Boiling the Bones

The other thing that happened at the end of last year, was i moved to a new apartment. This one has a little bit bigger kitchen. That means I can experiment a little more. the increase in counter space means I think I can make pizza..

I want the focus to still be on good old fashioned comfort food, with a a direction in cooking for two. That will be my challenge. I always cook for a crowd. When there really is just two of us.

More on soup stuff:


one of the things i learn working in the restaurant, was that if you roast the bones, you get a richer flavor to your broth. The trick is not to let them burn, but to give them a nice brown color.

In the stock pot, put in plenty of water and salt. also add veggies, like onion, celery, carrots.

let it simmer all day. i sometimes use my crock when making stock.

When I'm satisfied with it. I strain it toll the bones, and the veggies. Toss the bones. skim the fat off then freeze it.

Did you know that it easier to remove that fat from frozen broth? Reason because the fat doesn't freeze as hard as the broth.

Kimmie's Corn Chowder

I am ready rename the Midwest the Freezer. yes, it is winter, and winter is cold, and I did move here for the change in seasons, but I'm done. I am ready for spring.

On that note, the being cold part, I have been thinking about my favorite soups and stews. Tonight we will be having corn chowder, and as I  am always trying to loose weight, again, I will be making a light version. It will still be thick and yummy, but here is the regular version first.



Ingredients
1 12 to 16 oz bag of frozen corn
2 cans whole kernel corn, drained
1 can creamed corn
1/2 onion copped
1/4 green bell pepper, chopped
4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
4 oz lean ham diced.
1 quart cream of celery soup
2 chicken bullion cubes
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon sugar

Garnish
sour cream
chives
crumbled bacon

Start by putting the corn in the bottom of the crock pot. next add the onion, bell pepper, an the potatoes.

 Stir together. Add the celery soup. Turn the crock pot on high, and bring to a simmer.

After it has simmered together for 2 hours, add sugar, salt and pepper. mix well.  Take about a quarter of the soup and put in a blender; blend until smooth. Add back to the pot. Turn down to low for two more hours. 

Serve with sour cream, bacon and chives.

To lighten this up, substitute cream of celery soup for low fat chicken broth, use low fat milk and light sour cream,  and turkey bacon. 

To get the same flavor, you'll need to add 1/3 cup finely diced celery and 1 teaspoon celery seeds. Add these at the beginning when mixing the corn onion and potato.

Tangy Orange Chicken

Searching for recipes is fun. I'm always looking for a fun recipe to try. One that caught my eye is Tangy Orange Chicken. I like to order it in Chinese restaurants, but I always feel it is missing something.  For one thing some vegetables would be nice. Also when watching for weight,  it's good to avoid fried things.

There is a Tangy Orange Chicken on Chefville. Now fair, because it made me hungry for it.

2 pounds chicken breast cut in 1 in pieces

1/4 cup soy sauce

3 Tablespoons Teriyaki sauce

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 Tablespoons minced garlic
2 Tablespoons minced ginger
2 Tablespoons chili sauce
6 table spoons of vinegar
4 cups mixed veggies, (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower)
1/2 onion diced
1 bell pepper diced, any color

Add soy sauce, teriyaki, ginger, garlic, vinegar, brown sugar, and orange juice in a small sauce pan on low. heat just until Brown sugar is dissolved and sauce is smooth. put chicken and  1/2 the ssauce in a Ziploc bag and marinate in the refrigerator for about an hour.

heat some canola oil or peanut oil in a large skillet, cCook the chicken about 5 minutes. Add bell pepper and onion. continue cooking. add the veggies and the rest of the sauce. cook until  chicken is cooked through.

Serve with hot rice and orange slices.

My Spaghetti

What do you do with a dozen Roma tomatoes that disparately need to used? Make spaghetti. All part of  the proper care and feeding of my curmudgeon.

I chopped about a dozen tomatoes and put them in a sauce pan with a little salted water. They boiled about an hour. Poured back in the pan added 4 beef bouillon cubes, a little more salt, minced onion,  and tomato paste and balsamic vinegar. Blended it till smooth in myVita mix, and then poured back into the pan

I cooked it for anther 45 minutes, added Italian seasoning. 

In a large skillet browned a pound of ground beef, celery, onion and green pepper. salt pepper and Italian seasoning. 

Next put pasta on to boil. cook to package instructions, drain, add pack to pot with butter parley and basil. mix well. 

Add sauce to ground beef, pour over pasta and serve  yum. The curmudgeon said it was so disgusting that I could torture him again with in any time. ha ha

. 

For the sauce:

12 Roma tomatoes

3 tablespoons dried minced onion

1 tablespoon garlic powder

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon salt

1 teaspoon ground pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil

    

Ground beef mixture

1 lbs ground beef

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 small onion

1/2 cup chopped celery

3 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon Italian seasoning

2 teaspoons balsamic

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

salt and pepper to taste

For the pasta

1 lbs spaghetti

3 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoon dried basil

1 tablespoons parsley

Happy New Year

Hello, it's been a while. I took a little break to clear my mind. Maybe get a little perspective on this blog thing.

It's still true. I love cooking a and i like writing.  Since the last post, I played some games, won a chili contest at the j o b, (is it kosher to beat your boss?) oh, yeah,  and started a novel. historical fiction with a little magic. ( she grins her Cheshire cat grin).

We had a fabulous Christmas dinner followed by a great brithday lunch at Zio's. That was so good. yum.

Then the new year came, an I got the flu. Yuck but i seem to be on the mend.

Since I've been down, i have come up with some interesting soup recipes, which I will share in a bit.

So, Happy New year, and I think we will start with breakfast.

Potatoes are so good. they are warm and comforting. I think that's why they are such a popular comfort food.

This used to be a favorite breakfast. I used to make it every Sunday morning. It's kind of like Potatoes O'Brien, except that the potatoes are shredded. One of my Grannies used to make us hash browns when we go visit. Funny how food can trigger memories.

With a big plate of potatoes veggies and eggs, I'd then watch a little football, and have a yummy brunch.

It's basically a cookie scramble with a special twist.

This makes 2 generous servings.

1 large russet potato

1/4 onion diced

1/4 cup diced bell pepper

1/4 cup sliced mushrooms

2 eggs

2 oz sharp cheddar cheese

3 oz cooked sausage, crumbled

4 Tbls sour cream

4 Tbls chunky salsa

2 Tbls olive oil

Clean and shred the potato. add the olive oil to a large non stick pan over medium heat. add potato when hot. Fry till crisp on one side then flip. Don't stir let it cook in in one piece. After the hash browns are crispy on both sides, take out of the skillet, place on an oven proof plate. set in a 200 degree oven to keep warm.

In the same skillet, cook the sausage crumbles, onion and bell pepper. 5 minutes before finished add the mushrooms.

top the hash browns with cheese, and the onion pepper mixture. wipe the skillet and fry the eggs.

split the potatoes in 1/2 top each half with a fried egg, Each gets 2 tablespoons of sour cream and salsa

Cranberry Cheesecake Squares

Crust

1/2

cup sugar

1/2

cup butter, softened

1 1/4

cups all-purpose flour

Filling

1

(8-oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened

1/2

cup sugar

1/2

teaspoon vanilla extract

1

egg

Topping

4 tablespoons jellied cranberry sauce

1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray 9-inch square pan with nonstick cooking spray. In large bowl, combine 1/2 cup sugar and butter; blend well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. Add flour; mix until crumbly. Press mixture in bottom of sprayed pan.
2. Bake at 350°F. for 15 to 18 minutes or until edges are light golden brown.
3. Meanwhile, in large bowl, combine all filling ingredients; beat well.
4. Remove pan from oven; pour filling over partially baked crust. In small bowl, stir 2 tablespoons of the cranberry saucecr until softened. Spoon over cream cheese mixture. With tip of spoon, carefully swirl jam into top of cream cheese mixture. (Do not disturb crust.)
5. Return pan to oven; bake an additional 15 to 20 minutes or until filling is set. Cool 30 minutes.
6. Stir remaining jam; spread evenly over bars. Refrigerate 30 minutes. Cut into bars. Store in refrigerator.

Cranberry-White Chocolate Trifle

I love cranberries. OK I love chocolate too. Thanksgiving is just around the corner. Tis the season for cranberries and indulgent desserts. Right? I found this recipe in Taste of Home Magazine. Can't wait to try it. Triffles are so good, mixing whipped cream, fruit and cake. With the layers, you get all the ingriends in each bite. Yum. Enjoy.

Ingredients

6 tablespoons sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/8 teaspoon salt

2-2/3 cups milk

3 egg yolks, beaten

5 ounces white baking chocolate, chopped

1-1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 can (14 ounces) jellied cranberry sauce

1/3 cup raspberry liqueur

1 loaf (10-3/4 ounces) frozen pound cake, thawed and cut into 1/2-in. cubes

TOPPING

1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch and salt. Stir in milk until smooth. Cook and stir over medium-high heat until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat; cook and stir 2 minutes longer.

Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount of hot mixture into egg yolks; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gentle boil; cook and stir 2 minutes longer. Remove from the heat; stir in white chocolate and vanilla. Cool to room temperature without stirring.

In a small bowl, whisk cranberry sauce and raspberry liqueur until smooth.

Place half of the cake cubes in a 3-qt. trifle bowl or glass bowl. Spread with half of the cranberry mixture; top with half of the custard. Repeat layers. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

In a large bowl, beat cream until it begins to thicken. Add confectioners' sugar and vanilla; beat until stiff peaks form. Pipe over top. Yield: 14 servings (3/4 cup each).

Pumpkin Bread Pudding

I'm not usually a fan of pumpkin, and well the cuermogeon is allergic, but tis the season. I may try this out at the next pot luck of food at at work.

Lets face it  the Thanksgiving dessert is always pecan pie.


Ingredients

Bread Pudding:
1 loaf French bread, torn in pieces
1 quart 40 percent whipping cream
1 dozen eggs
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
2 ounces vanilla extract
4 ounces pumpkin pie spice
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups brown sugar
2 cups canned pumpkin



Rum Sauce:

4 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup water
1 quart whipping cream
2 cups granulated sugar
1 stick butter
1 cup dark rum

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the bread pudding: Blend all the ingredients together, except the French bread, until mixed well. Place the French bread in a 1-gallon aluminum pan. Pour the mixture over the French bread and let sit for 30 minutes. Bake for 1 hour or until firm.

For the rum sauce: Blend the cornstarch with the water. Mix all the ingredients together and cook over low heat until thick.

Serve the sauce with the bread pudding.

This recipe was provided by professional chefs and has been scaled down from a bulk recipe provided by a restaurant. The Food Network Kitchens chefs have not tested this recipe, in the proportions indicated, and therefore, we cannot make any representation as to the results.

Chocolate Overoad!

My dear Mother made this for my birthday a few times. Let me telll you this cake is so rich. It's my "Chocolate to die for" cake.
Chocolate between Mother and Daughter is such a special thing.  (Ok  Mom never served cake with fruit.)
This is a chocolate sour cream cake with chocolate cream cheese frosting. Be sure the cream cheese comes to room temp. before using. Triing to beat cold from the frig cream cheese is quite difficult.

Cream cheese chocolate frosting


1/4 cup butter, softened
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 ounces (3 squares) unsweetened chocolate, melted
dash of salt
3 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup half-and-half
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sour Cream Chocolate Cake   1 cup baking cocoa
1 cup boiling water
1 cup butter, softened
2-1/2 cups sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups cake flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream

Yummy Mummy Cupcakes

Halloween is coming! Halloween is coming! Of course it is a day or evening of dressing up and eating lots of treats with a goulish theme. We at work will of course has snack day and a costome contest.

So I found this cute recipe at Kraft.. I'll let you know how they turn out.


What You Need

1pkg. (2-layer size) chocolate cake mix
14 OREO Cookies, coarsely chopped
1pkg. (3.4 oz.) JELL-O Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding
1cup milk
1/4cup powdered sugar
2cups thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping
48 semi-sweet chocolate chips, for eyes

Make It

HEAT oven to 350°F.


PREPARE cake batter as directed on package; stir in cookies. Spoon into 24 paper-lined muffin cups. Bake 20 to 25 min. or until toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Cool cupcakes in pans 10 min.; remove to wire racks. Cool completely.

BEAT pudding mix, milk and sugar in large bowl with whisk 2 min. Stir in COOL WHIP. Spoon into pastry bag fitted with basket-weave tip.

PIPE pudding mixture onto tops of cupcakes. Add chocolate chips for the eyes. Keep refrigerated.

Kraft Kitchens TipsMake AheadDecorated cupcakes can be stored in refrigerator up to 8 hours before serving. If You Don't Have a Piping BagFill a resealable plastic food storage bag with pudding mixture; seal bag. Cut corner off bottom of bag, then squeeze pudding mixture from bag onto cupcakes.

Cherry Pops

Follow up to apple dumplings: Well I didn't have any apples or mountain dew, but I did have cola and cherries, so I came up with this. So far test results are very favorable.


Ingredients

1 can cherries
5 oz cola
1 can crescent rolls
3 oz chocolate frosting, melted
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup powdered sugar
4 tbl milk
3 tbl brown sugar

Directions

Pour the cherries into a strainer over a bowl. Pour the cola over the cherries. Let drain. Pour the cherries into the cola syrup mixture. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Open the can of rolls, sprinkle with a little of the powdered sugar. Brush one side of each with the chocolate. Add 3 or 4 cherries. Fold over, and pinch the seams together to close.

Place them into a greased cake pan. When they are all arranged, sprinkle the brown sugar and the rest of the cherries, and then pour ½ cup of the cola cherry syrup over them.

Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.

Make a light icing with powdered sugar and a little milk. Drizzle over the top.


Tip: Try putting the crescent roll dough in a dish over a bowl of ice to keep the dough really cold. As the dough warms it gets sticky and soft. Therefore making harder to work with.

Rosemary-Roasted Chicken and Vegetables

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 Teaspoon salt

1/2 Teaspoon black pepper

1/2 Teaspoon rosemary
12 skinless chicken thighs
3 Cups cauliflower florets
3 Cups broccoli florets
2 small red bell peppers

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Cut red bell peppers into 6 pieces each (12 total).

2. In a large bowl, combine olive oil, vinegar, salt, pepper and rosemary. Add chicken pieces and vegetables. Toss until well coated.

3. Arrange chicken pieces on a jelly roll pan or rimmed baking sheet. Place vegetables in a single layer around the chicken.

4. Roast for 20 minutes, flip vegetables over with a spatula, and continue roasting another 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and browned.

5. Serve with pan juices.

From Atlins.com

Apple Dumplings.

Ah, Fall in the Midwest. Don't just love Fall? There is a nip in the air, and the leaves are all changing colors. The sky is a brilliant blue, and the smell of baking fills our homes.

 Makes me want to try my hand at apple dumplings. I got this recipe from a friend at the J.O.B.  She makes these when we have potlucks. 

Every time we have a pot luck, this dish is requested, wrong word, it is actually required.. Poor D. She is only allowed to bring Apple Dumplings and Beer Bread.  It has become the running joke. She has suggested she might bring something else, but people act so whiny.  One would think there would be a revolt if she didn't bring these. So she acquiesces and brings the faves.   In fact she gets requests for the apple dumplings even when we are not having a pot luck.  I bet this would also be good with a little vanilla ice cream.

 Ingredients

large Granny Smith apples, peeled and cored
2 (10 ounce) cans refrigerated crescent roll dough
1 cup butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle Mountain Dew ™

Directions

1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.


2.Cut each apple into 8 wedges and set aside. Separate the crescent roll dough into triangles. Roll each apple wedge in crescent roll dough starting at the smallest end. Pinch to seal and place in the baking dish.

3.Melt butter in a small saucepan and stir in the sugar and cinnamon. Pour over the apple dumplings. Pour Mountain Dew™ over the dumplings.

4.Bake for 35 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden brown