February 17, 2010

BigSis and I made this Bloody Mary recipe for a big family get-together on Thanksgiving about ten or twelve years ago. This recipe is perfect for a big party or a holiday celebration since you make it the day before and it makes a full gallon. I love anything that can be made ahead of time that helps eliminate last minute preparations.

With this already chilled in the frig, all you have to do the day of the party is stir in the vodka and you’re ready to serve to your guests as they arrive. It also comes in handy if the cooks get a little thirsty while working in the kitchen.

This past Sunday, we had a big Valentine’s Day Brunch so I decided to make this recipe since we were serving a pretty big group of friends. I even ended up doubling the recipe. Since V-8 has more than enough sodium, I eliminated the regular salt and the Seasoned Salt from the recipe and just used one teaspoon of celery salt instead.

Overnight Bloody Marys
(adapted from 1994 edition of Southern Living “Our Best Christmas Recipes”)

1 46 oz can tomato juice
1 46 oz can V-8 (I used the Spicy)
1 c. lemon juice
1/2 c. water
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. celery salt
Frank’s Red Hot (to taste)
3 c. vodka

Combine first seven ingredients in container and stir well. Cover and chill at least 8 hours. Stir in vodka just before serving.

We set up a Bloody Mary bar with Tabasco, Frank’s Red Hot, celery sticks, green olives, pickle spears, horseradish, cocktail onions, and lemon and lime wedges so everyone could season and garnish their Bloody Mary to suit their own taste.

I won’t wait another ten years to make these again!

~LilSis

February 3, 2010

This Super Bowl is going to be a little different for me since I’m in Texas visiting my family this week. If I was home, I’m sure I’d be cooking for a bunch of hungry, meat-eating, football-watching guys.

BigSis, BigT and I will probably still end up watching the game just for the halftime show and the commercials, but we won’t be going “hog wild” with the snacks since we’re all trying to eat a little healthier this year.

So, instead of Sliders, cocktail weinies and Velveeta dip, how about a nice bowl of soup or chili for the Super Bowl? Rather than grazing on nothing but appetizers all day, you could make a couple of big crockpots of soup or chili and just put out the fixins for everyone to help themselves whenever they get hungry.

Here are a few of our all-time favorites.

Classic Tortilla Soup

Creamy Tomato Soup

White Turkey Chili

Chili Con Carne

Super Easy Chicken Stew

Chicken Enchilada Soup

And, this soup doesn’t have a photo but we’re including it since there are all kinds of germs going around and this soup can help fight off the little buggers.

Immune Boosting Soup

Whatever you cook for the Super/Souper Bowl, enjoy the day!

~LilSis

January 26, 2010

When there’s a little chill in the air at night, there’s nothing quite like a hot bowl of chili.  It’s one of my favorite meals to cook, whether for just the three of us or for a house full of friends or family.

Normally, I would make my own chili recipe and serve it with a bunch of grated cheddar, Fritos, and sour cream, but since we’re trying to eat healthier this year, I decided to make a white turkey chili and eliminate the Fritos and cheddar cheese.

I’ve only made turkey chili a few times and the guys never liked it but I was still determined to keep looking until I found a good recipe. Last week, I decided to try this White Turkey Chili recipe from Ellie Krieger that I found online at Food Network. It’s a healthy, quick and easy recipe and everyone loved it! What more can you ask for?

I did make a few changes for various reasons. I didn’t have hominy on hand, so I used corn instead, I substituted crushed red pepper flakes for the poblano peppers, tripled the garlic and eliminated the celery. I also tweaked the seasoning a little bit to suit our taste, but that’s it.

White Turkey Chili
(adapted from Ellie Krieger online at Food Network)

1 T. canola oil
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. ground coriander
1/2 t. cayenne pepper, plus more to taste
1 pound ground white meat turkey
(2) 15.5 ounce cans low sodium cannelini beans, drained & rinsed
4 c. low-sodium chicken broth
3/4 t. dried oregano
1 15 ounce can sweet white corn, drained
1 – 2 t. low sodium Spike
1 t. Penzeys Shallot Pepper
1/2  t. salt
reduced-fat sour cream

Heat the oil in large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion and crushed red pepper flakes, stirring occasionally for about 8 minutes. Add the garlic, cumin, coriander, and 1/4 t. of the cayenne and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the ground turkey and cook, breaking up the meat with a spoon, until the meat is no longer pink, about 2 minutes. Add the white beans, broth, and oregano. Cook, partially covered and stirring occasionally for about 25 minutes.

Add the corn, and seasonings to taste and continue cooking, partially covered for 10 minutes or longer. Ladle into individual bowls and top with 1 tablespoon of sour cream and a sprinkle of oregano.

As Ellie says, “It’s a breeze to make, satisfying to eat, and the variations are only limited by your imagination.”

~LilSis

January 20, 2010

Even though I’m not a big football fan any more, I still think it would’ve been fun for the Chargers to end up in the Super Bowl. Unfortunately after last week’s loss, it’s just not going to happen for San Diego this year. It would have been a blast for all for our friends who are “die hard” Charger fans and, since I’ll use any excuse to get friends together, we probably would have thrown a big ol’ Super Bowl Party.

Super Bowl

I saw this edible snack bowl, “Super Bowl”, in the January/February issue of Food Network Magazine and I thought HayHay might get a kick out of it. So, just to try it out and see if it would really work, I made it on Sunday since the guys were watching football all day, and chips and dip are a must on “football watching days”.

And even though the article says that the bowl is sturdy enough for dip, I just served their tortillas chips in it.

HayHay was quite intrigued over the fact that the bowl was edible, so as soon as I told him that it was okay to dig in, he took a big chomp!

And, guess what? He quickly found out that Chex mix baked with a couple of egg whites pressed into the shape of a bowl isn’t so tasty after all. So, I ended up breaking the bowl apart into small pieces, spreading it out on a cookie sheet, sprinkling with salt and garlic powder, baking in the oven at 350 for about 30 minutes and presto, the Chex mix was crisp again and was devoured in minutes.

I like how the bowl turned out and I think it might be a fun way to serve chips and dip occasionally for a party, but since this recipe requires 8 cups of Chex mix, it almost seems like a waste of two good bags of Chex Mix. If I made this again, I would probably do smaller bowls and just serve nuts or some of the same snack mix in them.

Super Bowl
Food Network Magazine

2 large egg whites
8 cups snack mix (Chex Mix or Asian rice cracker mix)
Cooking spray

Preheat the oven to 325. Beat the egg whites and 2 T. water in a large bowl with a mixer until slightly stiff peaks form. Add the snack mix and toss until evenly coated.

Generously coat a 3-quart ovenproof bowl with cooking spray and place the snack mix in it. Crumple a large sheet of foil and mold into a bowl shape about one-third the size of the 3-quart bowl. Coat the outside of the foil bowl with cooking spray and press into the snack mix to make a well in the middle, forming the snack mix into a bowl shape.

Place the bowl with the foil into the oven and bake until the snack mix sets, 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly, 5 minutes. Carefully remove the foil. Cool 30 more minutes, invert the edible bowl onto a plate and cool completely.

~LilSis

January 5, 2010

This past Saturday we had SirHoney’s cousin and her husband over for dinner before they had to return home to Chicago on Sunday. I was totally exhausted after coming home from our Christmas trip with a cold and from overindulging in food and beverages for two days while celebrating New Years. (I probably overdid it since I knew it would be my last splurge for a while.)

Saturday was January 2nd, which was the official day for me to start the Ten in 10 challenge, but I decided to go ahead and let SirHoney make hamburgers since I wasn’t really up to hosting a big dinner party. We always buy lean ground beef so I figured that I would just have a burger with lettuce and tomato without the bun, and stay away from the chips and dip.

We had a nice visit and as we were all finishing up our burgers, SirHoney asks if the burgers were okay. We all told him that they were great! They were a little large and we realized that they were 1/2 pound burgers once we noticed that he only made eight patties out of four pounds of beef.

So, he asks again if we hadn’t noticed anything different and we all said no and asked why. I thought maybe he used some new seasoning or something, then he finally admitted that he put a dollop of butter inside each hamburger patty as he was making them.

Are you kidding me?

A half pound hamburger patty filled with butter!

And I ate it on my first day of my challenge to lose ten pounds?

Really?

(I don’t know if he’s secretly been watching Paula Deen, or what, but I do know that he won’t be making me dinner again any time soon.)

~LilSis

December 30, 2009

The weekend before we left for Chicago, I decided that I was going to make Almond Toffee to give to our friends and neighbors for Christmas. It probably wasn’t the best timing to try a new recipe as we were still finishing up Christmas shopping, wrapping, and packing in preparation for our trip to Chicago the following day.

On top of all that, we ended up spending most of the weekend in Mission Bay at HayHay’s surf competition since he made it all the way to the finals. But, somehow, in the midst of all that, I did manage to make two batches of toffee.

I’d like to give a “shout out” and a “huge thanks” to Anna of Cookie Madness for taking the time to reply to me via email regarding a couple of questions I had about the instructions.
I really appreciate it, Anna!

This recipe is one that Anna has made for many years and since the directions are a little long, I think it’s best for you to go to Cookie Madness for the Best-Ever Almond Toffee recipe. You’ll also want to read her Almond Toffee Revisited post which has more tips on making this toffee turn out “just right”.

Pecan Toffee

For my first try at this recipe, I just made the small batch so I could get a feel for it. I substituted pecans for the almonds, since I had some on hand, but I didn’t like it as much as I thought I would. Other than that, this batch was just a teensy bit thicker than I would have liked, which may have been because the temperature got up to almost 295 before I poured it out of the pan. It was still crispy and crunchy, just not perfect.

BigSis has made this toffee almost every Christmas for as long as I can remember. And, guess what? Hers is always perfect. Mine turned out pretty darn good for being my first time to make it, but it wasn’t perfect. That’s okay though, I still gave myself a little pat on the back for trying something new and not having a meltdown over a slightly thick batch of toffee.

Best-Ever Almond Toffee

For my second batch, I went ahead and doubled the recipe since I was feeling a little better about the process. This time I did use almonds, but since I discovered that I don’t like chopping chocolate, I used semi-sweet chips instead. (I shouldn’t have done that!) When I asked for a couple of expert opinions from the chocolate lovers in my house, they both noticed that the chocolate in the first batch was better.

This batch also turned out a little too thick, as you can tell in the photo, but it was still good. I don’t think anyone else really noticed, but this batch got a little chewy after the initial crunch. It wasn’t as crispy and crunchy as it should have been, but I think I know why. I panicked just a little after I poured it into the pan and I think I gave the pan one too many teeny, tiny taps, which Anna specifically advised me not to do. I knew right away that some of the air bubbles were popping and apparently that’s what keeps this toffee so crunchy.

When in Chicago, my mother-in-law happened to pull out some toffee that her brother-in-law had sent to her from Florida. Even though I usually bypass the sweets, I was curious to try it because of my recent attempts at toffee making. This toffee was even thicker than my second batch but somehow was still really crunchy and crispy. It’s supposedly made at some special store and our uncle loves it, so if I ever end up with a perfect batch of toffee, I’m going to send some to him and my mother-in-law. I’m sure they’d both be surprised!

All in all, in the end, I did learn a few things about making toffee.

First of all, toffee making is not for wimps. I never knew how long it took to get candy up to 290 degrees and with constant stirring, it’s a bit of a workout. Secondly, I would invest in a new thermometer before attempting this again.

This is the thermometer that I used, which is the “attach-to-the-pan” type that Anna advises not to use. It’s all I had and I didn’t have time to go get a new one, so the fact that both batches turned out thick probably means that my thermometer was a bit off.

Lastly, just stick exactly to Anna’s Best-Ever Almond Toffee recipe! Don’t make substitutions, use a good thermometer, and follow the instructions to a tee and I bet you end up with a perfect batch of toffee!

~LilSis

December 8, 2009

There’s definitely something about Christmas time that makes us want to bake. For some, it may be a family tradition to make dozens of cut-out cookies for the kids to decorate, and for others it may be the fun of building and decorating a magnificent gingerbread house, or maybe just baking the traditional pumpkin or pecan pie. I miss the days when our kids were younger and we would spend a day making and decorating dozens of cut-out sugar cookies.

I’ve mentioned before that on a normal day-to-day basis, I don’t do a lot of baking, but around this time of year, I do make more of an effort. I love giving homemade gifts so I’ll usually bake up a variety of mini loaves of bread or a nice assortment of festive cookies for friends and neighbors.

There are so many amazing Christmas cookies splashed on the covers of magazines and on the food blogs this month that make me wish I had more time to make Christmas cookies.

Maybe I need one of these to help me out! I bet this little gem would get the job done a lot faster than my little hand held mixer.

90th Anniversary Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer

It just so happens that Susan over at She’s Becoming Doughmesstic is giving away one of these beautiful Candy Apple Red KitchenAid Stand Mixers! I’ve never owned a stand mixer, but if I had one, I would definitely put it to good use.

~LilSis

December 2, 2009

Cherry-Pecan Meringue Bars

Gearing up for the SPCA Bake Sale, I had one more promising recipe to taste-test.  Like the Double Chocolate Peppermint Bars I tested recently, the inspiration again was Carole Walter’s “Great Cookies” – a James Beard Award winner and IACP winner.

These bars took a little doing – about an hour to put together – and are a touch too fussy for the Bake Sale.  You have a brown sugar shortbread base, with a cherry filling and a meringue pecan topping.  The combination of flavors was great, especially if you’re a nut lover.  All in all, pretty delicious, and lighter than a lot of the things that come out of my oven this time of year!

So, these bars gets thumbs up for flavor but don’t get invited to the Bake Sale!  I’ll be making Cookie Madness’ White Chip Raspberry Bars for the sale again, since they were well-received last year.  You get a similar zip from the berry jam (I use my homemade cranberry jam) with a nutty complement from sliced almonds.  If you double Anna’s recipe, it fits nicely in a 13 x 9 pan, and will give you 12 healthy-size bars.

If you have a little bit of time on your hands, do try these Cherry-Pecan Meringue Bars.  I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Cherry-Pecan Meringue Bars
(adapted from Great Cookies)

Filling:

1 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup water
1 cup cherry preserves or jam (I used homemade cranberry jam)
1 tsp fresh lemon zest
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of ground cloves
pinch of salt
2 Tblsp POM Wonderful juice (the original recipe called for Cherry Heering liqueur which is a bit pricey, and unnecessary IMHO)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 13 x 9 pan with nonstick foil.

Place the cherries and water in a small saucepan. Cook, covered, over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes or until cherries are tender and almost all of the liquid has evaporated.

Add the rest of filling ingredients. Bring to a boil. Place the mixture into a food processor and pulse 5-6 times. The mixture should still have some texture, rather than being a puree.  Chill mixture for 30 minutes or up to 1 week.

Crust:

3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter (I used salted)
1/3 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1-3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt

Place the butter in a medium saucepan and barely melt over low heat, remove from heat and allow to finish melting. Set aside to cool to tepid, then stir in brown sugar. Blend in the flour and salt all at once.

Drop 8 spoonfuls of dough onto the prepared pan. Press dough evenly into bottom of pan. Bake at 350 for 15 to 17 minutes. Let stand for 2 minutes then spread the cherry filling evenly over crust.

Meringue:

8 oz pecans (2 cups chopped)
3/4 cup sugar
3 egg whites, at room temperature
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

Place the pecans in a food processor and add 1 tablespoon of the sugar and pulse 3-4 times, or until finely chopped. Set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat the egg whites on medium speed until frothy.  Add the salt.  Increase the speed to medium high and beat until firm but not dry. Add the remaining sugar 1 tablespoon at a time, taking about 1 minute.  Add the vanilla and beat 30 seconds longer to form a shiny meringue. Fold in 1 cup of the chopped pecans.

Spread the meringue evenly over the cherry mixture, smooth the top, and sprinkle with the remaining pecans. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes, until golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack. Remove from pan, using the foil to lift it out, and cut into bars.

~BigSis

November 29, 2009

I found this recipe for the Flu-Fighter Cookies in the October issue of Food Network Magazine and I tore it out right away because chances are that I’ll never get back to that issue again. That’s part of my new plan to get caught up on my magazine reading.

Instead of marking the pages of recipes I want to try, I’m just tearing them out and putting them in a folder. I now have a folder for recipes, one for ideas, and one for inspiration. I’ve also got a binder with sheet protectors in it for all the ‘at home yoga routines’ that I tear out of Yoga Journal.

The main reason that I wanted to try these cookies is because they sounded like they were pretty healthy. Food Network calls this an immunity-boosting cookie because of these five powerful ingredients.

• Ginger has some antiviral compounds and its antihistamine properties help combat congestion.

• Cranberries provide antioxidants which help your body fight off cell-damaging molecules.

• Oats are rich in selenium, a nutrient that helps your body fend off harmful free radicals.

• Yogurt helps balance the bacteria in your digestive tract boosting your ability to absorb healthful vitamins and minerals.

• Walnuts (in original recipe) contain zinc that helps keep viruses from reproducing in your body. (Since my son doesn’t like walnuts, I substituted sunflower seeds.)

• Sunflower seeds are an excellent source of Vitamin E which has significant anti-inflammatory effects.

I also made a few other changes. The original recipe called for regular flour but I used wheat flour instead. I used honey instead of molasses and I reduced the quantities of each fruit by 1/4 of a cup.

The guys said that they liked the cookies but I’m still not convinced that they weren’t just saying that so they didn’t hurt my feelings. My cookies did not look like the photo in the magazine AT ALL! Theirs looked pretty thin and somewhat chewy. Mine puffed up and were really thick and cakey. And, I made sure that I ended up with the same quantity of cookies. The recipe said that it made 30 cookies, which is exactly how many I made.

Look at how thick they are!

They were still good and I really liked the fruit and the sunflower seeds on top, but the texture was more like a muffin than a soft, chewy cookie. I heated one up in the microwave for just a few seconds this morning and it was yummy, so I’m going to freeze half of them and just take out one at at time for a quick breakfast.

Flu-Fighter Cookies

2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/4 t. baking powder
3/4 t. baking soda
3/4 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. freshly grated nutmeg (I used ground nutmeg)
Pinch of ground cloves
1/4 t. salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 c. packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 c. honey
1/4 c. low-fat plain Greek yogurt
1 T. freshly grated ginger
1 t. finely grated lemon zest
1/2 c. old-fashioned oats
1 c. golden raisins
3/4 c. cranberries
1 c. sunflower seeds

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt in a medium bowl.

Beat the butter and brown sugar in a large bowl with a mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Add the honey, yogurt, ginger and lemon zest and beat until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in the flour mixture to make a sticky batter (do not overmix). Fold in the oats and half of the raisins, cranberries, and sunflower seeds. Mix the remaining dried fruit and nuts in a small bowl and set aside.

Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of batter onto the prepared baking sheets. Top each with some of the reserved dried fruit and nut mixture and chill for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Bake the cookies until dark golden but still soft, 10 – 12 minutes; cool on a rack. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

~LilSis

November 24, 2009

I’ll be taking our family’s go-to tater recipe – Holiday Make-Ahead Potatoes – to Thanksgiving lunch at SisMama’s house this year.  If I needed to whip up anything else, you can bet I’d be choosing from this group of fab-you-luss recipes!

Breakfast

• Mom’s Monkey Bread from Ezra Poundcake

• Cinnamon Eggnog Scones from Baker’s Banter

• Pumpkin Brioche Cinnamon Rolls from Girlichef

Appetizers

• Goat Cheese-Stuffed Mushrooms from Food & Wine

• Parmesan Artichoke Crisps from Sticky Gooey Creamy Chewy

• Aged Gouda Biscotti with Walnuts from Food & Wine

Side Dishes

• Shiitake Mushroom Stuffing from RecipeGirl

• Savory Cranberry Walnut Biscuits from Food & Wine

• Tomato and Corn Pie from Eat Me, Delicious

• Cheesy Cornbread Pudding from FoodNetwork

• Mashed Potatoes with Manchego and Olive Oil from Food & Wine

• Zippy Baked Carrots from Taste of Home

• Creamed Spinach from SmittenKitchen

• Herb-Gruyere Biscuits from Food & Wine

• Mushroom Green Bean Casserole from Taste of Home (no canned soups or canned fried onions)

• Brussels Sprouts Hash with Caramelized Shallots from Epicurious

• Chantilly Potatoes with a Parmesan Crust from Food & Wine

• Sweet Potato Casserole from AllRecipes (no marshmallows!)

• Wild Mushroom and Spinach Stuffing from Epicurious

Desserts

• Double-Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake from AllRecipes

• Spiced Cranberry Bundt Cake from the Food Librarian

• Caramel Apple Bars from SugarPlum

• Chocolate and Peanut Butter Bundt from My Baking Addiction

• Pumpkin Swirl Brownies from Meet Me in the Kitchen

• Brown Sugar and Chocolate Chip Bundt from the Food Librarian

• Spiced Apple Cake with Eggnog Sauce from Epicurious

• Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodle Bars from Meet Me in the Kitchen

• Toffee Pecan Shortbread Cookies from Baking And Boys

• Easy Refrigerator Pumpkin Cheesecake from Ezra Poundcake

• Brown Sugar and Spice Cut-Out Cookies from Bake at 350 (Have you seen this lady’s decorated cookies?  Go, now!)

• Cranberry Streusel Shortbread Bars from Evil Chef Mom

• Texas Pecan Pie from Taste of Home

• Caramel Pumpkin Pie from Epicurious

• Pumpkin Ice Cream from David Lebovitz

• Thanksgiving Cherry Berry Pie from Cookie Madness

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, y’all!

~BigSis