How to make your own herb butter

January 17, 2012 at 11:55 am · Filed under Uncategorized ·Tagged

Want something special for your baked potato, chicken, or vegetables?  Try a pat of homemade herb butter.  I love to grow parsley, basil, mint, thyme, and bay leaf in my yard.  Before we had such a terrible winter last year and drought, I had two wonderful Meyer lemon trees, which produced hundreds of wonderful fruits. You can incorporate these things right into your cooking. You don’t need to be a great gardener to grow these things, just a little space.   Right now, I am enjoying bunches of fresh parsley from my front yard!

Herb Butter

plastic wrap or parchment paper

2 softened sticks of butter

1/2 tablespoon parsley chopped very fine

1/2 tablespoon chives chopped very fine

1/8 teaspoon paprika

Mix the above ingredients.  Place on plastic wrap or parchment paper and form a log.  Place in freezer to firm up.  Refrigerate until ready to use.  You can make nice slices  and arrange on a plate to serve.

Variations- Cumin butter= 1 teaspoon ground cumin, dash chili powder, 1 teaspoon fresh chopped cilantro

Rosemary Butter- 1 teaspoon very finely chopped fresh rosemary

Lemon herb butter- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest, 1 teaspoon parsley

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Not Your Mama’s Barbecue Sauce

January 16, 2012 at 11:16 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

This is one of those fun little recipes that just knock the socks off you!  I will give you the basics but then tell you about the variations.  This makes a great little homemade barbecue sauce that is perfect on chicken, beef, and pork.  Don’t be afraid to try to jalapeno,  brown sugar, or Jack Daniels.

1 cup of jelly or preserves (I like apple, orange marmalade, cherry, and raspberry.)

1 cup catsup

2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons chili powder

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic

Mix all of the above ingredients in a sauce pan and bring to a boil.  Turn down the heat and enjoy over your favorite meat!  Now for the fun….you can add cooked and chopped jalapenos.  You can try a tablespoon and Jack Daniels (or other bourbon) with a tablespoon of brown sugar added to the mix.  Sometimes, I use red pepper jelly to add a real kick to it.  The variations are endless so get creative and enjoy.

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Thai Style Chicken and Peanut Sauce over Basmati Rice

January 16, 2012 at 10:53 pm · Filed under Main Course ·Tagged ,

We love basmati rice.  It is a fragrant rice, with the aroma filling the air in the kitchen during cooking.  Basmati rice is lovely and makes a meal very special!  Look for basmati rice in the international food section of your favorite grocery store!  This dish is a take off on Thai.  It is simple and when the kids were young, it was something different!  It is a nice meal for a cool winter evening.  Prep time is minimal.

Cook 1 and 1/2 cups of Basmati Rice according to directions on package.

Ingredients for Chicken and Peanut Sauce:

1 pound boneless skinless chicken, cut into bite size pieces

1  14 1/2 ounce can of chicken broth or stock from William Sonoma

2 tablespoons good quality soy sauce

2 tablespoons sherry or white wine

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper

1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter

1 Tablespoon peanut oil

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 1/2 teasonpoon of gingerroot, peeled and grated

1 medium onion sliced into thin rings

Garnish- 2 green onions sliced and slices of mango or papaya

Prepare chicken into bite size pieces and set aside.  In a medium mixing bowl, stir chicken broth, soy sauce, wine or sherry, cornstarch and crushed red pepper.  Add in the peanut butter and stir to completely mix.  Let stand.  Preheat a wok or large skillet over high heat.  Add the oil after the wok/skillet has become hot.   Allow the oil to heat and stir fry garlic and gingerroot for about 15 seconds.  Add the onion and stir fry for 2 to 3 minutes until it is crisp but tender.  Remove all of the vegetables from the wok/skillet.  You may need to add a slight bit of oil at this time.  Be sure to allow the oil to heat up before adding any further ingredients.  Add 1/2 of the chicken and stir fry until slightly brown( about 3 minutes).  Remove from the wok/skillet and repeat with the remaining chicken.  When the second batch of chicken is done, add the first batch back into the wok/skillet and move the chicken to the center of the wok/skillet.  Slowly add sauce to the center on the chicken and stir.  Cook until the sauce is thick and bubbly, turn fire down to simmer and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more.  Return the vegetables to the wok/skillet and fold them into the sauce.  Allow to heat through and through.  Serve over basmati rice and garnish with green onions, and mango or papaya slices.

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Zucchini for 2

January 16, 2012 at 10:26 pm · Filed under Vegetables ·Tagged , ,

I love the colors red and green.  They are vibrant and when you combine these color vegetables, you get a very healthy mix!  This is a little side dish that I serve with grilled chicken or sliced steak.  Last night we had petite tenderloins, slipper lobster tail and this on the side.  It is very simple to make!

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 large cloves of garlic, sliced into chips

1/2 red bell pepper, cut into very thin strips

2 medium zucchini, sliced into diagonal rounds

1/2 Jalapeno, seeded and chopped

4 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

Sea Salt and Pepper to taste

Heat saute pan, add oil once the pan is heated.  Allow the oil to heat and drop in the garlic.  Stir the garlic slices over medium heat for 1 to 2 minutes, slightly browning.  Once the browning starts, remove the garlic from the oil and set aside.  Add the zucchini, the red bell pepper, and the jalapeno.  Stir fry over medium high heat for about 4 to 5 minutes until the zucchini is slightly softened.  When cooked, turn off the heat. Toss in the garlic chips and salt and pepper to taste.  Transfer to serving dish and garnish with grated parmesan cheese.

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Easy Poppy Seed Dressing

January 15, 2012 at 6:12 pm · Filed under Salads ·Tagged , ,

One of my favorite salads combines thiny sliced, rare steak, homemade toasted croutons, red onion slices, and orange slices over mixed lettuce and dressed with homemade poppy seed dressing.  This is an  easy and delicious poppy seed dressing recipe.  You can make it with a hand held blender in the container provided or use a blender such as the Vitamix to turn this into a great dressing!  This dressing is also wonderful over mixed fruit!

1 cup Canola oil (Canola oil stands for Canadian Oil less acid and is not a real plant)

1/2 cup sugar (I like turbinado sugar but you can use white sugar)

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1 tablespoon poppy seeds

1 tablespoon grated onion

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon dry mustard (Coleman’s or other powdered mustard)

Blend all ingredients except poppy seeds.  Once everything is incorporated, add the poppy seeds and blend until everything is completely mixed.  The dressing will be thick.  This will store well in a tightly covered jar in the refrigerator.

Do not substitute olive oil for this recipe!

 

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Goat Cheese Rounds Salad

January 15, 2012 at 5:49 pm · Filed under Salads, Uncategorized ·Tagged , ,

Texture is what this great salad is all about.  The variety of greens, the crunch of the almonds, the sweet and tartness of the greens and sundried tomatoes make it interesting and tasty!  Be sure to use a variety of mixed greens.  *It is important to use a good quality extra virgin olive oil for the dressing.  Not all olive oils are alike!  If you ever have a chance, attend an olive oil tasting to experience the difference in olive oils.

1/3 cup dry Roasted Almonds (pulsed chopped in a food processor)

1/3 cup Panko Bread Crumbs

2 tp 3 tablespoons premium olive oil ( I like Round Pond and Ravena for this.)

6 ounces of goat cheese cut into 10 rounds (to facilitate cutting, I put the goat cheese in the freezer for about 10 minutes before I cut it)

For the vinaigrette:

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 shallot minced

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

1/4 cup freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup quality extra virgin olive oil

For the greens:

Use a premix bag of greens that contain radicchio, frisee, and other bitter greens.  You want different tastes and textures.

8 to 10 large oil packed sundried tomatoes, cut into slivers

1/2 loaf of French Bread (sliced into diagonal pieces, brushed with 1/4 cup olive oil and toasted for 7 minutes at 350 degrees.

Using a hand held blender, mix the vinegar, shallot, salt and pepper in blender container until the salt has dissolved.  Slowly add the olive oil and continue to blend until completely immulsified.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix the chopped almonds and bread crumbs and spread on a plate.  Place olive oil in a small bowl, large enough to dip the round of goat cheese.  Dip each round individually into the oil and then coat each goat cheese round with the mixture of almonds and bread crumbs.  Place on a Pam sprayed, foil lined baking sheet.  When goat cheese rounds are complete, place in oven for 4 minutes, until softened and slightly toasted.  Do not over cook.

While the goat cheese rounds are cooking, arrange greens on plate.  When the goat cheese rounds are cooked, pour some vinaigrette on the greens, place 2 to 3 goat cheese rounds (topped with several slivers of sun dried tomatoes on each round) and garnish with several of the croutons.  Serve immediately and enjoy!

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Review of the Twist n Sparkle Beverage Carbonating System

January 15, 2012 at 4:47 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

My family loves sparkling water.  We have kept Pellegrino and Perrier in business for years.  I made two purchases last year that have eliminated the boxes of water in my pantry!  One was the penguin, a large carbonator and the other, the Twist n Sparkle.

The penguin is a wonderful piece of equipment which carbonates your liquid in a glass bottle.  The machine comes with 2 glass bottles.  There is a carbonation cylinder that you must purchase, but it lasts for months, even with regular usage!  We make sparkling water on a regular basis.  It is simple and much healthier than soft drinks.

The Twist n Sparkle is fun and also very easy to use. It basically is a plastic bottle with a cap that allows for the insertion of a carbonation cartidge.  I have made sparkling lemonaid, diet sparkling cranberry juice, sparkling orange juice, and much more.  Kids love to make fun drinks with fruit punch.  You can even sparkle low sugar Kool Aid.  Each use requires a small carbonation  cartridge but it is well worth it.  Available at Bed Bath and Beyond and William Sonoma.

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Chelsea’s Favorite Chocolate Mousse Cake

January 14, 2012 at 5:53 pm · Filed under Special Treats ·Tagged

When the kids were young, swimming made them hungry!  With 4 hour practice sessions per day, a treat like this did not hurt on occasion!  The mousse is really chocolate whipped cream.  I suggest using a higher quality cocoa powder for intense flavor!  Another suggestion is to use a moist or pudding in the mix, cake mix.  What a treat for Valentine’s Day.

Chelsea’s Favorite Chocolate Mousse Cake

1 box chocolate (pudding) cake mix

1 pint heavy cream

½ cup cocoa powder

½ cup sugar

1 container fudge frosting

Chill  mixing bowl for mousse while preparing the cake mix as directed for 2  9 inch rounds.  Grease 2 cake pans.  Bake cake mix as directed.

Beat whipping cream with chilled beaters in chilled bowl.  As the whipped cream becomes fluffy, add cocoa powder then gradually add sugar.  Scrape sides of bowl.  Cover and chill until cake is baked and completely cooled.

Place 1st layer on cake plate.  Top with the  mousse.  Add second layer to mousse, don’t push down.  Take prepared fudge frosting and frost only top of cake.  Chill for 1 to 2 hours before serving.

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Peppered Spice Pecans

January 14, 2012 at 5:30 pm · Filed under Appetizers, Uncategorized ·Tagged ,

This recipe is perfect for watching the big game!  It is easy and fills the kitchen with a wonderful aroma!

2 tablespoons butter melted

¼ cup Worcestershire Sauce

4 splashed hot sauce

Dash of pepper

2 cups pecan halves

Combine all ingredients allow to stand for 30 minutes.  Spread pecans evenly in a 13 by 9 pan.  Bake at 300 for 30 minutes while stirring frequently.  Yield 2 cups.

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Let’s talk Slowcookers!

January 14, 2012 at 5:01 pm · Filed under Uncategorized

We all have busy lives!  I rely on my slow cooker for at least two meals a week.  All slowcookers are not equal!  One of my best purchases was the All Clad slowcooker with the aluminum insert.  This piece of equipment saves time, energy, and dirty pots/pans.  It can be programmed and will keep you food warm for hours.  The insert can be put in the oven or on the stove for browning meats and vegetables!  It does go on sale occasionally so keep your eyes open!  It is well worth the cost!

 

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