Long Time No Blog

Ok.  I know it has been 5 months since my last blog so I apologize.  I really have such good intentions but something seems to always get in the way.  I am going to do my best to blog at least a couple times each month.  So please feel free to keep me honest.  :)

Well one of the things that has been keeping me busy lately is that my sister-in-law just got married this last weekend and I have been the unofficial wedding coordinator.  I have done all sorts of things to help get ready for the big day but since this is a food blog.  I will share the groom's cake with you.  I have baked cake after cake trying to find the right cake for Isaac's groom's cake. (This is probably why the dress I wore for the wedding was a little tight.)  Anyway, finally Isaac and I came to the agreement that we would make a Banana Chocolate Chip Cake with Cream Cheese frosting.  It is such a yummy cake and turned out to be an excellent choice for them.  I made 2 16-inch round cakes and then decorated them with the Cubs logo.  I made alot of icing so that I wouldn't have to make more in the middle so now I have leftover icing that I hope lasts until July 4th.  

Recipe Coming Soon.

Tortilla Soup

Jeff and I were suppose to go to a Murder Mystery Dinner last weekend and I was suppose to take soup for the potluck.  Well we ended up not going to the dinner because William was sick but I had already made the soup and it was delicious.  The recipe makes a lot so you may want to cut it in half unless you want a huge batch of soup.

Tortilla Soup

1 tablespoon oil

2 large onions, chopped

8 cloves garlic, minced

1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 tsp. coarse kosher salt

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes

12 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth

1 28 oz. can diced tomatoes

juice of 2 limes

1 package (8oz.) small corn tortillas, cut into 1/4 in-thick strips

4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/4 inch thick strips (or use a whole shredded chicken)

1 cup chopped fresh cilantro

sliced avocado, sour cream, grated Monterey Jack cheese

1.  Heat 1 tblsp. vegetable oil in a large soup pot over medium heat.  Add onions and cook until translucent, 5-7 minutes.  Stir in two-thirds of the garlic, 1 tbsp. salt, cumin, and chile flakes and cook 2 minutes.

2.  Add broth, tomatoes, and half of the lime juice and increase heat to a gentle simmer; cook 20 minutes.

3.  Meanwhile, pour about 1 in. of vegetable oil into a small frying pan set over medium-high heat.  When oil is hot but not smoking, add one-third of the tortilla strips and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes.  With a slotted spoon, transfer strips to a paper towel-lined sheet pan.  Repeat with remaining strips.  Sprinkle with salt while hot.  Set aside.

4.  Puree soup.  (I use an immersion blender but if you don't have one just put it in your blender in batches.)  Return soup to pot and resume simmering.  In a small bowl, toss chicken with remaining lime juice, garlic, and add 1/2 tsp. salt.  Marinate at room temperature for 10 minutes, then add to soup and simmer until chicken is cooked through.  Stir in cilantro just before serving.

Serve with tortilla strips, avocado, sour cream, and cheese.

Note.  When I made this last weekend I cooked 2 lbs of chicken according the the recipe and then added half of a shredded chicken to add more chicken to the recipe.  Even if you use precooked chicken go ahead and add the marinade in with the chicken to get all of the flavor into the soup.

What's For Dinner

Even though I love to cook, I don't always enjoy coming up with what to cook.  I do well for a while especially after looking through my newest cooking magazine but after the excitement wears off I am just like everyone else.  Fortunately, my family does like to help with the menu.  Sometimes they are more helpful than others but at least they do like to contribute.  William is responsible for our menu of the evening and I was more than grateful for the suggestion and thankful that it wasn't Salmon, noodles, and peas which is his most frequent and favorite request.  Tonight he wanted Goulash.  It is perfect weather for it and I was more than happy to satisfy his tastebuds for the evening.

So in case you are interested here is the recipe I am using.  It is adapted from The Dean Bros.  Y'all Come Eat.  (I do lighten up the recipe by draining the meat and taking out the additional salt.)

Goulash

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

3 pounds ground beef

1 - 1 1/2 cups onion, finely chopped

2 14.5-ounce cans diced tomatoes

1 29-ounce can tomato sauce

3 tablespoons soy sauce

2 teaspoons dried basil

2 teaspoons dried oregano

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon garlic powder

3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni

In a large Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat.  Brown meet and onion together until the meat is browned.  Drain.  Return meat mixture to pot.  Add remaining ingredients except the macaroni.  Reduce heat; simmer, covered for 20 minutes.  Stir in the macaroni, simmer, covered for 20 minutes.  Let goulash stand for 20 minutes before serving.

Makes 8-10 servings.

I love to serve with shredded white cheddar cheese on top and crusty french bread.

Enjoy!

I will try to post some pictures later today.

Holidays and a Baking Business on the Side

Ok!  I know its been awhile since my last post but things have been crazy busy.  

We had a marvelous Thanksgiving celebrating with friends this year.  We were unable to travel to Tennessee to visit my family and Jeff's mom was working all weekend so we decided to have a Thanksgiving at our house with all the fixins' and some new twists on old favorites to accommodate the dairy allergies.  We ended up having two other families join us, one that we do things with fairly regularly and the other was the family of one of William's classmates.  We had such a fun time and the dining table was packed.

The friday after Thanksgiving, we decorated our house for Christmas.  Tyler had been waiting all week because he wanted to see his stocking.  The wait was over.  After a full day of decorating the house was finally finished.  I even wrapped our Christmas presents and got them under the tree.  This is the first year in a long time that I have everything ready this far in advance.

Soooo....I have decided (along with a dear friend) to do some Christmas baking.  I always love baking and although I still have mine to do I have decided to offer a baking service to those in the KC area or those visiting the KC area they may not have the time but would really like some homemade goodies.

Here is the list of things I will be baking and if you want we can even put them in your pie plates and you can take all the credit.  Email me if you are interested and feel free to share with your friends.

Click on the image to the left to see a larger version (easier to read or print).

Flank Steak...It's What's for Dinner

I know it has been awhile since I posted last and I apologize.  Today I decided to go for a meat and potatoes menu.  I have had several sweets lately so I thought it was time to change things up a bit.  I have to admit that this meal is a favorite of many who have gathered around our table and it is such an easy meal to pull together but is best if the meat can marinade overnight.

I love to cook with Bourbon.  I am not sure if it is because I was born in Kentucky or not but regardless there is nothing better than Derby Pie and Bourbon and Brown Sugar Flank Steak.  Here is my recipe for Bourbon and Brown Sugar Flank Steak and a favorite side of Garlic-Chive Mashed Potatoes

Bourbon and Brown Sugar Flank Steak with Garlic-Chive Mashed Potatoes from Cooking Light September '03

Steak:

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup minced green onions

1/4 cup bourbon

1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 (2-pound) flank steak, trimmed

Potatoes:

3 pounds small red potatoes

6 garlic cloves, peeled

1/2 cup reduced-fat sour cream

1/2 cup milk

2 1/2 tablespoons butter

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

To prepare steak, combine first 7 ingredients in a large zip-top bag; add steak.  Seal and marinate in refrigerator 8 hours or overnight, turning bag occasionally.  Remove steak from bag, reserving marinade.

Prepare Grill or broiler.  (I prefer the grill but do broil in the wintertime.

Place steak on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness.  Let stand 10 minutes.  Cut diagonally across grain into thin slices.

Combine reserved marinade and 1/2 teaspoon of cornstarch in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.

To prepare potatoes, place potatoes and garlic in a large pot, cover with water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, simmer 30 minutes or until tender.  Drain.

Return potatoes and garlic to pan.  Add sour cream, milk, butter, salt and pepper.  Mash potato mixture to desired consistency.  Stir in chopped chives.

Serve steak on potatoes and drizzle sauce over steak.

If I am creative I will take a picture tonight to post.  Hope you enjoy.

Pumpkin Pie or just Pumpkin in General

Nothing says fall more than pumpkins.  I am a sucker for pumpkin and until I have had my Starbuck's Pumpkin Spice Latte, Pumpkin Spice donuts from Krispy Kreme and homemade pumpkin pie it just seems like something is missing.  So far I have had two of the 3 and will probably be visiting Krispy Kreme sometime in the near future.  However, for those in the Kansas City area, you really must go and get a Pumpkin Pie concrete at Sheridan's what is better than a piece of pie and vanilla frozen custard?  This probably should be added to my list of fall activities but I don't really want to admit how addicted to these items I can be.

This year I made my pumpkin pie a little earlier than Thanksgiving.  To be honest I never understood why we don't make it more often.  It is easy and delicious.  This time however I did mix things up a bit.  Instead of topping it with my normal whipped cream (it is homemade but that is a completely different story) I topped it with chocolate whipped cream.  It was wonderful.  The chocolate whipped cream had just a hint of cocoa in it but I have got to tell you pumpkin and chocolate are delicious together.

So here is my recipe for Pumpkin Pie...

Pumpkin Pie

3/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 15 oz. can pumpkin

1 12 oz. can evaporated milk

1 unbaked pie shell

Mix all ingredients together with a whisk and pour in an unbaked pie shell.  Cook in 425 degree oven for 15 minutes.  Turn oven down to 350 and cook and additional 40-50 minutes or until pie is set.  Cool on rack.  Top with whipped cream.

Chocolate Whipped Cream

Whip heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form.  Add a couple of tablespoons confectioners sugar, 1 tablespoon cocoa powder, and 1 teaspoon vanilla whip until combined.  Adjust sugar and cocoa powder to your tastes.  (This is also delicious on hot chocolate.)

Hope you enjoy and don't wait until Thanksgiving to try this yummy pie.

Fall Weather calls for Hearty Soup

Last week I received a flyer from Honey Baked Ham advertising their hams for the holidays and some bean soups.  I have been waiting for just the right time and today was the day.  Instead of going to Honey Baked Ham and forking over a pretty penny for their ham bone I remembered last Christmas I wrapped my ham bone and threw it in the bottom of the abyss of our chest freezer.  I don't know why I did it because I hardly ever cook with them but Beth, my mother in law told me it would be great in soups, so I did it.  I have to say that tonight after finishing off my second bowl of soup I was extremely glad she told me to save the bone.  On a side note although I was cheap and used the ham bone from my freezer I did call my dad and told him he needed to make the soup so he will be at Honey Baked Ham in the next few days so they are receiving a benefit from sending me the flyer.  Well for those that want to make a delicious soup and a very economical meal (even if you go to Honey Baked Ham) here is my recipe.

Dinah's Bean Soup

1 pound dried navy beans (I do the quick soak method on the bag).

1/2 - 1 cup onion

olive oil

ham bone

1 quart chicken broth (I use Pacific Natural Foods free range chicken broth)

water

After soaking the beans rinse and drain them.  Then in your stock pot add some olive oil (1-2 tblsp.) and saute your onion.  When the onion is getting soft add your beans back to the pot and add you chicken broth, about 2 cups of water and your ham bone.  I didn't add any other seasoning but feel free to add for your taste.  Now all I did was simmer it for 4-5 hours.  Before serving take out the ham bone and shred any meat and add back into the soup.

We served this with corn muffins and it was delicious and filling.

Enjoy!