random amusements

random amusements

Homegrown!

This was my first batch of beans from the garden. And one small acorn squash which turned out to be buggy. :(

Chocolate Coffee Bread

This recipe makes a hearty loaf which is probably best served for breakfast...or dessert. Or you can make a sandwich out of it, like Brenda did! LOL!

Chocolate Coffee Bread
(adapted from Betty Crocker's Best Bread Machine Cookbook)

1 c. warm water
1 pkt. active dry yeast
2 T. instant coffee granules (I used Maxwell House)
2 T. butter, softened
1/3 c. brown sugar, packed
3 c. flour
1 t. salt
2/3 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1 egg, beaten
1 t. instant coffee granules
1 T. coarse sugar (Turbinado sugar)

1. In large glass or plastic mixing bowl, combine yeast packet contents with warm water; allow to sit for 5 minutes. Stir.
2. Add coffee granules, butter and brown sugar; mix well.
3. Carefully measure flour and salt together; add into yeast mixture.
4. Stir to combine, then knead into a soft dough. Knead in chocolate chips a little at a time until all are incorporated.
5. Allow dough to rise for about 30 minutes, then punch down and shape into a large oblong loaf.
6. Place on a large, greased cookie sheet, cover with waxed paper and allow to rise again in a warm place.
7. Heat oven to 400˚.
8. Make 5 diagonal slashes in the top of the loaf with a baker's lame or a thin-bladed serrated knife. Make 5 additional slashes in the other direction, creating a criss-cross pattern over the top of the loaf. Brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with a mixture of the teaspoon of instant coffee granules and coarse sugar.
9. Bake 18-20 minutes, until loaf sounds hollow when tapped with a butter knife.

(NOTE: this recipe can also be made with your bread machine, placing ingredients into pan in the order in which the manufacturer recommends.)


LINKS: Baker's lame:
King Arthur Flour ($6.95)
Sur La Table ($6.00)
ChefTools.com ($7.99)

Veggie Pizza Burgers

This was a quick mid-week dinner one night...I kinda made it up as I went along...

Veggie Pizza Burgers

2 hamburger buns
butter
garlic powder
tomato paste
2 Morning Star Prime Grillers veggie burgers
1 can mushrooms
2 mozzarella string cheese sticks
shredded Asiago or Parmesan cheese
Italian seasoning

1. In a large frying pan, make hamburger buns into garlic bread by spreading with butter and sprinkling with garlic powder:
2. In another small frying pan, saute mushrooms until nicely browned.
3. Microwave veggie burgers to thaw them, then add to pan; dash with Italian seasoning.
4. Place strips torn from string cheese over burgers, then put lid on pan to allow cheese to melt.
5. Take out buns and spread tops with tomato paste; add shredded cheese. Place burgers on bottom buns and generously heap the mushrooms on them. Serve immediately!

random amusements

Turco a Hawk

In what I consider to be an odd twist of fate, former Dallas Stars goalie Marty Turco is now a Chicago Blackhawk.

I have followed Marty's career for a while and considered him to be a "good guy" (as long as he wasn't playing against my team). It all goes back to a tv show that's not on anymore called "NHL Cool Shots," which was a 1/2 hour program where they'd focus on different NHL players and teams.

The episode which sticks in my mind was one featuring the Dallas Stars doing a photo shoot for a calendar sold to raise money for the Humane Society. In this episode, Marty Turco was posing with this little black and white kitten, and talking about a similar cat he had when he was a kid. Well, that won me over! LOL!


Now, it sounds like he appreciates the opportunity to become a Blackhawk: The Blackhawks are a first-class organization in a world-class city and at this point in my career I am excited to be a part of a team that will give me such a good chance to win the Stanley Cup.”

I'm also LOL'ing because of the name I gave to the tacos I make with ground turkey, instead of ground beef....

Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Chocolate Chip Pancakes for Casey

No real recipe here, just a picture. I did add some brown sugar and vanilla extract to the (box mix) pancake batter, so they'd taste more like chocolate chip cookies. Problem with dropping the chips on like that is: when you flip them over, the chips kinda melt and make a mess of the pan. But, according to Casey, they were great.

Turkizo

What else are you going to call a taco made out of turkey-chorizo burgers?

Turkizo

I thawed out 4 turkey-chorizo burgers, and fried them in a pan, breaking them apart as they cooked:

Put on a flour tortilla; add cheese, lettuce, tomato and sour cream:



Related links:
Chorizo Burgers
Chorizo Burgers Again

POLL: What is your favorite summer pasta salad?

Mayo-free rotini salad with carrots & peapods

POLL: What is your favorite summer pasta salad?

Is it the deli salad with the elbow macaroni and the creamy sauce? Or maybe it's the one with bits of salami, olives and mozzarella? Something else?

Or maybe your favorite is the one that you make yourself?

Is is hot? Or is it served cold?



My favorite is my grandma's tuna-macaroni salad....recipe to follow on Monday...

Olive Tapanade

This was a quickly-put-together mixture that didn't really follow any of the 5 or so recipes which I have in my recipe archives. It still turned out lovely. We put it on the Tomato Rolls and the Impossibly Squashed Pie.

Black Olive Tapanade

1 can black olives
1/4 c. olive oil
1/4 c. Parmesan, grated
2 T. Romano, shredded
1 t. minced dried onion (or use fresh, if you prefer)
1 t. lemon juice
garlic powder, to taste
1 string cheese, diced very small

1. Coarsely chop olives, or pulse them in a food processor, until they reach your desired texture. (I wanted them to remain a little bit chunky.)
2. Mix chopped olives with olive oil, Parmesan, garlic and onion.
3. Shred in the Romano:
4. Chop/dice up the mozzarella string cheese, and mix it in...
   

Tomato Bread Rolls

This was going to be tomato herb bread, but since we were taking it to our friends' house, I decided it would be more reasonable to make dinner rolls. Worked out wonderful! Very good with the olive tapanade, too!

Tomato Bread Rolls

1 c. warm water
1 pkt. active dry yeast
3 c. flour
1 T. brown sugar
1 1/2 t. salt
2 t. dried minced onion
2 T. tomato paste
pinch of: oregano, garlic & paprika

1. In a large mixing bowl, stir yeast into warm water; allow to set 5 minutes.
   
2. Add to bowl: tomato paste, onion, seasonings and brown sugar. Mix well.
   
3. Add flour and salt.
4. Stir and then knead to form a dough. (may require additional flour!)
   
5. Cover and let rise until doubled (about 1 hour).
6. Punch down and divide into 12-15 even sized dough balls. Place into prepared 9x13 baking pan.
7. Cover and allow to rise in a warm spot; check them after 30 minutes.
8. Bake at 375˚ for 17-22 minutes, or until tops are nicely browned.

Impossibly Squashed Pie

This turns out sorta like a quiche, but there's no dry crumbly crust on the bottom, which is what a lot of people object to with your typical quiche. I served this with some yummy olive tapanade, the recipe for which will be posted tomorrow...

Impossibly Squashed Pie

1 medium yellow squash, sliced
3 eggs
3/4 c. Bisquick
1/2 c. ricotta cheese
1 1/2 c. milk
seasonings: salt, pepper, garlic powder
sharp cheddar for topping

1. Mix Bisquick, eggs, milk & ricotta.
2. Place slices of squash in a buttered pie plate; add seasonings.
3. Pour egg mixture over the top.
   
4. Place pie plate on a cookie sheet (just in case it decides to overflow!) and sprinkle cheddar on top.
   
5. Bake at 400˚ for about 35 minutes. Top should be browned and center should not be jiggly.
   

Happy Birthday, Thumper!

It was 14 years ago today that I brought Thumper home.

He's such a good kitty; never gets into things, is polite, has a sense of humor, wants to hang out with us all the time. Thumper has been a very good friend to us, and we appreciate him every day. But today is the day we celebrate his homecoming. :)


Related links:
Thumper's Story
Cat Magnet
Thumper Took My Spot I
Thumper Took My Spot II

random amusements

I'm sorry, I couldn't resist; this is really hilarious...

random amusements

Find the cute in this picture!!!

http://icanhascheezburger.com

Squashed Tart

More cheese would weigh it down...

Puff Pastry Squashed Tart

I didn't use a recipe for this, I just kinda threw it together last minute. There's not a lot to it, but it was very tasty and I really cannot offer suggestions to improve upon it. One could argue for more cheese, but in this case, less cheese provided a nice light snack, and I think too much cheese would have made it too heavy. In this form, it would make a good appetizer when sliced into finger-food portion sizes.

1 sheet puff pastry, thawed
3 or 4 small to medium sized yellow squash, sliced (I peeled them, too)
mozzarella cheese, shredded or sliced
Romano cheese, shredded
garlic salt
Italian seasoning

I pre-cooked the squash in the microwave (about 5 minutes), because I wanted to get some of the water out of it, so it didn't make the puff pastry soggy. Drain in a mesh strainer and/or pat dry with paper towels before adding to crust.


Roll out your puff pastry on a large cookie sheet or a jellyroll pan:

Fold the edges over inward to create a crust along the edge; brush with water (underneath) and press with fork. Then poke holes in the center of the puff pastry for pre-baking a short time:

After about 10-12 minutes at 350˚, remove puff pastry from oven, and add squash:

Top with cheese and seasonings; bake an additional 15-20 minutes until crust is done and cheese begins to brown:

p.s. Yes, that is a sliced-up string cheese on top because that was the only cheese I had on hand...

Chicken Waldorf Salad

I've made this for several picnics and potlucks, and never fails to be a big hit. Everyone always asks for the recipe....so here it is!

Chicken Waldorf Salad

1 can (9.75 oz.) white chicken meat
1/3 c. mayo
1/3 c. sour cream
1 T. lemon juice
1 T. honey
1 RED apple, cored and cut into wedges, then diced
1 GREEN apple, cored and cut into wedges, then diced 1 stalk celery, diced
1 c. RED grapes, sliced (or diced)
1 c. GREEN grapes, sliced (or diced)
1/3 c. raisins
1/2 c. walnuts, chopped (optional)

1. In medium bowl, blend: mayo, sour cream, lemon juice, honey.
2. Stir in other ingredients.
3. Eat.




NOTES: It really is necessary to use both red and green apples; and, both red and green grapes. I have tried this recipe in various mixtures, but this complete one is your best bet, honestly. Otherwise, it seems unbalanced to me.
I have also tried it with chopped pecans instead of walnuts, and either way, we liked it just as well.

Tillie's Zucchini Casserole

Okay, yeah, I made this with yellow squash, because that's what the garden gave me. It turned out good, but Tillie is right—it is better with zucchini.

Tillie's Zucchini Casserole

2 lbs. zucchini, sliced (you don't have to peel it if you don't want to)
Swiss cheese, sliced (maybe a 1 lb.? [NOTE: next time I'll use the larger deli slices])
oregano
olive oil
crushed saltine crackers

1. Brush a baking pan with olive oil. Make a layer of zucchini slices; sprinkle with a little oregano and salt.

2. Top with a layer of Swiss.

3. Repeat layers.


4. Sprinkle top with olive oil and cover with cracker crumbs.
5. Bake at 375˚ for about 45 minutes to an hour.


(...longer is better in my opinion cause then it's gets a little crusty and that is the best part! ~B)