if you need me, i'll be in the kitchen

The ingredients have been collected. The oven is on, and so is my apron.

Let the holiday baking begin.

On the 2009 menu:

• Gingerbread Cookies
• Pecan Logs
  
• Toffee Squares (the linked recipe is the closest to what I'm making that I can find online)
  
• Chocolate Fudge
  
• Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles
  

indoorsy

Sometimes we are "outdoorsy," but this week, since we've been sick, we've been "indoorsy." Aside from watching lots and lots of movies, here's a sampling of how we've spent our time.

We've colored on the walls.



We've done a bit of cooking.

Caleb has done a lot of smiling, most likely because he's the only one of us who hasn't caught this stomach bug. (Isn't that grin the cutest thing ever?)

And after we finish playing, we've cleaned up our messes (and sung the "Clean Up Song" while we did).

We're all mostly feeling better today, and in honor of that I was thinking that maybe we'd be at least a little outdoorsy and venture down to the library to trade in our stack of books for some new ones. But, to coin the phrase, the weather outside is frightful, so we're sticking it indoors a little while longer. Maybe after naptime we'll build a fort on the bunk bed. Or maybe, since Garrett's such a good little chef, we'll make some S'mores Bars to eat while we watch our shows tonight. In case you want to make some, too (and, trust me, you'll want to make some, too), here's the recipe:

S'mores Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 6 sheets of graham crackers)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 1.5 oz milk chocolate bars
1 cup marshmallow cream

Set oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 inch pan with non-stick spray.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, graham crackers, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar. Beat until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until smooth. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Press half the dough into the bottom of the prepared pan. Place the chocolate on top of the dough, breaking it up to make it fit. Spread marshmallow cream over the top of the chocolate. Gently press the other half of the dough on top of the marshmallow cream.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the top is golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes and cut into squares.

good things

Martha's got 'em, and I do, too.

1. Hot Mint Malt. We tried this hot chocolate recipe Sunday night and oh my it was divine.

6 York Peppermint Patties
5 cups milk
1/2 cup chocolate malted milk powder
1 tsp vanilla
whipped cream

In crock pot, combine mint patties with milk, malted milk powder, and vanilla. Heat on low for 2 hours. Beat with electric mixer until frothy. Pour into cups; top with whipped cream. Melt because of the sheer goodness of this winter weather drink.

2. This guy. Thanks to my dad who clued me into this viral video. Be sure to watch the whole thing -- the awesomeness only increases. And if you like this one, here's another.

3. Help for my hands. I finally got in to see a doctor about my painfully dry hands and wrists. Turns out I have eczema, which, yeah -- not a good thing. But the fact that I was sent home with a prescription to treat it definitely is.

4. The Yankee's 27th World Series win. Okay, so I'm not much of a baseball fan, but my current address makes me a New Yorker, so -- Go Team!

5. Free photo shoots. Blake's old co-worker turned professional photographer, Andrea, is in town from Berlin. She's working to beef up the portraits of children in her portfolio and volunteered to take pictures of my boys. The photo shoot was this morning and was just about as successful as I could reasonably expect. We got some darling shots of both boys individually, but when it came time to take pictures of them together, things kind of fell apart: as soon as Garrett was in a cooperative mood, Caleb started crying; once Caleb's tears were calmed, Garrett lost interest in sitting still. C'est la vie. I'll share highlights when we get the picture files from Andrea in a few weeks.

6. Brooklyn buddies. I belong to a fantastic circle of friends here. I can always count on these fine ladies for good conversation, empathy, and to rescue me from rotten days. The other night most of us were able to get together for ice cream. The reason for the gathering was actually a sad one as one of our group is moving upstate later this week. But we nonetheless managed to have a great time talking and laughing about this and that.

from left: Martha, Emily, Kelly, June, Ashley, me, and Melanie

7. NBC's Thursday night line-up. Community, The Office, and 30 Rock -- what could be more hilarious? Parks and Recreation was sadly disappointing, which is why I wash the dinner dishes during that half hour. If I could get ABC to air Modern Family on Thursday's between 8:30 and 9:00, I'd be in some sort of personal TV viewing heaven.

What good things are you loving today?

le weekend

While my mom was here we managed to keep up an impressively quick pace, filling our time with outings into Manhattan and the further reaches of Brooklyn, errands around the neighborhood, story time at the library, trips to the park, and, of course, regular viewings of Monk episodes as we successfully worked our way through the entire seventh season on DVD. (Thanks to Hulu and the "world wide internet computer web," I'm now working my way through as much of season eight as is available.) After we said our goodbyes on Saturday, life for us did not slow down. Here's a run down of how our weekend kept us busy.

The Ragamuffin Parade

While my mom was riding across the Verrazano Bridge with Eddie, her friendly Egyptian car service driver, en route to the Newark airport, we were staking out a spot on the sidewalk outside our apartment to watch the annual Ragamuffin Parade. Our experience watching it this year was very similar to last year's: we again didn't have enough time to get Garrett (or his brother) into costume, it was raining, and so we opted not to hop into the street to march for a couple blocks. But it was still a lot of fun, and we all enjoyed watching. (Well, Caleb slept through it, but he was there and he was comfortable, so I'm assuming he had a great time, too.)

Street Festival

On Sunday, along the same street the parade was held on -- basically right outside our door -- was the annual street festival. We ventured out to see the sights in between General Conference sessions. Businesses and restaurants located on the avenue spilled out their doors and onto the curb, and visiting vendors set up booths alongside them. It was crowded -- literally thousands of people crammed into about thirty city blocks -- and noisy, with stereos booming and lots of live performances. Because it was Sunday, we weren't going to pull out our wallets and fully participate in the festival, and Garrett was mostly just interested in the glycerin bubbles blowing out from toy bubble guns anyway, so we kept our walk down the avenue short and soon headed home where we pulled out our own bottle of bubbles to blow on our stoop. (And, as usual, Caleb slept through the whole thing.)

General Conference

What with the combination of my mom's departure, a wired toddler, and a colicky newborn, we weren't able to devote ourselves entirely to watching Conference. But what we did catch we thoroughly enjoyed. (We'll brush up on the rest later.) Is it just me, or was there a heavy emphasis during these sessions on the importance of serving others? At any rate, I'm seriously tempted to create a "warm fuzzy" jar for my own Primary.

Zucchini

Since we're in the Eastern Time Zone, General Conference sessions are from 12-2 and 4-6 (instead of two hours earlier like they are on location in Salt Lake City), which means that yesterday I technically didn't have to be showered and ready for the day until noon. I had three zucchinis in the fridge and a few zucchini recipes to try. Blake was home, of course, and was more than happy to bounce Caleb while I went crazy baking in the kitchen. I made an old favorite, zucchini-chocolate chip muffins, for our breakfast, and a new one, chocolate chip oatmeal zucchini cookies. Both were delicious, though the cookies were more involved that I typically like. If you need a way to use up some zucchinis, both of these recipes are worth the effort.

more from my kitchen

Based on how much of myself I have recently devoted to new endeavors in the kitchen, I'm thinking that I must have converted my nesting energy to cooking energy. That is the only explanation I can come up with for my sudden urge to want to be in my steamy kitchen in this muggy weather. All of my attempts so far have turned out well enough for me to want to share them with you. So put on your aprons, friends, because here we go.

Crunchy Tilapia
I found this one in a parenting magazine that keeps showing up unexplained in my mailbox. It's a keeper for sure. The tilapia tastes like fish sticks (only way, way better), so Garrett will eat it. And the tartar sauce -- oh, the tartar sauce. I think it's the lemon that makes it taste so good. The only way I can keep myself from eating the leftover sauce by itself with a spoon is to dip pretzels in it.

Lemon Tartar Sauce
1/4 cup mayo
1/3 cup sour cream
2 tbsp sweet relish
1 tsp lemon zest
salt, to taste

Fish
3/4 cup finely ground bread crumbs
1/4 cup parsley, chopped (I used a much smaller amount of dried parsley)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp milk
1 lb tilapia fillets, halved lengthwise
salt, to taste
2 tbsp oil

Stir together all ingredients for tartar sauce and set aside. Combine the bread crumbs and parsley on a dinner plate. Mix egg and milk in a bowl. Working one at a time, dip the fish fillets in the egg/milk mixture and shake off the excess, then dredge lightly in the crumb mixture. Sprinkle with salt. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the fillets and cook until golden brown on one side, about 4 minutes. Turn and cook until fish is no longer translucent in the center, about another 4 minutes (longer if the fillets are thicker). Serve immediately, using the tartar sauce as a dip, or keep warm in a 200 degree oven.

Lemon-Raspberry Muffins
I like to make muffins occasionally to supplement our breakfast and snack menus, and I have a long list of varieties just waiting for me to attempt. These were next on the list. They turned out good, albeit a little dry, which may have been because I overmixed them a bit (so consequently the batter tasted slightly better than the muffins). I do plan to make them again someday, though.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup cream (next time I might try substituting the cream for lemon flavored yogurt to make them both more moist and more lemony)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp lemon extract
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Combine the eggs, cream, oil, and lemon extract; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in raspberries. Spoon into greased or lined muffin tins. Bake at 400 for 18-20 minutes (about 13 minutes for mini-muffins), or until golden brown.

Chocolate Chewies
I have a friend who, a few months back, started the most mouth-watering baking blog. (You all should seriously check it out. Unless, of course, you're watching your sugar intake, in which case maybe you should steer clear.) I am collecting her recipes much faster than I can create and consume them. At any rate, this one came from her, and it definitely lived up to her baking reputation. The batter tasted like something from See's Candies, so you can just imagine what the actual cookie was like. Also? They were super easy to whip up. Always a bonus in my book.

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips
2 tbsp butter, melted
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (I usually bake with walnuts, but at her recommendation, I used pecans.)

Preheat oven to 325. Melt the chocolate chips and butter together slowly, either over double boiler or in the microwave. Remove from heat and add sweetened condensed milk. Add the rest of the ingredients and combine. Drop by spoonfuls on a greased cookie sheet. Bake for 15 minutes.

Basic Hummus
One of the beautiful things I've discovered in this city is hummus. Unfortunately, buying it ready-made at the store gets a little pricey, especially considering that it's basically just mashed up chickpeas. So I decided to try making my own. I found a basic recipe online and adapted it as I went along. For a first try, it wasn't too bad, if I may say so. I only wish that I could coax my blender into acting more like the food processor I don't have so I could process the chickpeas to a smoother consistency. I plan to make this again, experimenting with different supplemental ingredients to see what other varieties I can come up with (a sun-dried tomato and basil hummus is high on that list).

2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed/chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas (a.k.a. garbanzo beans), drained, with liquid reserved
1 tbsp sesame seeds
salt and pepper, to taste
lemon juice, to taste
basil, to taste

In a small skillet, cook the garlic in olive oil until tender, about 3 minutes. Place chickpeas in a blender/food processor with a small amount of reserved liquid. Process until smooth. Mix in garlic, sesame seeds, salt and pepper. Blend to desired consistency, increasing the amount of reserved chickpea liquid and lemon juice as desired. Blend in basil. Chill in refrigerator until serving.

So, who's hungry?

bbbbbbbbb*

*I couldn't think of a clever title, so I let Garrett help. Apparently he likes the letter B.

I must be losing my mind because lately it's been hot hot hot and horribly humid and yet I keep turning on my oven to bake things. Perhaps, though, I'm not too far gone -- the brownies we ate over the weekend were incredibly worth it.

Chocolate Pudding Brownies
1 small box instant chocolate pudding
2 cups milk
1 box chocolate cake mix
2 cups chocolate chips

Mix pudding according to package directions. When it begins to thicken, pour in dry cake mix. Mix well (batter will be thick). Spread in greased 9x13 pan. Sprinkle chocolate chips over the top. Bake at 350 for 35 minutes.

I honestly cannot think of an easier way to get to heaven.

Speaking of getting places, I spent a portion of this weekend venturing into boroughs unknown (i.e. Staten Island) to attend a stake primary activity. I had to take the bus over the bridge to get there, which was an adventure by itself, and, thanks to a bus driver who, at my request, remembered to announce my stop, I didn't even get lost. Staten Island, I discovered, is an awful lot more like New Jersey than the city's other four boroughs, and one of the more obvious clues was the fact that the S.I. chapel the activity was held at had a lawn that appeared to be bigger than our Brooklyn chapel and parking lot combined.

Ah, grass. Such a beautiful thing. And perfect for the Pioneer Day-esque games we played with the kids, as well as for the picnic lunch we all scarfed down afterward. The only thing that could have made the location better would have been some large shade trees to block out that ruthless sun we baked in.

I directed the kids in a three-legged race, but first I had to teach these city-dwellers what the heck a three-legged race was because most of them had no idea. That was entertaining, as was watching them try to compete. No one seemed to grasp my repeated hinting of the concept of walking in sync, and we therefore had more children piling up on the grass than crossing the finish line. Ah well. They seemed to enjoy themselves anyway.

applesauce muffins

This morning Garrett and I attempted a new muffin recipe. They turned out really good -- moistly sweet and slightly sticky. And they were incredibly easy to whip up. We can hardly stop eating them.

Applesauce Muffins

1/4 cup butter, melted
2 cups flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 can (16 oz) applesauce (I was finishing up a much larger jar of applesauce and put in about 1 1/2 cups)
nuts, chopped (optional) (I put in some walnuts)

Mix together all ingredients except nuts. Fold in nuts. Grease or line muffin tins. Fill 2/3 full. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes (about 13 minutes for mini muffins).

sesame chicken

I tried a new dish for dinner last night -- something I haven't felt up to doing for some time now. Like some of you, I keep tabs on the blog Rookie Cookie, a cooking blog written by a girl who I once upon a time went to high school with. A little while back she posted a recipe for Sesame Chicken which she claimed was not only delicious but incredibly easy to make. Yesterday, when I took her up on that challenge, I happily discovered that she was entirely right. And so today I'm also going to share the love.

Sesame Chicken

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tbsp flour
salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp sesame seeds
1 bunch green onions, chopped
cooked white or brown rice

In a small bowl, combine soy sauce and sugar; stir well to combine. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken pieces and flour. Season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over high heat. Once hot, add chicken. Cook, stirring often, until cooked through, about 5 minutes.

Transfer chicken pieces onto a plate and put the pan back on the heat. Pour in the soy sauce mixture. With a wooden spoon, scrape the cooked bits on the bottom of the pan while the soy sauce mixture simmers. Let simmer for about 2 minutes, until slightly thickened. Add the chicken back into the pan. Sprinkle sesame seeds on top and toss well, coating all the chicken pieces in the soy sauce mixture.

Serve over rice and garnish with green onions.

I served this with sides of fresh broccoli and mandarin oranges. A green salad would also have been tasty.

***

On a completely unrelated note, it's just come to my attention that my blog template is a little wacky (i.e. no right sidebar links, shortened posts, etc.) in both Internet Explorer and Google Chrome. It views fine, however, in Firefox. If you use IE or Chrome and feel like you're missing out, try using Firefox until I figure out what's causing the problem and how to fix it. ...And speaking of, if anyone out there knows how to fix this, please, I'd love your insight. My computer/internet skills only take me so far.

orange muffins

I got a mini-muffin tin for Christmas, and this morning I took it for a test run with a recipe for Orange Muffins that I found a while back over at Cafe Johnsonia. Oh my, were they heavenly! I'm going to have to make another batch soon because apparently I have a new addiction to feed.




Orange Muffins

1 cup sugar
juice of one orange, about 1/2 cup
8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature (I never have real butter at home, so I used margarine; they turned out fine)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp finely grated orange zest
3/4 cup sour cream
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375. Grease or line muffin pans. Mix 1 cup sugar with orange juice. (To juice the orange, I used my awesome newish melamine reamer.) Set aside.

Place 1 cup sugar in a mixing bowl. Add the orange zest and rub it between your fingers until it is sandy and wet. (If this doesn't make you feel like a professional chef, I don't know what will.) Add the butter. Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Sift or whisk the dry ingredients together. Add 1/3 of dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and beat, followed by half of the sour cream. Add another 1/3 of the flour mixture, beat, and add the remaining sour cream. Add the last of the flour mixture and beat. The batter will be very stiff.

Transfer the batter to prepared muffin pan. For regular muffins you will use almost exactly 1/4 cup of batter. Mini-muffins will take 1-2 tsp of batter.

Bake at 375 for about 25 minutes (9-11 minutes for mini-muffins), until inserted toothpick comes out clean. Muffins will be lightly golden. Allow muffins to cool before removing from pan.

If desired, dip the tops of the muffins in the OJ/sugar mixture. (Desire it: seriously, this sweet glaze is the icing on the cake...or muffin. Whatever, but it's oh-so tasty.)

Yields: 12 regular, 36 mini

***

In other, totally unrelated news...did you know that New Yorkers are a prime target audience for the Utah ski industry? I would have never thought, but judging by the 5,000 commercials advertising powdery snow and a hopping night scene on the Park City slopes that I've seen over the last few days, they must be. But I suppose, like the commercials inform me, there are 48 daily flights from NYC to SLC, six of which arrive before noon, so apparently it's not as far away as one might initially think. I've never skied before in my life (yes, I am a Provo girl, born and raised), but these 30-second snippets sure have a way of making me homesick. We need a tax return so I can sneak away for a visit.

drop everything and go make these cookies

Seriously.

My friend, Disco Mom, as a part of her month-long mouth-watering Virtual Goody Plate, included a recipe for Surprise Mint Cookies (a.k.a. Junior Mint Meltaways).

You might remember that I love a good surprised-filled cookie. And so last week I went on a quest for Junior Mints. Oddly enough, it took me a few tries before I found a store that actually had Junior Mints in stock (I guess the rest of the neighborhood got a hold of the recipe, too), but I eventually came away victorious.

The cookies are simple to make and delicious to scarf down -- I mean, eat daintily. (On second thought, I really do mean scarf down. They are really, really good.) Think chocolate chip cookie dough, sans the chocolate chips but with instead a Junior Mint hidden inside. The mint melts as it bakes, creating a cookie infused with minty chocolate.

Because my heart just can't leave you here, sitting in your own drool, without sharing the recipe, I will post it below. All kudos for these cookies really should go to Disco Mom, without whose recipe I wouldn't be aware of this little bite of heaven, so if you want to thank her personally, feel free to here. (She also posted pictures, which I, in my eagerness to scarf them down, didn't do.)

Surprise Mint Cookies
a.k.a. Junior Mint Meltaways

3 cups flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 cup butter

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

A large box of Junior Mints (movie theater size)

1. Sift together the flour, soda and salt. In a separate bowl cream the sugar, brown sugar and butter until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and vanilla and combine well. Add the flour mixture a little at a time and beat until well combined. Chill dough for 2 hours.

2. Preheat oven to 350. Roll the dough into 1 to 1 1/2 inch balls. Make a slight indentation with your thumb and place a Junior mint in it. Use your fingers and thumb to cover the mint with dough. Keep the mint as close to the top of the cookie as you can, just enough to cover with dough. The minty filling will seep down and make the bottom super sticky if it's too low. Even though there is plenty of butter in the dough you should lightly coat your baking sheets with cooking spray in case the bottoms become sticky from the candy.

3. Bake for about 12 minutes until lightly browned. Let cool for about 4-5 minutes on sheets before moving to a cooling rack. Decorate cookies any way you like [DM drizzled melted chocolate chips over the top of hers] or leave plain [I was lazy -- err, I mean too eager to eat them -- and took this route...they're still tasty plain]. Enjoy!

Makes about 3 1/2 dozen (i.e. not nearly enough)

christmas cookies

Last week I was nearly swept off my feet by the sudden desire to bake Christmas cookies. But because I was was so crazy-hardly-had-time-to-blink busy, I had to control the urge to go wild in the kitchen until this week when I was less dizzy. Which ended up working out fantastically because more time to plan = the ability to cook with good company. Emily and Elizabeth came over and together (well, technically only Emily...Elizabeth snoozed the afternoon away) we baked and decorated sugar cookies. There were gingerbread cookies involved as well, but those were made beforehand (there's only so much cookie-creating room in my little kitchen).

In case you, too, are overwhelmed by the holiday itch to bake sweet things, here are the recipes we used. (I'm no Disco Mom, whose month-long virtual goody plate is absolutely mouth-watering, but it's a start anyway.) The gingerbread is the Nauvoo recipe which the sweet sisters serving in the Scovil bakery give out like fliers on a NYC street corner. It is delicious and, were it not so freely given to me, I'd want to keep it secretly to myself. The sugar cookies, on the other hand, are nothing special. Don't get me wrong -- they turned out delicious. But it doesn't boast any exotic ingredients that make it better than all others. I just found it in a ward cookbook I was given once upon a time as a wedding gift. The icing recipe was courtesy of the box of powdered sugar.

Nauvoo Gingerbread Cookies

1 cup sugar
1 cup molasses
3/4 cup oil or lard
1/2 cup hot water

Combine, rinse molasses from cup with hot water. Then add:

2 eggs

Mix together the following and add to wet ingredients:

1 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 heaping tsp ginger (or 2 tsp)
2 tsp cinnamon
6 or 7 cups white flour (may use 1/3 whole wheat)

Use more flour if necessary. Refrigerate dough (preferably overnight). Roll out and cut with cookie cutter. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. (Apparently these cookies freeze well and are softer and more flavorful after freezing. I've never tried it myself, but I have no reason to doubt the missionaries at the Scovil Bakery.)

Sugar Cookies

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup margarine
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp milk
2 1/4 cups sifted flour
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder

Cream margarine and sugar together. Add eggs, vanilla, and milk. Add sifted dry ingredients. Roll out and cut. Bake at 350 for 11-12 minutes. Frost and decorate.


Domino Buttercream Frosting

1 1-lb pkg Domino confectioner's sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
3-4 tbsp milk
1 tsp vanilla

Combine in large bowl, with mixer at low speed, sugar, milk, and vanilla. Beat at medium speed 1-2 minutes until creamy. If desired, add more milk until frosting is spreading consistency.

(I couldn't resist, seeing as Texas will be "home for the holidays" this year.)

What Christmas treats will you be baking this year? (Gold stars for you if you, too, share recipes.)

hoosier chili

If I learned anything from my time living in Indiana it is this:

1. Hoosiers can make a mean chili, and
2. They love said chili served with noodles.

Sometimes I find myself homesick for the flat farmlands and down-to-earth people in Indiana, so I got excited when I recently stumbled across a recipe for Hoosier Chili in my David Letterman cookbook. Yesterday, with temperatures in the 30s and a wind chill on top of that, was a perfect day for chili, so I pulled out the stock pot, simmered the ingredients, and put an incredibly delicious dinner on the table.

Hoosier Chili
2 lbs extra-lean ground beef
2 cups chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp chili powder, or to taste
2 16-oz cans stewed tomatoes
1 46-oz can tomato or V8 vegetable juice
1 can beef broth
1/2 cup uncooked elbow macaroni (I used closer to 1 cup)
1 15-oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

In large Dutch oven or soup kettle, brown beef until no longer pink. (Drain, if necessary.) Add onions, celery, peppers, and garlic. Continue cooking until vegetables are tender. Add all remaining ingredients except macaroni and beans. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, simmer for 1 1/2 hours, adding macaroni for last half hour of cooking time. Stir in beans and heat through.

Yields: Enough for a small army. (Consider yourselves warned.)
Is Even Tastier Served with: Sweet Cornbread

Seriously, this is the best chili, hands down, that I have ever eaten. (Sorry, Mom.)

***

But speaking of moms, specifically mine and Blake's. And our dads, too. Today they are celebrating their 29th (mine) and 30th (his) wedding anniversaries. (The fact that our parents were married on the same day just one year apart is only the first of many strange coincidences realized upon our union, among which also include the facts that Blake and I are both the oldest and, for almost every sibling we have, the other has one very close in age. Bizarre and oddly fascinating. But anyway...)

Happy anniversary to Dave & Nancy and Gary & Joyce!

sunday feast

I whipped up a feast yesterday: chicken salad served on homemade rolls with rice pilaf and fresh pineapple. I'm happy to say that, for the most part, it turned out great. The only major problem was that I accidentally whipped up way too much. Happily, though, that was easily solved with the invitation of some friends who were willing to come over at almost the last minute to help us eat it.

The was my first attempt at homemade rolls. I recently found a recipe for frozen dinner rolls (much likes the Rhodes variety) that I wanted to try. Last Thursday, I made the dough and froze it. They didn't turn out very pretty looking, and they were a lot smaller than I'd anticipated, but they tasted great, which I guess in the end is what really matters.

The chicken salad was fantastic! Sweet and tangy and delicious. This one is definitely getting filed away in my recipe box with an A+ grade. To make the preparation easier and cheaper, I buy chicken breast on the bone, boil it to cook it ahead of time, and freeze it in portions for later use. (If you want to try this, just let the chicken sit in the boiling water for about 1 hour; when done, separate meat from skin and bones, portion out, and freeze for up to one month.) I didn't have slivered almonds or pimiento, so I didn't include any, and, in my opinion, it tasted perfectly fine. Oh, and do note that one batch makes quite a bit, and a doubled batch requires last minute dinner guests.

I cheated with the rice pilaf and pulled out a box of Rice-a-Roni. About a week ago, though, I made some from scratch and it was pretty tasty. I'll include that recipe here. The pineapple, though, was as fresh as can be. I picked one up cheap cheap the other day at 3 Guys and I'm glad I did. Garrett loves pineapple, so I love giving it to him.

So anyway, those are my notes, and here are my recipes. Do enjoy!

Frozen Dinner Rolls
5 1/2 to 6 1/2 cups unsifted flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 pkgs Fleischmann's Active Dry Yeast
1 1/4 cups water
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup margarine
2 eggs (at room temperature)

In a large bowl thoroughly mix 2 cups flour, sugar, salt, and undissolved yeast.

Combine water, milk, and margarine in a saucepan. Heat over low heat until liquids are very warm. Margarine does not need to melt. Gradually add to dry ingredients and beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add eggs and 1/2 cup flour. Beat at high speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough. Turn out onto lightly floured board; knead until smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes. Cover with plastic wrap, then a towl, let rest 20 minutes.

Punch dough down. Shape into desired shapes for dinner rolls. Place on greased baking sheets. Cover with plastic wrap and foil, sealing well. Freeze until firm. Transfer to plastic bags. Freeze up to 4 weeks.

Remove from freezer; place on greased baking sheets. Cover; let rise in warm place, free from draft, until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and done. Remove from baking sheets and cool on wire racks.

Note: These can be baked immediately, if desired

Chicken Salad Supreme
3/4 cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 cups cooked chicken, cubed
2 tbsp each, chopped pimiento and pickle relish
3/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup slivered toasted almonds
2 hard-cooked eggs, diced
1 tbsp minced onion

Combine mayonnaise and mustard. Toss dressing lightly with remaining ingredients. Chill. Serve on bread, rolls, or a bed of greens.

Rice Pilaf
1/2 cup fine noodles, broken in pieces (I used thin spaghetti)
2 tbsp butter or margarine
1 can beef broth
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup raw long grain rice

In saucepan, brown noodles in butter; stir often. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil; reduce heat. Cover; simmer 20-25 minutes, or until liquid is absorbed.

Pineapple
Nothing to cook, obviously, but here's a video on how to cut one.

oh, baloney!

When we lived in Indiana, I heard friends of mine rave on more than one occasion about the deliciousness of fried baloney. I was skeptical, and let's not mention a little disgusted. So I was surprised when, the other day as I was thumbing through my Home Cookin' with Dave's Mom cookbook, feeling rather homesick for Hoosiers, I came across Dorothy Letterman's recipe for David's Fried Baloney Sandwich and found myself itching to try one. (I know, weird, huh.) In an effort to tame the tickle, I bought a package of baloney during my weekly grocery shopping trip and, today for lunch, made Garrett and I both one of Dave's favorite sandwiches. And, quelle surprise, it was tasty. And so here I'll divulge the recipe to you.

David's Fried Baloney Sandwich
[Dorothy's note: "One evening I got a call from David when he was still doing his show at NBC and he asked me on the air how to make this sandwich. It had always been just about his favorite lunch, but I didn't know how fondly he remembered it until he called me that night."]

2 slices bread
2 slices baloney
2 slices fresh tomato
mustard (hot dog variety)

In a small nonstick skillet, heat the baloney slices (do not overcook). Make 1 cut from center to edge of baloney slice so it doesn't cup. Spread 1 slice of bread with mustard [or 2 slices, if you're like me and love mustard]. Put on the baloney and tomato slices. Top with the other slice of bread. Enjoy! Makes 1 sandwich.

There's another baloney recipe in the cookbook that I just might have to try. It's called Baloney Breakfast, and is basically just a piece of baloney heated in a skilled until it cups, and then served with scrambled eggs inside. A little strange, yes, but I'm intrigued just the same.

Anyway, so go fry up some baloney and feel as famous as David Letterman.

sunday menu with a side of saturday night

On the menu today was Laurel's delicious honey lime enchiladas, with sides of green beans and secret-family-(stolen-from-the-Bisquick-box)-recipe corn bread. And because what's Sunday night without a tasty treat, we made some yummy caramel popcorn.

I'll have you know that I'm a quick one and as such have the ability to anticipate your desire to know how to replicate this menu in your own kitchens. So in that vein, here are the recipes:

Honey Lime Enchiladas

6 tbsp honey
5 tbsp lime juice (or the juice from 1 large lime)
1 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 lb chicken, cooked and shredded
8-10 flour tortillas
1 lb Monterrey jack cheese, shredded (I only used 8 oz)
16 oz green enchilada sauce
1 cup heavy cream
diced tomatoes and chopped green onions, if desired

Mix the first four ingredients and toss with shredded chicken. Let it marinate for at least 1/2 hour. Pour about 1/2 cup enchilada sauce on bottom of 9x13 baking dish. Fill flour tortillas with chicken, green onions, and shredded cheese, saving about 1 cup of cheese to sprinkle on top of the enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with the cream and leftover marinade. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese, remaining green onions, and tomatoes. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top.


Corn Bread

Beat 2 eggs and add 1 cup milk.
Add 1/2 cup oil and mix.
Add 2 cups Bisquick,
2/3 cup sugar,
1/2 tsp baking soda,
5-6 tbsp cornmeal.

Mix well and pour in well-greased 9x9 pan. Bake at 400 for 30-35 minutes.


Caramel Popcorn

7-9 cups popped popcorn
3/4 cup brown sugar
6 tbsp butter
3 tbsp corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Mix sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt together and bring to a rolling boil for two minutes. Turn down the heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes. Add vanilla and pour over popcorn, stirring constantly. We liked ours chewy, but for crunchy caramel corn, bake on cookie sheet at 350 for 5-10 minutes.

Also,

Happy day! Tina Fey has reprised her role as Governor Sarah Palin for Saturday Night Live. This time it's a hilarious interview with Amy Poehler's Katie Couric. My favorite part? Definitely gotta be when Couric asks Palin her opinion of the bailout plan. Really, though, the entire skit is a riot. Do enjoy.

eating well

I had another success in the kitchen last night: Honey Chicken Wings. You want I should dish? Well...okay.

2 lbs chicken wings
salt and pepper, to taste
2/3 cup honey
2 tbsp ketchup
1/3 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp + 1 tsp oil
1 clove garlic, minced
sesame seeds

Sprinkle chicken wings with salt and pepper. Place honey, ketchup, soy cause, oil and garlic in a slow cooker; stir until mixed well. Add seasoned chicken wings and stir. Cook on low for 2-3 hours. Garnish with sesame seeds.


I served it with my oven baked potato wedges and fresh cantaloupe. If you're able to swing it, I highly recommend downing a serving of free Cold Stone ice cream (Nutter Butter, shared with Garrett) before dinner. My only wish was that Blake didn't have bishopric meeting so that he could have enjoyed it with me.

Oh! And congratulations, Jim and Pam! If I weren't too thrilled for words, I'd tell you it was about time!

and speaking of produce

I have found a deliciously fantastic, to-die-for way to use up those zucchinis (besides zucchini bread, zucchini cake, and fried zucchini, of course).

Zucchini-Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup milk

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup shredded zucchini

1/4 cup miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips (chopped regular chips will do just fine, too)

1/4 cup chopped walnuts (if desired)

In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. In a small bowl, combine egg, oil, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla; mix well. Stir into dry ingredients just until moistened. Fold in zucchini, chocolate chips, and walnuts. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes, or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

Yum.

Autumn doesn't get much better than this.

top o' the muffin to you!

It seems that lately I've become a big fan of muffins. They're usually pretty easy to make, there are countless varieties (so it's hard to get bored of them), whipping up a batch gives me a great excuse to use my really cool stoneware muffin pan, and I don't know about you, but it's just hard to beat a simple Saturday breakfast comprised of fresh, homemade muffins. Tonight we tried a new recipe, Maple-Walnut Muffins, which went splendidly with our German Pancake And Fresh Fruit dinner.

Maple-Walnut Muffins

6 tbsp butter
1 cup flour
1/4 sugar
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp maple syrup
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 400. Prepare muffin tin and set aside. In a medium bowl, melt butter in the microwave. Meanwhile, sift flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. In the medium bowl, whisk melted butter, sour cream, egg, and vanilla until well blended. Add butter-sour cream mixture to flour mixture and blend. Stir in maple syrup and walnuts. Divide evenly into muffin cups and bake 18-20 minutes, or until golden brown. Makes about 8 muffins.

I strongly suggest you all try these out sometime -- they were delicious! I'll probably double the recipe next time since six just wasn't enough. (Our stoneware pan makes six larger muffins.)

And now, I'm curious: what is YOUR favorite muffin recipe?

(Because, really -- did you think I'd divulge the secret of the tasty Maple-Walnut Muffin without expecting something just as delicious in return? Yeah...not likely.)

dough girl

If there's one thing I can say about the women of my old ward in Muncie, it's that dang, they know their way around a kitchen! So you can imagine my excitement when it was announced that they were going to compile a Relief Society cookbook. The project began just as we were packing up for our move to the Big Apple, but our exit from the ward didn't keep me from requesting a copy to be mailed to my new address. (It also didn't keep me from sneaking a few of my own favorite recipes in...I had to leave my legacy somehow.) The Women of Muncie 1 Bring It To the Table arrived a few months ago, and recently I have been devouring my way through the breads section.

On Saturday morning I made Kimberlie's Lemon Muffins. They were surprisingly simple to make and deliciously divine to dig into. Because I love you all (and because since it was published in the ward cookbook, I'm pretty sure it's now public domain...or something), I'm going to divulge to you what should be a top secret recipe:

Lemon Muffins

1 3/4 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp grated lemon peel
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 (8 oz) carton lemon yogurt
6 tbsp butter, melted
1 egg
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

Combine dry ingredients. Whisk wet ingredients and add to dry; stir until barely combined. Spoon into greased muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes at 375. To make the glaze, mix peel and juice from one lemon with enough powdered sugar to make a light glaze. Poke muffins with a fork and pour mixture on top while they are still hot.

(I wasn't sure if I was supposed to do this, but I added a bit of fresh lemon juice and peel to the actual muffin dough...I figured it couldn't hurt. So half of the juice/peel from my lemon went into the muffins, and the other half was used to create the glaze.)

Mmmm...sweet lemony goodness. Seriously, I'm so tempted to go stock up on lemons and lemon yogurt so that I can bake these puppies till they're coming out my ears!

*

Can you believe that until yesterday I'd never baked bread? It's true. I've made lots of other yeast-requiring things in the kitchen, but there's always been something keeping me from making an actual loaf of bread. So when, a few pages beyond the muffin recipe, I found my friend, Sarah's, do-able looking recipe for French Peasant Bread, I decided to give it a shot:

French Peasant Bread

1 pkg dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
2 cups warm water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
4 cups flour
oil
cornmeal
melted butter

Place yeast, water, sugar, and salt in a warm bowl. Stir until dissolved. Add flour and stir until blended. DO NOT KNEAD. Cover and let rise 1 hour (until doubled). Flour hands well and remove dough from bowl. Shape into 2 rounds and place on a greased cookie sheet that has been sprinkled with cornmeal. Cover with a towel and let rise for 1 more hour. Brush with melted butter. Bake at 425 for 10 minutes and then reduce heat to 375 and bake for 15-20 minutes more. Brush again with melted butter.

It turned out great! I was so proud of myself, especially when Blake came home from work and tried a piece, proclaiming it was fantastic. This recipe's a keeper, for sure.

*

I must be a real wimp in the kitchen. Not only did I JUST bake bread for the first time, but I also JUST made my own from-scratch pie crust. Normally I flake out and buy the refrigerated Pillsbury crusts, but I had a new quiche I wanted to try without having to fork over my next-born child for the convenience and price of the ready-made dough. I'm sure you've all made your own pie crusts before, so I'll spare you my sharing of the recipe (which is actually Betty Crocker's anyway). I will, however, tell you how to make the most amazing quiche:

Tomato and Basil Quiche

1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, sliced
2 tomatoes, peeled and sliced
2 tbsp flour
2 tsp dried basil
3 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt and pepper, to taste
1 9" unbaked deep dish pie crust
1 1/2 cups shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 400. Bake pie shell in preheated oven for 8 minutes. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute onion until soft; remove from skillet. Sprinkle tomato slices with flour and basil, then saute 1 minute on each side. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Season with salt and pepper. Spread 1 cup shredded cheese in the bottom of the pie crust. Layer onions over cheese and top with tomatoes. Cover with egg mixture; sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake for 15-20 minutes, or until filling is puffed and golden brown. Serve warm.

Talk about a gourmet meal! And so long as you've got some organized wits about you in the kitchen, it's not too difficult to make.

*

My kitchen is now all toasty warm and smelling like the bakery down the block. Which on the one hand is fabulous...I love the smell of fresh-baked goods. But it's also nearly 80 degrees outside. Hopefully my next burst of bread-making energy comes when the weather's a little cooler.

food for friday

You want to see what I've been working on for the last several weeks?


In an effort to keep our meals interesting while working in a tight budget*, I decided it would be smart to make my recipe collection more user-friendly. This required a major overhaul of the dinner (and, of course, dessert) ideas I'd been gathering since I was a teenager. When I began, my recipe box was a mess, with countless duplicates, meals I couldn't remember if I'd tried/liked, recipes I'd clipped from heaven knows where. The collection seriously needed to be weeded out and, essentially, completely replanted.

First I sorted the recipes into three piles: tried and true, wanted to try, and pretty sure I'd never try. I set the third group aside and focused on the daunting task of re-copying almost every single other recipe. I chose to do this because I figured that if I was going to totally re-do my collection, I'd want it to look clean. This also gave me an opportunity to update recipes I'd altered. On the back of every main course dish that we'd tried, I listed several suggestions for sides. This way, when I'm planning out my meals, I can look at the card and get ideas of side dishes that go well with that particular main course, thus making meal planning and grocery shopping a little simpler. I also created a card listing no-recipe main/side dishes consisting of meals like canned soup and sandwiches and such which I can also consult as I plan out my meals.

The next task was to find a good way to organize it all in my box. After looking at every single one of my recipes, I sorted them into categories that I'd find useful. I purchased some small tab dividers which I attached to index cards and labeled them as follows:

• main dish
• chicken
• beef
• fish/pork
• pasta
• sandwich
• casseroles
• sides
• soup/salad
• breakfast
• appetizers
• beverages
• breads
• misc.
• cookies
• brownies/bars
• pies/cakes/frostings
• other desserts

I put the tried and true recipes at the front of each category and, just behind them, separated by a colored index card, the collection of those waiting to be tried.

My hope is that, come meal planning time, I can sit with my recipe box, thumb through the collection, and come up with ideas that are well-balanced, call for items that I already have in my pantry or can get on sale, and finally be able to work in some of the recipes I've been wanting to try for ages.

As an addition to this project, I am also going through my cookbooks and marking the recipes I'm interested in trying. Maybe someday I'll copy these ones onto index cards so that I can pare down my cookbook collection. I'm also interested in one day investing in some recipe software -- something that will allow me to search my own, tried and true recipe collection by ingredient. I know technology like this is available at a variety of recipe websites, but I'd like something that can sift though things my family is used to eating.

So it's been quite the project, but I've already been reaping the rewards. We have found several new meals this week that we've thoroughly enjoyed and we will most definitely prepare again. In fact, we liked a couple of them so much, that I've decided to share them with you here:

Chicken Fingers and Honey Mustard Sauce
(this one is super easy)

Chicken Fingers:
1 cup seasoned breadcrumbs, crushed croutons, or Wheatsworth crackers
1 cup Parmesan cheese

Blend together and place in a shallow dish. In another shallow dish, pour a fair amount of oil (can use beaten egg). Dip 8-10 chicken tenders in oil, then in crumb mixture. Place on foil-lined sheet pan and bake 30 minutes at 350.

Honey Mustard Sauce:
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/8 - 1/4 cup each honey and mustard, to taste

Blend together and serve with chicken fingers.

Suggested Sides: fresh fruit, green salad, mashed potatoes

Baked Macaroni and Cheese
(also super easy)

1 can (10.75 oz) Campbell's Condensed Cheddar Cheese Soup
1/2 soup can milk
1/8 tsp pepper
2 cups hot cooked corkscrew or medium shell macaroni (about 1.5 cups uncooked)
1 tbsp dry bread crumbs
2 tsp margarine or butter, melted

In a 1-quart casserole dish, mix soup, milk, pepper, and macaroni. Mix bread crumbs with margarine and sprinkle over macaroni mixture. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes or until hot. (To double recipe, double all ingredients, except increase margarine to 1 tbsp, use 2-quart casserole dish, and increase baking time to 25 minutes.)

Suggested Sides: cooked vegetable, green salad

Do enjoy!


*Our food budget, by the way, was raised in April to $175/month. $150/month was great to try and served as a fantastic kick in the pants to be more budget conscious, but it soon became clear that it wasn't a realistic goal for every month. We're still keeping it tight, though.