Category: RECIPES

STRAWBERRY KIWI HOMEMADE BUTTERMILK SHORTCAKE

This is even better when you take the time to make fresh whipped cream or homemade vanilla ice cream to go with it.

GLAZE
2 baskets fresh strawberries, sliced
2 kiwis, chopped
1 cup pureed strawberries*
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons KARO light corn syrup
3 tablespoons cornstarch
½ cup water

*I use the less than pretty berries for the puree.

Mix together sugar, corn syrup, cornstarch and water in a 2 quart sauce pan, cover and bring to a slow boil.

When you reach a boil remove the lid. Add the 1 cup pureed strawberries and boil a few minutes more and then chill 10 minutes.

After chilled pour over sliced berries and toss gently.

BUTTERMILK SHORTCAKE
2 cups flour
1½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
dash of salt
4 tablespoons sugar
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
½ cup butter, softened, but not melted
¾ cup buttermilk**

Sift the dry ingredients together. Add the milk and butter and mix well into a soft dough. DO NOT over knead – it will become tough.

Grease an 8 inch pie pan really well. Gently arrange dough into an even mound and pre-cut into your serving portions before baking.

Bake at 400° for 15 to 20 minutes or until toothpick done and golden brown.

Slice each shortcake open, bot with a thin layer of honey, arrange on plate and top with a scoop of strawberry kiwi glaze and vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.

**As a substitute, Buttermilk can be made by adding 2 tablespoons of vinegar to regular milk.

AND MY REVIEW FOR LE CRUSET:

I was recently made aware that there is a wonderful online shopping experience available right from your desk top. Whether you are looking for tv stands, dining room furniture or cookware, they have it all.


Remember all these wish list posts I did about all the wonderful quality kitchen dreams and wishes I have? Well, all the items I’m dreaming about to complete my dream kitchen are available from these sites from CSN stores.

CSN stores sent me this awesome LeCruset Baker to review. I have dreamed of owning one for sooooooo long. I decided in order to review it properly I had to makes lots of great recipes like THE ULTIMATE COMFORT MAC & CHEESE, POT ROAST & ROASTED VEGGIES and RITZY CARROT & BROCCOLI CASSEROLE.


My conclusion: VERY FAVORABLE! Everything cooked up beautifully and the clean up was so easy! This is a beautiful quality piece of cookware. I can’t wait to buy more pieces from CSN stores – their shipping and customer service are well above the norm.

SLOW COOKED MEAT BALLS

On the weekends when we are going to be home all day, I LOVE the smell of something scrumptious cooking and this recipe is one of my favorites. The great thing about this recipe though is that it’s great for working moms during the week too.

SLOW COOKED MEAT BALLS
1 1/2 pounds ground beef*
4 slices stale sourdough bread made into crumbs
1 JUMBO egg, beaten
1 medium Vidalia onion, finely chopped
1 can cream of golden mushroom soup
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1 can diced tomatoes with garlic and herbs
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon thyme
1/2 teaspoon basil

  • With your hands mix together the ground beef, bread crumbs, egg, onion and half the seasonings.
  • Spray the bottom of the slow cooker lightly with PURE.
  • Gently lay the meatballs in the bottom of the slow cooker.
  • Mix together the soup, broth and tomatoes.
  • Pour over meatballs.
  • Cover and cook 7-9 hours on low.
*I like to make my own when brisket is on sale. It makes for a richer tasting beef flavor!
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MEXICAN BEEF TORTILLA CASSEROLE



BEFORE BAKING~~~~~AFTER BAKING

MEXICAN BEEF TORTILLA CASSEROLE
1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, diced
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
4 ounce can diced green chiles, drained
1 cup milk
1 can cream of celery soup
2 cups grated jack and cheddar cheese mix
Tortilla chips

  • Saute’ beef and onion until well browned. Drain off fat.
  • In a saucepan over a medium heat combine soup, chiles, tomatoes, cheese and milk until well blended, cheese is melted and mixture starts to bubble.
  • Spray a 9×9 baking dish with PURE.
  • Loosely layer tortilla chips in bottom of casserole.
  • Top with meat mixture.
  • Pour cheese mixture over meat mixture.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes.

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Spicy Chipotle Shrimp Over Sweet Corn Cakes

Welcome to Simple Saturday!

I’ve been participating in a challenge this month, do you think you could eat on a Dollar a Day? (Check out the link for details). I’ve been doing the challenge but with an unfair advantage – I allowed myself to use anything I already had on hand. It’s turned out to be more of an “eat from the pantry and freezer month” than anything else so far.

Here is last night’s yummy, frugal and very simple recipe. It was definitely the Meal of the Week!

http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_WPbjJzRqviA/S7-qngfQFUI/AAAAAAAAGzI/8kg8KfIKdok/s1600/chipotle+shrimp+corn+cakes.jpg

Chipotle Shrimp – 1 pound of shrimp marinated overnight in bottled chipotle sauce (with one teaspoon of cornstarch added). Put shrimp and marinade in large, deep skillet, add a can of diced tomatoes. Simmer on low, stirring occasionally while preparing corn cakes.

Corn Cakes – 2 boxes of Jiffy corn muffin mix, 2/3 cup milk, 2 eggs, one can of sweet creamed corn and 1/2 can regular sweet corn. Mix and prepare just as you would pancakes.

Spoon shrimp and sauce over corn cakes and serve with fruit smoothies. Trust me, it’s a perfect combo, it was delicious – except for the fact that I used shrimp I had in the freezer that had been cleaned and shelled, but it didn’t occur to me that it still had the tails on until dinner was ready. Be sure to take the tails off if you try this, duh!

We have two birthdays at Our Krazy Kitchen this week – be sure to stop by to wish our Tuesday host Min and our Wednesday host Chaya a Happy Birthday!

Have a great weekend 🙂

Butterscotch Brownies: Lovin’ From the Oven

Here’s an oldie but goodies from my blog, Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker: Butterscotch Brownies.  My grandmother used to make them for the school children in her town.  She was the head baker for the school district back in the 1970s.  They are full of butter and sugar, so dieters beware!

Butterscotch Brownies: 
2 cups brown sugar
2/3 cup butter
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour
1 package butterscotch flavored chips
Combine the moist ingredients with a mixer. Sift together the dry ingredients in a bowl and add to the wet. Fold in the chips. Spread in a greased 9 X 13 pan and bake 350 degrees 30 minutes or until done.

STREUSEL COFFEE CAKE




Kristen from Frugal Antics of a Harried Homemaker is our Friday baker at OUR KrAzY kitchen. She posted a recipe for Sour cream coffee cake last week that is one that she is trying to duplicate from her SIL. It looked and sounded like my grams old recipe that I told her I’d dig out grams recipe for her and then I decided to go a step further and make it and do a post to highlight the good and yummy flavors. You get a light fluffy cake and ooey gooey streusel – YUMMY!

Grams old recipe calls for Bisquick and I no longer use it for health reasons, but make my own so I will include that recipe too.

STREUSEL COFFEE CAKE
CAKE
2 cups bisquick
2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg
2/3 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons oil

STREUSEL
1 cup bisquick
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 teaspoons-2 tablespoons cinnamon(based on flavor preference)
4 tablespoons butter

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Generously spray 9×9 square baking dish with PAM.
  • Mix cake ingredients together until well blended.
  • Spread into baking dish, mixture will be thick.
  • Mix streusel ingredients together until fine crumbles.
  • Spread over the cake. With a knife gently cut a star into the cake to gently press some streusel into the cake.
  • Bake 20-30 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.

HOMEMADE BISQUICK
4 ½ cups sifted flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
1 cup butter
½ teaspoon salt
2/3 cup powdered milk**

  • Stir together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
  • Sift again 2-3 times in a large bowl.
  • Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until the mixture is similar to cornmeal.
  • Add dry milk.
  • Use in recipes that call for Bisquick or all-purpose mix.

**you can skip this ingredient if your recipe calls for any kind of milk, not water.
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BANANA RAISIN FRENCH TOAST







BANANA RAISIN FRENCH TOAST
8 slices raisin bread
2 medium ripe bananas
1 cup milk
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 JUMBO eggs
1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons vanilla
powdered sugar garnish

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Spray a 9×9 baking dish with PAM.
  • Layer 4 slices of bread in the bottom.
  • Slice the bananas over the slices of bread.
  • Top with the other 4 slices.
  • In a food processor blend remaining ingredients until smooth consistency and pour over bread.
  • Let stand 5 minutes or overnight.
  • Bake 40-45 minutes or 50-55 minutes (if it was refrigerated) until knife comes out clean.
  • Let stand 5-10 minutes before cutting.
  • Sprinkle with powdered sugar and maple syrup.

Next time I will puree the banana layer.

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Beignets – or How to LIE to your Guests

One year… I figure I now owe the cooking gods one full year in purgatory.

To be fair, I got the idea for this from Mary at DEEP SOUTH DISH, one of my all time favorite bloggers (How has she not been found by the Food Network yet???). So, Mary is my Fagin to my innocent Oliver Twist… Mary, for the record, I am easily led astray. Be careful when you put temptation in my path…

A while back, Mary did an excellent post on making your own Beignets. You know, those New Orleans treats most often associated with cafe Du Monde in the French Quarter. Anyone and I suspect everyone who has visited the city knows of and sampled these treats. Squares of sweetened dough (extra sugar and evaporated milk), covered with generous amounts of powdered sugar. You can find her post on making AUTHENTIC Beignets by clicking HERE.

But she also gave a “cheater” version that I thought was funny at the time… And then Eve and the apple and Satan and temptation began working it’s ugly way with me. I had all the supplies on hand to make the legit Beignets. I did. I had company last week that I could make them for and I wanted to. I wanted to be authentic… I should have been authentic… But I wasn’t.

Get thee behind me Satan is what I should have said…

Temptation, thy name is DEEP SOUTH DISH MARY.

I beg for absolution. I beg the gods for forgiveness… As a penance, I must confess in full…

Here’s what I did…

Oil for frying…
Powdered sugar for generously dusting

and..

I can’t say it…

But I must confess in full…

and…

the final ingredient is…

A tube of refrigerator buttermilk biscuits.

I am so ashamed.

What would Bobby Flay say??? Paula Dean… Alton Brown… All would condemn me, and justifiably so.

But Bobby, Paula and Alton, it was so easy… Just cut each biscuit in half…

Fry in the oil and dust with the sugar…

And if you get up on the last morning your guests are staying, after force feeding them RUM Drinks night after night… after night after night; you can make these and hide all the evidence before they stumble out of bed (or floor if that was where they passed out).

I served these, and accepted the praise due a scratch baker. Without exception, these were accepted as authentic Beignets.

I am A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner.

Bobby, Paula and Alton… Bless me chefs for I have sinned.

!Dave here from MY YEAR ON THE GRILL. I am ashamed that i can declare… I CAN COOK THAT! But then, who couldn’t???


Don’t do as I did… save yourself the guilt. Make from scratch. Ignore the needs of time and the desire to just wanting to get something on the table. The guilt is just not worth the convenience and great taste… Spend those hours in the kitchen. Ignore your family and guests and resist the temptations that are put in front of you.


OK, let me take my tongue out of my cheek for a second and do a little advertising for a GREAT FUN site…


I love bloggers! I was new to the world of blogging (and to cooking) just a few months ago. I went from hamburgers and hot dogs once a month to a 3 meal a day, 7 days a week cook. I needed help, and I found it. I am always thrilled to find new blogs. Without bloggers who provide insight you do not get from books, I would not be as brave as I am in the kitchen. Last month I was introduced to a wonderful opportunity. TASTE & CREATE is a cultural exchange program for bloggers. Click on the logo to the left, but the premise is simple…Once you sign up, monthly, you are paired with another blogger. Hopefully, someone you have never seen before. You take a look at their blog, hunt down a recipe that you find appealing and cook and post the results. You are introduced to a new recipe, and at the same time, because you dig a little deeper into a new blog, you find bits of personal information that gets you a new blogger buddy!


So, at the least, one day out of next month, you will have a topic for your blog. But at best, you get a new blog buddy, you get to try a new recipe and look at blogging from another person’s shoes!


In the next two days, match ups for this month happen. NOW is the time to sign up. Live on the wild side, it is a challenge, and it is rewarding… Contact Min at –

cowgirlmin07@gmail.com
She does the matchups and is handling the cyber paperwork. If you have any questions, drop Min a line. She would be thrilled to have some “New Blood”! It is a month by month commitment. So if you don’t care for the experience, dropping out is easy. But, you may just get hooked like I did… Click HERE to see the fun I had.





NATIONAL GRILLED CHEESE MONTH

April is National Grilled Cheese Month so to celebrate let me offer this:

GRILLED ONION TOMATO BACON CHEESE SANDWICHES
4 slices thick sourdough bread
6 slices bacon, cooked crisp
thin sliced red onions
sliced tomatoes
sharp cheddar cheese slices
2 tablespoons butter

  • Melt butter on skillet
  • Lay all four slices on skillet to brown.
  • On 2 slices arrange in the following order the cheese slices, tomatoes, bacon slices and onion rings.
  • Top with the other 2 bread slices and continue toasting, turning as necessary until brownness.

AND

APPLE CHIPS
Large Apple
1 tablespoon butter
Coarse salt

  • Peel and core apple.
  • Slice into thin rings.
  • Melt butter in skillet over medium high heat.
  • Add apple rings.
  • Cook until soft and golden brown.
  • Drain on paper towels.
  • Sprinkle with coarse salt.
  • Cool & Eat.

APPLE GRILLED CHEESE SANDWICHES
4 Oatnut Bread slices
1 large apple, peeled, cored and grated
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
honey mustard
2 tablespoons butter

  • Mix together the grated apple and cheddar cheese.
  • Spread the mustard over 2 of the bread slices.
  • Top with apple and cheese mixture. Add top slice of bread.
  • In a large skillet melt the butter.
  • Grill sandwiches to desired crispness.

AND

TUNA MELTS
1 large can white albacore tuna packed in water, drained and drained again!
8 sweet pickles, chopped fine
2 green onions, chopped fine
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon white pepper
1 hard boiled egg, chilled, peeled and chopped fine
2-4 tablespoons butter
1 slice Muenster cheese
1 slice extra sharp cheese
4 slices frozen potato bread

  • Drain the tuna in a fine mesh sieve and then use a spoon to mash all the water out again! Drying out the tuna is crucial.
  • In a mixing bowl whisk together the mayonnaise, lemon juice, salt and pepper.
  • Chop the sweet pickles and green onions extremely fine.
  • Fold tuna, pickles and onions into Mayonnaise mixture.
  • Chop egg finely and fold into mixture.
  • Melt 2 tablespoons butter on griddle over medium high heat. Add more as necessary to keep from burning.
  • Toast all 4 slices of bread while still frozen*.
  • When butter is melted lay all 4 slices in butter and top 2 slices with muenster and the other 2 slices with the sharp cheddar. Allow them to heat through, melting the cheese.
  • Add the tuna to 2 slices and close them up.
  • Continue cooking until golden on all sides and heated through.

*Using frozen bread makes the bread lighter and more easily toasted golden.

AND

(sorry It’s not a great picture, but it tasted great)

GRILLED CHEESE IN A PAN

8 ounce tube crescent rolls
1 cup grated mild Cheddar cheese
1 cup grated Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup grated Swiss cheese
1 cup grated Gruyere cheese
8 ounce package Philadelphia cream cheese
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon melted butter

  • Unroll crescent roll dough and divide in half.
  • Line the bottom of an 8×8 ungreased baking dish with half of the dough. Seal the perforated edges.
  • Layer the cheeses over the dough.
  • Pour the egg evenly over top.
  • Top with remaining dough.
  • Brush with butter.
  • Bake 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.
OPTIONAL: Drain a can of tuna and add it between cheese layers for a Baked Tuna Melt, rotisserie chicken pieces, green chile pieces… The possibilities are endless…

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TOMATO CHICKEN with BASIL

1 tablespoon olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut into tenders
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can Progresso Tomato & Basil Soup
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons fresh minced basil or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves, crushed
4 cups hot cooked pasta

  • Heat oil in skillet.
  • Add garlic and chicken, sauteing until browned.
  • Add soup, milk, cheese and basil.
  • Heat to a boil.
  • Cover and cook over low heat 5 minutes or until desired thickness.
  • Serve over pasta.
  • Garnish with fresh vbasil (which I forgot to do before the picture LOL)

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Chocolate Crunch Mousse Pie

Come visit me at My Sweet and Savory and Comfy Cook. 
Chocolate Crunch Mousse Pie
I was very much looking forward to this pie.  It is one of those delicious items, you simply enjoy, and don’t worry about calories.  It is pure pleasure and fun.  This means, something is going to surprise me, in the recipe.
This mousse did not work out, the way I thought it would. This is one of those mistakes that I love, if it really was a mistake. I was working from memory of a mousse, I made, some time ago. I remembered it had cream cheese, whipped topping and chocolate for the ingredients. It came out creamy chocolate and was in a chocolate crust.
This was right before Passover and it was the last day, I could do anything with prohibited Passover foods.
There was no way I could make a crust without flour or chocolate cookie crumbs so I got a ready made graham cracker crust. I was thinking of pouring some chocolate syrup on the surface of the crust but no chocolate syrup. One has to be very clever or a magician to work when the kitchen is in limbo. I prefer to think that one has to be very clever.
The best part was I got rid of the crust. No, that was the second best part. The first was eating some of the filling. This is the best filling, I can imagine, at the moment. It was a creamy mousse filled with small chunks of chocolate. Where did those chunks come from? Actually, this was a surprise to me. I melted the chocolate chips and they were fully melted into one smooth cream. When, I put them into the mousse mixture, they immediately turned in to chunks. The only rationale, I can find is that the whipped topping had been frozen but sitting out, for an hour. Maybe, it was still cold and when the two met, the lumped together to make these crunchy bites filled with chocolate flavor. I, probably will not be able to recreate this but I hope I can. This is superior to the smooth filling which I also love.
Here is the recipe. If you try it, please tell me what happens to your chocolate.
Ingredients
1 8 ounce container of whipped topping (I used the ready made which is unusual for me.)
1 8 ounce container of Tofutti whipped cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup Tofutti sour cream
1 teaspoon almond extract (If I could have located it, I would have used my mocha extract rather than almond.)
2 cups chocolate chips
1/2 cup chocolate sprinkles
1 graham cracker crumb crust
Method:
In a large bowl, using a mixer, beat the cream cheese until smooth.
Add the sugar, sour cream and almond extract.
Continue to beat with mixer until all the ingredients are well combined.
Add the whipped topping and blend it in, by hand.
Melt chocolate chips in a microwave. If you prefer, use a double boiler to melt them. You know me, I use my microwave, every chance I can.
Add the melted chocolate to the mousse mixture and blend it in. If you are fortunate, you will get those scrumptious chocolate chunks.
Scoop the mixture into the pie crust.
Use a fork, a decorating piece or anything and make ridges in the mousse.
Top with chocolate sprinkles or decoration of choice.
Refrigerate.

Cowboy Cookies

Don’t forget to visit me at The Bad Girl’s Kitchen for more fabulous recipes!
A couple years ago, I was looking for a good new cookie recipe, when this one appeared in my mailbox in an issue of Martha Stewart Living magazine. As luck would have it, they have coconut in them, and are appropriately-named for serving on a ranch, or anywhere. Delicious!

Cowboy Cookies
Makes about 5 dozen

The origin and original ingredients of this popular cookie may be unclear, but there’s no doubt it’ll spur a stampede. This version relies on oats, coconut, pecans, and chocolate for just the right chewiness and gooeyness.

Vegetable oil cooking spray
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into 1/4-inch chunks (1 cup)~I used 1 heaping cup chocolate chips
3 ounces (3/4 cup) pecan halves
1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat baking sheets with cooking spray, line with parchment, and spray parchment. Sift flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder into a medium bowl.

2 Beat butter and sugars with a mixer on medium-high until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.

3. Reduce speed to low, and slowly add flour mixture, beating until just incorporated. Beat in oats, chocolate, pecans and coconut until combined. (Dough can be refrigerated for up to 3 days).

4. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop or a small spoon, drop dough onto baking sheets, spacing 3 inches apart.

5. Bake until edges of cookies begin to brown, 11 to 13 minutes. Transfer baking sheets to wire rack, and let cool for 5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks. Let cool. (Cookies can be stored up to 3 days)