Lime & Cilantro Chicken

Easiest chicken recipe you'll ever make. Ive wanted to make this over and over recently but our dear grill is broken :( We have tried this on our George Foreman grill we received as a wedding present and it does well. I would just recommend taking out the cilantro because it tends to burn and smoke up the kitchen. oops :)

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup of Lime Juice (fresh or you can use the little green bottle, I do.)
4-5 Medium Minced Garlic Cloves (Minced or pressed will work)
A good bit of FRESH Cilantro (Don't use dried!!)
2 Tablespoons Honey
[[sometimes I add a little lemon juice as well, helps keep the chicken tender]]

Directions:
You can marinade in a Ziploc bag or pan. The bag is easier when cleaning up. First take the honey and lime juice and mix together so the honey is Incorporated and not so thick. Then place into the container in which you have selected to marinate your chicken in. Add minced garlic and chopped cilantro. I usually poke a few holes in the chicken for max flavor results.

Let marinade for at least 20 mins, a hour or two would be best. Once marinated place on grill and cook away. Remember to keep your chicken from drying out cook on low/med heat slowly.

Mexican White Cheese Dip (Queso Blanco)

I LOVE the cheese dip you get at Mexican restaurants (who doesn't?!). Well one night I had a huge craving for it one night and decided to make it. It's sooo easy & beats the crap you buy in the containers at the store.

Ingredients:
1 1/2lbs White American Cheese (FYI: Smaller chunks melt easier/quicker)
2 Cups Milk
2 Tablespoons Butter
1 Bag of Chips

You can also add jalapeno peppers and chilies to spice it up. I'm not a huge fan of them so I left those out. Take the cheese, milk, & butter and combine in a double boiler. At many of the restaurants (including the one I work for) take the chips and dip them into the fryer for a few seconds to warm them up and make them yummy.

[[Don't have one? Make one. Take a sauce pan put a few cups of water into it (leave room for it to boil and steam escape) and place a larger bowl on top. Turn on burner and boil baby boil!]]

Lasagna Rolls

J told me to put this at the top of the list for his favorite meals. It's a pretty simple and easy to follow recipe. You can make more than you'll need and store in an air-tight container and freeze for later use.

Ingredients
12-14 Lasagna Noodles
2 cups Ricotta Cheese (Store Brand Works Fine)
1 Package Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
1 Can Tomato Sauce(Med-Large Can)
1 lb ground beef Cooked & Drained
Salt & Pepper To Taste. (Note: I LOVE using McCormick's Mediterranean Spiced Sea-Salt, I sprinkle it in the tomato sauce and boiling water for the noodles.)

[[Note: To get more fat out of the hamburger meat, I cook meat until 90% done and then add enough water to cover the meat. Let meat/water start to boil and drain]]

Directions:
Preheat oven 350F & cook/drain meat. When meat is finished add 1/2 can of tomato sauce and let simmer while you cook the lasagna noodles per the package directions (Drain & Cool of course). Next, combine mozzarella cheese & ricotta cheese in large mixing bowl. Mix the two so the mozzarella cheese is evenly distributed. Pour the sauce/meat mixture into the bowl with the cheese mix. Stir, blend, whatever you wish to call it.

I usually place a sheet of wax paper on the counter top and under the bowls to help with cleanup :)

To assemble, spread 2-3(Maybe 4, you'll know best) Tbsp of mixture on the noodle & roll up. I place them sitting upright and once the dish is full pour extra tomato sauce on top and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for about 25-30 minutes. Uncover and top lasagna rolls with mozzarella cheese and place back in oven to melt cheese.

Unstuffed- Stuffed Peppers

J and I hate peppers but we love the mix inside the stuffed peppers. So, duh, take it out right? Indeed we did, and love it.

1 Lb ground beef
1 Garlic glove
4 Servings rice- We use Uncle Bens but use whatever, even min rice if you want.
2 Cups Tomato Sauce
1 Cup Shredded Cheese, I love Colby Jack blend.

Start rice first if not using Minute Rice. Brown ground beef and drain excess fat (Hint: When meat is just about done pour enough water over the meat and let heat up and then drain the meat. More fat is removed that way). Add tomatoe sauce and let simmer.

Meanwhile, cook rice if using regular rice. Add garlic & heat for 2-3 minutes on medium. Stir in rice, cover, and heat over medium heat for 5 minutes. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese over top just before serving, making sure that the cheese melts. Makes 4 - 6 servings.

The Beloved Oreo Truffles

8 oz. Cream Cheese

1 Package Oreos

1 Package of Choc. Almond Bark

1 Package of White. Almond Bark

Grind Oreos to small bits in your food processor. With a mixer ( I use my hands it works better), blend cookie crumbs and cream cheese until thoroughly mixed (there should be no white traces of cream cheese). Roll into small or large balls and place on wax-lined cookie sheet.

Chill 45 minutes.Line two cookie sheets with wax paper. In double-boiler, melt milk or dark chocolate. Dip balls and coat thoroughly. With slotted spoon or fork, lift balls out of chocolate and let excess chocolate drip off. Place on wax-paper-lined cookie sheet.

In separate double boiler, melt white chocolate. Using a fork, drizzle white chocolate over balls. Let cool.Store in airtight container, in refrigerator. For special occassions or holidays melt different colors of candies. Ex: Christmas (Red & Green) ,4th of July (Blue, Red, White), Etc.

Image from Blurred Lines Blog

Pepermint Sticks

My mother gave me a few cooking magazines when we bought our first home and I remembered that I had made these over the Christmas holidays and they were a huge hit. All you take is the soft peppermint stick candy and in a heavy small sauce pan, combine 4oz chopped bitersweet or semisweet chocolate and 1 teaspoon shortening. Heat & stir over low heat until melted. Chop up any type of nuts you desire and/or sprinkles. Dip the peppermint candy into the chocolate and then roll in the topping. Place on waxed paper & let stand until set. Recipe from the Better Homes & Gardens Special Interest Publications "Holiday Cooking."

Tres Leches Cake

Okay, so I would have NEVER known about this recipe if it wasn't for a friend of ours. Shane & Andrea invited us over to their house for dinner, we had an amazing dinner, and then Shane brings out this cake, dessert type thing. J & I thinking it was just cake until we cut into it were perplexed about the texture and look of this cake. Let's just say don't judge! It was absolutely delish. I asked Shane what it was called and he spit out this gibberish Tr es Leches Cake. Okay... right.. yea um it was great! So we went home stuffed and pondering this amazing cake. A few weeks later I wanted to make it so I emailed Shane and asked for the recipe. I then googled it and read about it. Tres Leches translated means 3 Milks Cake. You'll see why.. (Easy Tip if you don't want to make your cake from scratch is to use a boxed yellow cake mix)

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup oil
5 eggs, large
1 teaspoon plus 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup plus 1/2 cup milk
1 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 cup plus 3/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon rum
1 pinch salt
optional garnishes- fresh berries, Cinnamon, or chocolate (I used choc. shavings)

Combine flour and baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the oil, sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. Add the eggs to the sugar mixture one at a time until well combined. Stir in the 1/2 cup of milk, then gently fold in the flour mixture a little at a time.
Pour batter into a lightly greased cake pan or baking dish and bake at 325 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until it feels firm and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Let the cake cool until it feels room temperature. Turn it over onto a platter with raised edges. Pierce cake with a fork 20-30 times. Let it cool in the refrigerator for an additional 30 minutes.

Whisk together 1 cup milk, 1 cup sweetened condensed milk, 1 cup heavy cream and rum. Slowly pour over cooled cake. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Occasionally, spoon the milk runoff back onto the cake.

In a mixing bowl, add 3/4 cup heavy cream, 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1 Tablespoon sugar. Beat until peaks form. Spread a thin layer over the cake. Garnish, eat & enjoy!

Fried Tortellini with Marinara Cream Sauce

I haven't tried this recipe yet; however, on the next day J and I have the day off together you bet Ill be making these scrumptious looking things. I love watching Paula's Party (Paula Dean's show) and one night she made these lovely fried tortellinis. They look really easy and simple to make. Yields 4-6 servings. Cook Time: 10mins

Ingredients:
For the Tortellini you'll need:
1 Cup Ricotta Cheese
1/4 cup fresh goat cheese, softened
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg
1 (16oz) package of fresh pasta sheets

For the Breading:
Peanut oil, for deep frying
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley leaves
Salt and pepper

For the Marinara Cream Sauce:
1 jar prepared marinara sauce
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions for the tortellini: Mix together ricotta cheese, goat cheese, grated Parmesan, 1 egg, black pepper and a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg in a bowl.
Lay out the pasta sheets on a lightly floured surface. With a pizza cutter or sharp knife cut the sheets up to make 2 by 2-inch squares of dough. Place about 2 teaspoons of the cheese filling in the center of each square. Beat the remaining egg and lightly brush around circumference of the dough. Fold each square in half diagonally to make a triangle around the filling. Press out any air from the center so that the dough is fit smoothly around the filling. Wrap the triangle around your index finger and press the tips together. The third point of the triangle should fold forward to make the proper tortellini shape. Place the finished tortellini on a lightly floured baking sheet.
Cook the fresh tortellini in a large pot of simmering water for about 3 minutes or until they float. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Directions for the breading:
Preheat oil to 375 degrees F.
Place the flour in a shallow bowl or pie plate. Put the beaten eggs into another. In a third bowl, toss together bread crumbs, Parmesan, parsley.
In small batches, bread the tortellini in the flour, then the egg, and then the bread crumb mixture, shaking off any excess.
Fry the tortellini in batches in the oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Remove to a paper towel lined sheet tray to drain and season with salt and pepper while still hot.

Directions for the marinara cream sauce:
In a large saucepan, combine sauce, cream and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat. Boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
(Picture from foodnetwork.com)