Pineapple Curry

I see that some die-hard out there has been looking at this blog and maybe hoping for a new recipe.  So here's a good one:

PINEAPPLE CURRY

1 Tbsp. cooking oil
1 1/2 Tbsp. red curry paste
3/4 lb. skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut in about 1/4-inch slices
1/2 small onion, peeled and sliced from "pole to pole" [that's how cooking people say it; slice from root-end to top—or the other way around :-)]
1 small red bell pepper, sliced
1 can (13.5 oz.) coconut milk
1/2 - 1 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
2 Tbsp. pineapple juice
1 1/2 Tbsp. flour
salt to taste
1/2 can (a 20 oz. can) pineapple chunks, drained [use this juice for your 2 Tbsp.—above]
kaffir lime leaves, shredded [I've not found any of these yet, but the recipe is good without them]
fresh basil leaves (optional)

1. Heat oil in a large frying pan or wok.
2. Saute the curry paste until foamy.
3. Add the chicken and brown in the curry paste.
4. Stir in the onions and peppers and saute for 2 minutes.
5. Add coconut milk, fish sauce, sugar and bamboo shoots; cook until the vegetables are tender-crisp.
6. In a small bowl, mix the pineapple juice and flour together to make a thin paste.  Add to the pan and stir to thicken the sauce.
7. Add salt to taste.
8. Stir in the pineapple and lime leaves and/or basil leaves.  Cook until pineapple is heated through.
9. Serve hot over rice. [I like Jasmine rice.]

This would look really cool served in pineapple boats! (Which would be awesome for a dinner date, but would make a HUGE meal for each person.)

• Slice a pineapple in half lengthwise, splitting the leaves as well so there are some attached to each half. 
• Scoop out the pineapple with a sturdy spoon leaving a 1/2-inch shell. 
• Set the pineapple aside to use another time (freezing it for pineapple smoothies come to mind).
• Place the pineapple shells hollow-side-down to drain while the rice and curry are cooking.
• When the food is all cooked, place each pineapple shell on a plate (hollow-side-up this time!). 
• Scoop some rice into each shell, then top with the pineapple curry.
• Garnish the plate with edible flowers or those little paper umbrellas or something.

Nice!

  

Sticky Chicken (sauce)

Put this sauce on your cooked—breaded, or not—chicken.  Do not cook raw chicken in the sauce; put the sauce on the already cooked chicken and let it cook for another 10 minutes or so.

STICKY CHICKEN SAUCE

1/3 cup Frank's Red Hot Wings Buffalo-style sauce (yes, use this exact sauce)
1 1/2 cups brown sugar, packed
1 Tbsp. water

1.  Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan and heat to dissolve sugar and combine thoroughly.
2.  Pour sauce over cooked chicken and bake at 350 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes.

Easy yum!

Chicken Supreme

This is the "honey-mustard" chicken that Boom—or was it Brian?—so astutely recognized as a curry recipe. Good stuff!

CHICKEN SUPREME

1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup mustard
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. curry powder
3 lb. chicken pieces (I prefer skinless)
1.  Heat oven to 375 degrees.
2.  Mix together the butter, mustard, honey, salt and curry powder in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish.
3.  Place the chicken pieces in the mixture, turning to coat.
4.  Bake, uncovered, for 45 to 60 minutes, basting with sauce frequently, and turning over once after 30 minutes.

Or you can grill the chicken instead of baking, but then you won't have the extra sauce to put on top when you serve it. It's good either way.

I like it served with rice. :-)

Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry

For Kate-Bob:

BEEF & BROCCOLI
serves 4

4 Tbsp. water
2 Tbsp. oyster sauce
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1/2 Tbsp. brown sugar, packed
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1/8 tsp. sesame oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped or 1/8 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. ginger
dash crushed red pepper
1 lb. thinly sliced beef
1 cup broccoli florets (I actually don't measure—I probably add more veggies than the recipe says)
1 large carrot, peeled and diagonally sliced
1/3 cup sliced water chestnuts
about 15 sugar-snap peas
4 green onions, diagonally sliced
1-2 tsp. cooking oil

1.  In a medium bowl, mix water, oyster sauce, cornstarchm, brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, ginger and crushed red pepper.
2.  Slice the beef into 1/4-inch by 2-inch strips.
3.  Add the beef to the soy sauce mixture and stir well. Let it marinate while you prepare the vegetables.
4.  Heat oil in a medium frying pan or wok.
5.  Remove beef from suace and add it to the pan; stir to brown on all sides.
6.  Add broccoli, carrots and peas; stir, then cover and let simmer about 2 minutes.
7.  Add remaining sauce (if any), water chestnuts and green onions; cook until hot.
8.  Serve with hot rice.

Apple-Snickers Salad Again

I've actually posted this recipe on my blog before.  You can see it here.

But at Camp Steiner, along with an abundance of bananas, we were sent an abundance of apples.  So I had to make Apple-Snickers Salad.  The difference is that at Steiner I had to make it for about fifty people.  I really think the recipe for fifty is better than the small recipe, but I'm not going to the trouble of reducing the recipe by five. If you want to divide each ingredient by five and make it smaller, more power to you. ;-)

APPLE-SNICKERS SALAD

(serves about 50)

25 of your favorite apples, cored and diced
28 regular-sized Snickers candy bars, sliced about 1/2-inch thick
3 cups milk
2 pkg. (3 oz. each) white-chocolate flavored instant pudding
1 tub (8 oz.) Cool Whip (I like the extra creamy kind)

1.  Toss diced apples and sliced Snickers together in a huge bowl.
2.  In a smaller bowl, mix the pudding and milk together.
3.  Pour the pudding mixture and Cool Whip into the huge bowl with the apples and candy.
4.  Mix well to coat everything with the yummy sauce stuff.
5.  Refrigerate until ready to serve—but not longer than an hour or two.


Oh, all right! Try this to serve 6 to 10:

5 apples, cored and diced
5-6 regular-sized Snickers bars, sliced
about 2/3 cup milk
1 1/2 oz. instant white-chocolate pudding (You'll need a food scale for this one! Or you could measure how many tablespoons of pudding mix are in a box, divide that by 2.5 and put that measurement in. Good luck.)
1/2 cup Cool Whip

See if that works. :-)

Rice Pudding

For Stephanie. :-)

I'm not a big fan of rice pudding, and don't have my own recipe. But this is the recipe from my new Cooks Illustrated cookbook, The New Best Recipe. So try it out and let me know if you like it.

RICE PUDDING

2 cups water

1/4 tsp. salt

1 cup medium-grain rice (they say you can use long-grain rice)

2 1/2 cups whole milk

2 1/2 cups half & half

2/3 cup sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Bring water to boil in a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Stir in the salt and rice; cover and simmer over low heat, stirring once or twice, until the water is almost fully absorbed—15 to 20 minutes.

Add the milk, half & half, and sugar. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to maintain a simmer. Cook, uncovered and stirring frequently, until the mixture starts to thicken, about 30 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue to cook, stirring every couple of minutes to prevent sticking and scorching, until a spoon is just able to stand up in the

pudding—about 15 minutes longer.

Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Cool and serve at room temperature or chilled.

If you like raisins, or cinnamon, add them to taste when you add the vanilla.

To store, press plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pudding and refrigerate for up to 2 days.

Gourmet Granola Bars

When Bruce started a new job that didn't allow him much time for breakfast in the morning I, being the wonderful, devoted wife that I am, started looking for recipes for stuff that he could grab and take with him. And, since he has to spend a BIG portion of his day driving around, I also wanted to come up with some easy snacks. These chewy granola bars qualify on both counts.

This recipe is for a basic, chewy granola bar. You make it gourmet by adding your favorite stuff: chocolate chips, raisins, Craisins, sunflower seeds, dried fruit, nuts, coconut* . . . Whatever sounds best to you. And I'll tell you, I've come up with some killer-good creations!

GOURMET GRANOLA BARS

2 Tbsp. melted butter
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 cups quick-cooking oatmeal
1/3 cup wheat flour
1 1/2 cups Rice Krispies
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1 to 1 1/2 cups add-ins [the creative, gourmet stuff—see intro*]

1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup honey
1 Tbsp. water
1 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
In a small bowl, mix together the 2 Tbsp. melted butter, 2 Tbsp. corn syrup, and 3/4 cup sugar. It will turn into a big, wet glump of sugar. Set aside.
In a large bowl, mix together the oatmeal, wheat flour, Rice Krispies, salt, cinnamon and whatever gourmet add-ins you want.
With your fingers, mix the sugar stuff with the oatmeal stuff. You will have to work it in with your fingers to make sure it's evenly mixed. [Yes it is sticky and messy, but worthwhile—just keep repeating to yourself, "No more stale, cardboard, granola bars!" ]
In the small bowl that is now empty, mix the 1/4 cup melted butter, honey, water and vanilla until it's homogenized [how's that for using a big word?].
Pour this mixture over the oatmeal mixture and mix well—Yep! With your hands. It's just easier that way, and your hands will wash!
Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.
Pour the granola mixture into the pan. Press it down firmly and evenly.
Bake for 25 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
Now you have a 9 x 13-inch granola bar. If you want smaller granola bars, cut it into pieces the size you like (I make 24 bars with a pan this size, which is comparable to store-bought bars). But leave the bars in the pan because they fall apart if you remove them while they're hot!
When they're mostly cooled you can take the bars out of the pan and put them into snack baggies, or an air-tight container.

Now you have a terrific, made-to-order snack for your family, you gourmet chef, you!
Bon appetit!

Tuna Casserole Supreme

I know. You're thinking, "How good can tuna casserole be?"
I know you're thinking this because I know that tuna casserole is THE default, can't-think-of-anything-else-to-make, last-minute dinner. A couple cans of cream-of-something soup, a couple cans of tuna and Voila! Dinner.

And that's how Bruce feels about it. He politely eats just enough to keep from starving.

But today I did something different; and Bruce said that I "transformed it from the last-minute, gotta-eat-something meal, to something [he'd] order at a restaurant and be glad that [he] did." High praise! And he said I'd better write what I did to make it before I forget. (He came up with the swell name, too.)

So here it is:

TUNA CASSEROLE SUPREME

1 1/4 lb. of your favorite pasta [I like penne]

1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
2 celery ribs, finely chopped
3 Tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup can-milk
1 1/2 cups milk
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup sour cream
3 cans tuna packed in water, drained, but reserve the liquid—you'll be using it .
6 oz. cheddar cheese, grated
2-3 oz. American cheese, finely diced
salt and pepper, to taste
dash Bon Appetit seasoning

1 cup Panko crumbs
onion powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1-2 Tbsp. butter

Put the pasta water on to boil after you chop the veggies, but before you cook the sauce. :-)

In a large skillet, melt 3 Tbsp. butter.

Add the chopped onion, chopped celery and 1/2 tsp. salt to the melted butter. Turn heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and translucent—5-8 minutes.
Add flour to onion mixture and stir until it's all moistened up with the butter and veggies.
Stir in the can-milk and the milk. Turn heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens up.
[Is your water boiling yet? If so, add the pasta—and keep an eye on it . . . who likes mushy pasta?]
Whisk the cream-of mushroom soup and the water from the cans of tuna into the sauce [don't whisk it into your boiling pasta!].
Whisk the sour cream into the sauce.
At this point I got out the hand-blender—because my kids won't eat anything that has the appearance of little veggie pieces in it—and I blend it until it's smooth. But this step is totally optional!
Stir in the tuna.
Season to taste with salt, pepper and Bon Appetit seasoning.
Add the cheese and stir until just melted, then remove from heat.
Now you can set it aside while you wait for the pasta to finish cooking.

Drain the cooked pasta and then put it into a LARGE baking dish.
Stir the sauce into the pasta.

Put the Panko crumbs into a separate, smallish bowl. Sprinkle them with onion powder and about 1/8 to 1/4 tsp. of salt.
Dollop the 2 Tbsp. butter onto the crumbs and work it into them with your fingers. You don't want to see any big pieces of butter.
Sprinkle seasoned crumbs on top of the casserole.
Bake at 325 for about 10-15 minutes, or until crumbs turn golden-brown. OR you could just stick it under the broiler until the crumbs look nice.

Serve it up hot! Mmmm—mmm good!

Frankenstein's Laboratory (Yogurt)

The very first time I ever heard of yogurt was when I was about ten or eleven. I was in bed, reading a book before I went to sleep—or probably yakking with Denise—when my dad came in with a little plastic cup of some green, almost pudding-looking stuff (lime flavor). He said, "Try this—it's really good." After I asked and found out it was called yogurt, and checked it out a little, I gave it a try. Yum! I was an instant yogurt fan.

At that time there was this big "healthy food" kick of the 70's going on, and yogurt was the new, trendy, healthy food. Yogurt makers appeared on the market. My mom got one and she made lots of yogurt for a while. It was super-good when it was mixed with her home-made strawberry freezer-jam. After a while the yogurt-making stopped and we just bought it when we wanted some.

Well, I just did the coolest thing last week! I made yogurt! Home-made yogurt—without a fancy yogurt-maker. It takes time, but it's not like you're slaving over it all day long; in fact, it's way easy. And if your family likes yogurt—if you cook with it, or put it in your smoothies like I do—it'll save money, and there's the added bonus of your being so cool because you can make your own yogurt. ;-)

Look at this:

Here's how this translates: You get TEN (10) times as much home-made yogurt as a little carton of Yoplait, for only 33 cents more. Greek Yogurt is thicker, so you probably get about EIGHT (8) times as much home-made yogurt as Greek Gods, for 66 cents less.
To make all things equal, 6 oz. of home-made yogurt would cost you about 8 cents! How's that for cool? You do need a slow-cooker and lots of time, but it's really easy to make.


HOME-MADE YOGURT

This makes a very soft yogurt. Well, it's pretty normal until you mix jam or other tasty stuff into it; then it's still yogurty, but a little thinner. If you like it thicker, then make it into Greek Yogurt (directions at the bottom of the page).

1/2 gallon (8 cups) 2% milk [you can use 1% or even fat-free milk]
a slow-cooker (crockpot)
1/2 cup plain yogurt, with live and active cultures [the live and active cultures are the important part—they are your "starter," just like a sourdough starter]
2 more Tbsp. cold milk
1 pkg. unflavored gelatin (like Knox)
a slow-cooker (Crockpot)
heavy bath towels [seriously!]

Pour 1/2 gallon of milk into the slow-cooker.
Put the lid on, turn it onto "low" and let it sit for 2 1/2 hours.
Turn the cooker off, leave the lid on and let it sit for 3 more hours.
At the end of the 3 hours, stir the gelatin into the 2 Tbsp. cold milk to soften. Let it stand for 5 minutes.
Stir the softened gelatin into the 1/2 cup plain yogurt.
Remove 2 cups warm milk from the slow-cooker and stir it into the yogurt mixture.
Stir the yogurt-milk stuff back into the milk in the slow-cooker.
Cover the slow-cooker and completely wrap it in heavy towels. Put it some place where it won't get bumped or jostled and let it sit for 8 hours.
After the 8 hours you have plain, Yoplait-style yogurt! Yes it's still warm, so put it in the refrigerator to chill.

Now you can add honey, jam, cinnamon-sugar, or fruit—or whatever you like best—to sweeten it and eat it. Or you can use it for cooking with.


GREEK YOGURT

So, what's the deal with Greek yogurt? Why does it cost twice as much as regular yogurt? Well, it's just so darn tasty—probably because it's thicker and creamier than regular yogurt. This also means it makes a good substitute for sour cream. (In recipes I still cut it 1/2 & 1/2 with sour cream—mostly because of cost though. So maybe we're in for a change.)

To make Greek-style yogurt:

Line a wire-mesh strainer with a coffee filter.
Scoop it full of yogurt and set it over a bowl. Cover and refrigerate for several hours*; the extra liquid stuff will slowly drain out of it. Voila! (Or maybe I should say, "Eureka!") Greek yogurt!

Enjoy!

* p.s. (March 18) I actually strained my yogurt for 24 hours (I forgot about it) and then it seemed more like commercial yogurt, but not quite as thick as commercial Greek yogurt. Still tasty though!

Better Than Fried Chicken

OK. I have to admit that I am on a healthy, light-cooking kick. This is nothing new; I've been doing this kind of thing for years. But, aside from that, deep-frying anything is a big, total pain—especially chicken (which never seems to get cooked all the way through). And this is a really good recipe. I'm sure it would work beautifully with fish, too.

Use four split chicken breasts, or a whole, cut up chicken. If the breasts are big I will often cut them in half. Absolutely use the Panko crumbs—they give it a nicer texture than regular, fine bread-crumbs. [You can find them in the bulk-bins at WinCo. I've also seen them in boxes in the Asian food aisle at other stores.]

OVEN-FRIED CHICKEN

1 whole chicken [see note, above]
3 large egg whites
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp. thyme
1/4 tsp. garlic
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
6 oz. panko bread crumbs
2 oz. dry wheat bread crumbs
a dash or two of Season-All (optional)
2 1/2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 425.
Place a wire rack on top of a baking sheet and spray it with cooking spray.
Mix the egg whites, Dijon mustard, thyme, garlic and cayenne pepper together in a shallow bowl.
Mix the panko crumbs, wheat bread crumbs, Season-All and vegetable oil together in a shallow dish.With your left hand, dip a chicken piece into the egg mixture.
With your right hand, dip the eggy chicken piece into the crumbs, pressing to make sure they stick.
Put the piece on the prepared rack, and repeat the process with the rest of the chicken pieces.
Spray the tops of the chicken pieces with cooking spray.
Bake until golden-brown and the meat is no longer pink, about 50-60 minutes.
Serve immediately.

Apple-Snickers Salad

Hi Tami! I believe you are the only die-hard who still reads my cookbook blog—a belief that stems from Melanie telling me that you do read it regularly. So, this recipe is for you, and it is to die for!

We had this the other night at our Cub Scout Blue-and-Gold Banquet. From a distance I thought it was potato salad; then, as I got closer to it I thought it looked more like apples. But what were the darker colored chunks? Ham? Bacon? Maybe grapes?
I was standing in the line, and had just determined to try it out, when the chef of this salad said, "It's really good. I know, it sounds weird, but it is so good." And so I found out that it was, indeed, apples, and the darker bits were chunks of Snickers bars. She didn't have to convince me that it would be good. It sounded excellent!

Just imagine getting one of those great-big, gourmet candy-apples—the ones that are double-dipped in caramel, and then coated in chocolate, and then possibly more chocolate, and then dipped in nuts. Well, take one of those, slice it up, and then dip it in dunk it into a sweet, creamy dip before taking a bite. Heavenly!

Now, I don't know if you can rightfully call this "salad" since it has candy-bars in it. But Michelle Moon, who gave me the recipe, says it is healthy because there's apples in it. So you can decide for yourself. Here is the recipe:

APPLE-SNICKERS SALAD

1 large pkg. instant vanilla pudding

1 3/4 cups milk

1/2 tub Cool Whip
8 regular-sized Snickers bars
6 medium-size tart apples [I think Granny Smiths are too tart. Try Jonathons, or Pink Ladies.]

In a large bowl, mix together the pudding, milk and Cool Whip.
Cut the Snickers bars into bite-size pieces. [You could use the bite-size bars, but I think the regular ones are better because you get more caramel and a tiny bit less chocolate.]
Add the Snickers to the pudding stuff; mix in.

Core and cut the apples into bite-size pieces. (Peeling them is optional.)

Hurry and mix the apples in with the rest of the stuff before they turn brown!
If it seems too thick, mix in about 1/4 cup more milk.
Cover and refrigerate for at least one hour before serving.

Enjoy it with other people. It's not that healthy!

Salmon-Noodle Soup

Sounds weird, huh? But it's pretty darn good and way easy to make. It's good with shrimp too—I mean, instead of the salmon; or I suppose you could use chicken. But I really like the salmon in it. Yum!

SALMON-NOODLE SOUP

6 cups water
1 tsp. salt
1 pkg. Oriental-flavor Ramen noodles
1 1/2 cups broccoli florets
1 celery rib, thinly sliced

10 oz. cooked salmon, broken into small pieces [you can use canned salmon, if you'd like]

Oor 3/4 lb. medium-size raw green shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups diagonally-sliced carrots

2 cups snow peas or sugar-snap peas

4 green onions, sliced [use the green and white parts]

1 tsp. peeled and grated fresh ginger

1 medium garlic clove, finely chopped

1/2 tsp. sesame oil

soy sauce (optional)

Make sure all your veggies are peeled, chopped, sliced, and grated ahead of time—this cooks fast!

Bring water and salt to boil in a medium-large-ish size pot.
Add the noodles, but NOT the seasoning packet. Also add the broccoli and celery at this time and cook for 2 minutes.
Add the salmon or shrimp (or some of both, if you want). And add the carrots, peas, green onions, ginger, garlic clove, sesame oil, and now the seasoning packet, too. Cook for 1 minute.
Stir in a dash or two of soy sauce, if desired.
Serve immediately.

Yum-yum!

Tami's Really Cool, Tasty and Delicious Pretzel-Jello Stuff

I've eaten this jello salad that Tami, my niece-in-law (niece-in-law?), makes; and it is really yummy! I know, pretzels with jello might make you think twice, but you should think a third time and just try it.

I missed out when she took it to Thanksgiving dinner at my mom's house, because I spent Turkey Day at my in-laws. But Tami graciously gave me the recipe, and now I am going to propel her to culinary fame by posting it here, on my cookbook blog. ;-)

TAMI'S PRETZEL-JELLO SALAD

CRUST:
2 1/2 cups crushed pretzels
2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 cubes melted butter
FILLING:
8 oz cream cheese
1 cup sugar
8 oz cool whip
JELLO:
6 oz jello pkg.
water
2 cups cold orange juice (optional)


CRUST:
Mix the crushed pretzels, 2 Tbsp. sugar, and butter together.
Flatten the mixture into a 9x13 inch pan; bake at 400* for 10 minutes, then cool completely.
FILLING:
Mix the cream cheese, 1 cup sugar together until smooth; blend in the Cool Whip.
Spread over the cooled pretzels, making sure to seal the edges so the Jello mixture won't leak through.
JELLO:
Make the jello according to package directions, substituting the 2 cups juice INSTEAD of the 2 cups cold water, if desired.
Slowly pour the jello over the top of the cream cheese mixture. Do this slowly and carefully so you don't pour a hole into the cream cheese. [Refrigerating the cream cheese stuff first might help; it might harden it up a little. Maybe also letting the jello cool to room temperature before you pour it—Loralee].
Refrigerate until jello is completely set.
EAT:
Serve to your family and friends at the next big gathering (like New Year's Eve).
It's yummy, but don't eat it all by yourself!

Oven-Baked, Blueberry-Stuffed French Toast

This is a traditional Christmas breakfast dish in our house. It's great for Christmas because you prepare it the night before, and then in the morning you toss it into the oven and by the time you're through opening your gifts your breakfast is cooked. And it is sooooo yummy! I should really make it for other occasions than Christmas. Like tomorrow. Mmmm.


Oven-Baked, Blueberry-Stuffed French Toast

1 (8 oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
a drizzle of maple syrup, about 1 Tbsp.
12 oz. white bread cut into cubes (about 3/4 of a loaf)
6 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. nutmeg
2 1/2 cups milk
3 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen
cinnamon
additional nutmeg
1-2 Tbsp. cold butter, cut into about 1/4-inch cubes

Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.
In a small bowl, mix the cream cheese, 1/3 cup sugar and maple syrup until well-blended.
Put half of the bread cubes into the baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg.
Dollop the cream cheese mixture over the bread in the baking dish.
Sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the top of the bread and cream cheese.
Put the remaining bread cubes into the baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg; then press it all down a little.
In a medium bowl, mix the eggs, sugar, 1 tsp. nutmeg and milk. Blend well.
Pour the egg mixture evenly over the bread. Press it all down again, if necessary, to make sure all the bread cubes are moistened.
Scatter the little butter cubes over the top of it all.
Spray a piece of foil with cooking spray and then cover the baking dish with the foil. (Cooking-spray side down, right?)
Put it in the refrigerator overnight.
In the morning, put the French toast into a cold oven.
Turn heat to 350 and bake for about 1 1/2 hours—until it's not soggy anywhere.
Remove from oven and serve it warm.
It's really delicious as is, but I suppose you could top it with blueberry syrup. Or whipped cream on top would be yummy.

Merry Christmas!

Accidental Applesauce

Every year, for Thanksgiving, I bake an apple pie. For Jason. He loves apple pie and since I am a nice mom, I make it for him once a year, on Thanksgiving.

Well this year I blew it. I overcooked the apples (enough for two pies!) and had to make them into applesauce. It turned out to be the best applesauce I've ever had! Really! And I already liked applesauce.

And, yes, I did buy more apples and I still made apple pie. And it was delicious.



ACCIDENTAL APPLESAUCE

I don't really like Granny Smith apples, which are traditionally used in apple pies (I'm sure this is because they are too sour to just eat them). So I use several different kinds of apples in my pies—these are the ones I chose this year:

8 honeycrisp apples
4 Granny Smith apples
4 Jonagold apples
4 Braeburn apples

You also need:

2 Tbsp. lemon juice
about 1 cup water
sugar, to taste (I probably used 3/4 to 1 cup)

Peel, core and slice all the apples. This takes forever!
Put them into a great, big pot and toss with the lemon juice.
Add the water.
Cover the pot and put it on the stove, over low heat.
Go to your sister's house (or a friend's house) and forget all about the apples for about an hour. When the lightbulb goes on, call your kids and shriek into the phone, "Turn off the stove! Yes, the burner where the apples are."
Hurry home; check out the apples. Are they too mushy to use in a pie? Good.
Use your magic wand to blend it all into applesauce.
Stir in sugar, to taste.
Put the applesauce into smaller containers and refrigerate.
Eat it before it grows mold (within a week or so).

Makes about 3 quarts of really delicious applesauce!

Zucchini Casserole

Have you ever grown a zucchini plant? They are prolific, to say the least. I mean, we only have one plant and it's already produced a zillion pounds of zucchini. Well, OK. We've only had three so far. Three really big zucchinis in about a week. But fortunately zucchini is yummy, and it's versatile too . . . zucchini bread, chocolate zucchini cake, zucchini cookies, grilled zucchini, zucchini pickles, zucchini pie . . .
(How many times can you use the word "zucchini" in one paragraph?)

But the one we eat the most often is zucchini casserole. I first had it at a family reunion when I was about 10, and I loved it. Actually, at age 10 I'm surprised I even tasted it. But since I did, and since I liked it even then, you know it must be good.

ZUCCHINI CASSEROLE

1 box stuffing mix (like Stove-Top Stuffing)
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter
3 cups julienned zucchini
1 carrot, grated
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream

Melt 3/4 of the butter. Mix the melted butter with 3/4 of the stuffing mix in a 9-inch square baking pan. In a separate, small bowl, mix the remaining butter and stuffing mix together; set aside.
In a large bowl, mix zucchini, carrot, onion, cheese, cream of chicken soup and sour cream together. Spoon the zucchini mixture over the stuffing that's in the pan.
Sprinkle the remaining stuffing mix over the top.
Cover pan with foil and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking for another 20 minutes.
Serve hot and yummy! :-)

More Marvelous Muffins

Mmm, Mmmm, Mmmmmm!

On May 16 our friends Grant and Janae had their first baby—an absolutely beautiful little boy. And as an excuse to visit (like we needed an excuse) we made a whole bunch of muffins and took some over. I already posted the Blueberry Muffin recipe [just click on the link :-) ], but here are the recipes for the Orange-Cranberry Muffins and the Bran Muffins. (These are also from The Best Light Recipe cookbook.)

CRANBERRY-ORANGE MUFFINS

1 1/2 cups dried cranberries, chopped fine
2/3 cup orange juice
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup cake flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
tiny pinch of cloves (optional)
2 tsp. grated orange zest [I use a little more--I like it orangey!]
1 cup sugar [I think you could get away with 3/4 cup]
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
3/4 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups plain low-fat yogurt

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Combine cranberries and orange juice in a microwave-safe container; cover tightly with plastic wrap and microwave on high for 1 minute. Let stand, covered, until softened and plump. Strain cranberries, discarding juice.
Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray. You can use cupcake-papers, but I think they're nicer if you just spray the pan. Also, the recipe says it makes 12 muffins, but they must use a bigger tin than I do. This recipe makes 18 muffins in my tins (about 2 to 3-inches across the bottom of each cup).
Process the sugar with the orange zest until pale orange, about 10 seconds. If you don't have a food-processor, just chop the zest very fine and then mix it in with the sugar.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and 1/4 of the sugar together. Set aside.
Beat 3/4 of the sugar and the butter together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and continue beating until very fluffy. Add vanilla.
Turn mixer to low-speed and add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beating just until incorporated, followed by 1/2 cup of the yogurt, scraping down the bowl as needed. Repeat this process two more times, alternating between the remaining flour and yogurt. Mix just until ingredients are incorporated.
Gently fold in the cranberries.
Spoon batter into muffin cups and bake 25 to 30 minutes, until golden and a toothpick comes out clean.
Cool the muffins in the pan for 5 minutes, then flip them out onto a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Yum!

And now, the

BRAN MUFFINS

1 cup unprocessed wheat bran
3/4 cup plain low-fat yogurt
1/2 cup 2% or whole milk (don't use 1% or fat-free. Yuck!)
6 Tbsp. molasses
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Spray your muffin tin.
Stir the wheat bran, yogurt, milk, molasses and vanilla together in a medium bowl until combined; let sit for at least 10 minutes.
In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and 1/4 cup of the sugar together; set aside.
Beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Reduce mixer speed to low. Beat in 1/3 of flour mixture until just incorporated, followed by 1/3 of the bran mixture, scraping down bowl as necessary. Repeat this process twice more, alternating between the flour and bran mixtures, until ingredients are just incorporated. Do not overmix.
Gently fold raisins into the batter.
Divide batter evenly among the muffin cups. Bake until golden and a toothpick comes out clean, about 18 to 20 minutes.
Cool muffins in pan for 5 minutes, flip them onto a wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving.
Yum, yum!

Brasilian (?) Salmon

Here's the salmon recipe Bruce mentioned. I don't know if it's authentic Brasilian—it's just a recipe I found on the web. It is the only "Brasilian salmon" recipe I found on the web, and it is exactly the same on every site. But, authentic or not, it is really good!

SALMON BAKED WITH BRASILIAN RUB

4 salmon fillets, 5 to 6 oz each
zest of 1/2 large orange
juice of 1/2 large orange
juice of 1/2 large lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 large garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons butter, melted

In a shallow dish large enough to hold the salmon, combine the juices, salt and pepper. Add the salmon, turning to coat with the marinade. Let marinate at room temperature for 20 minutes, turning the fillets once.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Line a shallow baking pan with aluminum foil and grease with a little of the melted butter.
In a small dish, combine the orange zest, brown sugar, chili powder and minced garlic. Rub the marinated salmon with the brown sugar mixture. Place fish in the pan, and drizzle with the remaining melted butter.
Bake for 8 to 12 minutes, or until fish flakes easily with a fork. (If you're using a whole fillet, it needs to cook longer, maybe 20 to 30 minutes.)

I bet this would be yummy on other kinds of fishies, too!

It Really IS Spring!

Trees budding, changeable weather, tulips popping up, grass greening—it is springtime! So, naturally, this is the time for Pasta Primavera (which literally means Springtime Pasta). This recipe has nothing to do with the big party last week. It's just a really yummy, family-favorite around here—even the kids love it. And that's saying something!

PASTA PRIMAVERA

3 Tbsp. butter
1/2 lb. asparagus, tough ends snapped off
1 small zucchini, diced
1/4 cup slivered ham
1-2 small carrots, sliced thinly
1/4 lb. mushrooms, sliced
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dry basil
freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
8 oz. linguine or fettucine, cooked according to package directions

Slice the asparagus diagonally, in 1-inch slices, leaving the tips whole.
Melt butter in a large saute pan; add asparagus, zucchini, ham, carrots and mushrooms. Cook for 2 minutes, uncovered; then cover and cook 3 more minutes. Add the salt, basil, nutmeg and peas; toss to combine. Pour heavy cream into pan and let cook until large, shiny bubbles appear on surface.
Toss vegetable mixture with pasta; add half of the Parmesan cheese and toss to combine. Serve hot and pass the remaining Parmesan.
Delish!

I think this would be good with some shrimp tossed into the sauce, too. I'll have to try that out some time (although, then my kids probably wouldn't like it so much.)

Strawberries

The Strawberry Bouquet the other night was truly spectacular. I even had one friend who said she thought it was made of real roses. I grant you, she forgot her glasses that night; but still . . .
The roses were made of chocolate-dipped strawberries and strawberry candies, which were all skewered and set into a styrofoam block. The greens really are just silk plants (you can't eat those!)—to make the whole thing look nice.

I think that if I had some good marketing skills a basket of these roses could easily sell for $75 (which works out to be about $1 per "flower"). But you, you lucky readers, can make your own for substantially less. [Although, if you don't want to take the trouble, I will happily make you one for $75—if you live in Salt Lake
County. ;-) ]

And not only is it beautiful, it is really tasty, too!

STRAWBERRIES

a handful of slivered almonds

green food coloring
1 cup finely chopped nuts (I use blanched almonds)

1 cup shredded coconut

2 (3 oz.) pkg. strawberry jello

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp. vanilla

red sugar (cookie/cake sprinkles)

green sugar

In a sandwich baggie, toss the slivered almonds with green food coloring until they are green all over. Let them dry on paper towels.

In a small bowl, combine nuts, coconut, jello, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla. Mix thoroughly [I find it easiest to knead it by hand.] Pinch off a little of the dough and mash, roll and pinch it into a strawberry shape. Roll it in the red sugar, then dip the top end in a little of the green sugar. Insert a green almond into the top for a stem. Voila! Strawberries!

Very cute, and tasty! [Sounds like what Bruce says about me. ;-) ]