A Traditional Sunday Meal...on Thursday!

Quick & Easy Garlic-Parmesan Rolls
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
4-5 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

20 rise and bake frozen rolls (like Rhodes)

As you can see I did not have those on hand.

Place the butter, garlic, and Italian seasoning in a microwave-safe dish and heat until melted. Whisk in the Parmesan cheese.  Place the frozen dough balls in a large bowl. Drizzle the butter/cheese mixture over the dough and then toss quickly to evenly coat the dough in the butter and cheese. Place the dough in a 9×13″ pan and allow to rise until doubled (follow the package directions). Bake according to package directions until the rolls are evenly golden on top and serve as soon as you can pull them apart without hurting yourself. Makes 20 rolls, but don’t count on people being able to stop after 1 roll…

Perfect Pot Roast

1 whole (4 To 5 Pounds) Chuck Roast

2 Tablespoons Olive Oil

2 whole Onions

6 whole Carrots (Up To 8 Carrots)

Salt To Taste

Pepper To Taste

1 cup Red Wine (optional, You Can Use Beef Broth Instead)

2 cups To 3 Cups Beef Stock

3 sprigs Fresh Thyme, or more to taste

3 sprigs Fresh Rosemary, or more to taste

First and foremost, choose a nicely marbled piece of meat. This will enhance the flavor of your pot roast like nothing else. Generously salt and pepper your chuck roast.  Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Then add 2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil (or you can do a butter/olive oil split).   Cut two onions in half and cut 6 to 8 carrots into 2-inch slices (you can peel them, but you don’t have to). When the oil in the pot is very hot (but not smoking), add in the halved onions, browning them on one side and then the other. Remove the onions to a plate.   Throw the carrots into the same very hot pan and toss them around a bit until slightly browned, about a minute or so.  If needed, add a bit more olive oil to the very hot pan. Place the meat in the pan and sear it for about a minute on all sides until it is nice and brown all over. Remove the roast to a plate. With the burner still on high, use either red wine or beef broth (about 1 cup) to deglaze the pan, scraping the bottom with a whisk to get all of that wonderful flavor up. When the bottom of the pan is sufficiently deglazed, place the roast back into the pan and add enough beef stock to cover the meat halfway (about 2 to 3 cups). Add in the onion and the carrots, as well as 3 or 4 sprigs of fresh rosemary and about 3 sprigs of fresh thyme.  Put the lid on, then roast in a 275F oven for 3 hours (for a 3-pound roast). For a 4 to 5-pound roast, plan on 4 hours.

These two recipes we tried made me think of the perfect Sunday meal but since football is the dominate theme in our house on Sundays I made the meal on a Thursday.  It was delicious.  We had a generous helping on mashed potatoes and the roast juices with the vegetables gave the best base to make gravy.  This was super delicious too to reheat the next day.  The parmesan rolls were so easy to make that I felt a little guilty serving “homemade” rolls with so little effort.  Again this meal made the Mini’s & Meringues alike be members of the clean plate club.  My kids even had seconds! 

Football is Here!

I know that I have slacked slightly on my posts from last month....as in I haven't posted at all.  But I am still trying new recipes and taking photos so I haven't been a complete slacker!  Its never too late to put up a delicious recipe that you can enjoy while watching your favorite football team.  Wings are a traditional dish to serve but this recipe puts a twist on them, first they are baked not fried!  Totally awesome huh?  I don't know about you but you will NOT find me slaving away above a hot greasy mess on a Sunday.  These wings can be marinated up to 2 days in advance and then you just have to put them on a cookie sheet ( I suggest one lined with parchment paper instead of foil like the recipe calls for) and let them do their thing till the kitchen timer says "ding".  This recipe actually came from the CakeBoss guy.  Secondly what intrigued me as well was that instead of the vinegary buffalo sauce that wings are usually drenched in these were marinated in herbs.  Herbs that I could cut from my herb garden, the one that I have cared for all summer long yet only used once!  Well this recipe makes it twice!  And yeah when I cut the herbs I may have done a little dance like NFL players do in the end zone.  Awesome part is no one was around to see it to throw a penalty flag!  LOL.  The only thing I would differently is when I'm at the store to ask the butcher guys to cut my wings in half for me.  I was not a big fan of having to cut them myself, I actually gave up after trying to cut a third of them. 

Herb Marinated Chicken Wings

3	pounds chicken wings, drumettes and wing joints
1	Tablespoon butter
Marinade:
1/3	cup soy sauce
1	teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4	cup honey
1	Tablespoon sherry
1	Tablespoon Dijon mustard
1	teaspoon dry mustard
1	Tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
3	pressed cloves garlic
1	fresh red chili, thinly sliced
1	teaspoon black pepper
1/2	teaspoon salt

PREPARATION:

1. Whisk together all marinade ingredients. Place wing pieces in a large Ziploc bag with the ingredients, seal the bag and turn to coat the chicken well. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight (can be marinated two days ahead).
2. Preheat oven to 375°. Line a half sheet pan with heavy duty foil and spray lightly or brush with oil.
3. Remove chicken from the marinade, reserving the marinade in a small saucepan. Lay the chicken pieces skin-side down on the prepared pan and roast 30 minutes. Baste with some of the reserved marinade and turn the pieces. Brush again with the marinade and roast another 30 minutes or longer until deeply bronzed.
4. When the wings are almost finished bring the reserved marinade to a boil, lower heat to simmer and reduce the marinade until almost a syrup (don’t allow to become a syrup -- will be bitter). Remove from heat and whisk in the tablespoon of butter. Place wings in a large bowl, pour in contents of the saucepan and turn to glaze evenly. Plate and serve.

BoOoOoOo!

7 years ago I was a subscriber to Martha Stewart Living magazine, why I was I have no clue.  I had 10 month old twins and a 3 year old but apparently I felt I had such free time to make things like this!  Yes! We did make the witch and cats that you see on the cover and we put it up in our yard every year.  Other than our house being behind it, ours looks exactly like the cover, lantern, broom and all 3 cats!  Since its been 7 years I went trolling on the internet to find some new Halloween decoration to add to our repertoire and here is what I found. 

TheseCagey Ghosts were exactly what I was looking for.  Something cute and easy to do with the girls while they are on fall break from school.  Today we set off to the store and got the items that we did not have on hand and the total project cost for us:  $19.00!  The most expensive part of it was the white sheets!  Here is what you will need.

• Tomato cage
• Duct tape
• String lights
• Twist ties
• Socks
• Sticks
• Marker or craft foam for facial features - we used black felt
• White twin sheet

To make one, set up the cage as shown. To form the head, use duct tape to secure the rounded prongs of the cage. Thread the lights through the cage, and secure them with twist ties

For each arm, ball up two socks and duct-tape them to a stick, placed in the ground.  Add marker or pinned-on craft foam facial features to a white twin sheet, then drape it over the structure.  Here is our finished ones and Mini Meringue Payton!

I can't wait to see them light up tonight!

Wow...what a difference a day makes! 

Recipe Re-do

I've made this casserole before but since its not cold out yet to eat it in casserole form.  Also I've always wanted to try stuffed peppers but the rice and hamburger recipes do not sound appealing to me.  I thought of mixing it up a bit and made the casserole but stuffed it into green peppers.  It was YuMmY!  Enjoy!  Was perfect to heat one up for lunch the next day too!

Swiss Chicken Casserole
4 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
2 cups diced celery
2 cups seasoned croutons
2 cups shredded swiss cheese
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup chopped onion
salt & pepper
4 green peppers, tops chopped off
cashews, chopped
Heat oven to 350 degrees. mix all ingredients except green peppers & cashews.  Put into casserole dish or stuff green peppers, sprinkle with cashews and bake for 40 minutes.

A Whopper of an Oatmeal Cookie!!!

As usual our Cookie Queen in our home blew us away when she made this awesome Oatmeal Cookie.  It was delicious!!!  I love having such an awesome cookie maker for a Mini Meringue.  Having her make cookies teaches her to follow directions, get experience in the kitchen and gain confidence in something she is good at, all things that are excellent for a preteen!  Also it lets us eat her fantastic and fabulous creations!  She hope you enjoy it too!

A Whopper of an Oatmeal Cookie

2 sticks butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1 box instant vanilla pudding mix (3.4 oz)

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup quick oats

2 ¼ cup flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoon s baking soda

1 cup Whoppers, chopped coarsely

In the bowl of a mixer, beat butter and sugars on medium until fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well mixed after each.  Add pudding mix and vanilla and beat until mixed in.  in a medium bowl, combine oats, flour, salt and baking soda.  Add the butter mixture in the bowl and beat until combined.  Fold in Whoppers. Drop by large spoonfuls on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper and bake for about 12 minutes or until edges turn golden brown.  Let set on sheet for about 3 minutes and then remove to cool.  Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Pictures to come soon!!!

BBQ with the Peterson's!

We finally got together again with Mr. Meringue’s cousins, it had been over 6 months of checking schedules, making plans and rescheduling.  You never think you have much going on in your life until you sit down and try to figure out how to meet up with someone.  We only live an hour away from one another but taking 6 months to get together again it could have been more like 5 hours away! We really enjoy our time with them, they are “back home” folk and we love playing Pinochle with them even if they have crazy rules.  Since they don’t have any mini-Peterson’s its easier for them to come to our place so our mini-Meringue’s can stay occupied, and with their time on the road them bringing the meal to us is a little ridiculous so I suggested they bring dessert!  They brought Rice Krispie Bars….YUM!!!  If you know me once the date was set in  place I was pretty giddy to meal plan.  Here’s what we had!  It was delicious, easy and super stress free to prepare ahead of time so when they got to our place there was relaxing entertaining and no feeling of being stuck in the kitchen away from the action.  I just had to pull it out of the fridge and viola…dinner was ready in no time.

Corn with Bacon

and Scallions
1 shallot, minced
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1 pound frozen corn (do not thaw)
3 scallions, thinly slices
6 slices of bacon
Fry 6 slices of chopped bacon in a non-stick skillet until crisp, about 5 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate.  In a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, add the shallot and garlic and cook until softened, about 2 minutes. Increase the heat to high and add the corn; cook, stirring often, until heated through but still crunchy, about 2 minutes.  Sprinkle the corn with the scallions & bacon just before serving.

To prepare ahead of time, I cut the bacon slices into 1 inch pieces and cooked and drained and set aside.  Also I chopped the scallions and shallot and zip locked it up for the fridge.  I didn’t add the garlic since it was in our steak and considering we were not looking to ward off any vampires I felt it was a safe bet to omit the garlic.  Everyone ate it up Mini Meringues and Peterson’s alike!  Super easy to make and super delicious new side dish.  We will defiantly make again. 

Grilled Stuffed Flank Steak
Recipe adapted from America’s Test Kitchen
2 medium garlic cloves , minced or pressed through garlic press (about 2 teaspoons)
1 small shallot , minced (about 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon sage leaves , finely minced
2 tablespoons olive oil , plus extra for oiling grate
1 flank steak (2- to 2 1/2-pounds)

4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto
4 ounces thinly sliced provolone
8 – 12 skewers soaked in water for 30 minutes
Kosher salt and ground black pepper

Mix garlic, shallot, parsley, sage, and olive oil in small bowl. Butterfly and pound steak into a rectangle. With grain running horizontally and opened side faces up, spread herb mixture over surface. Arrange prosciutto over steak, leaving 2-inch space at top. Next layer cheese, leaving 2-inch space from top. Starting from bottom edge and rolling away, roll into tight log. Set on a cutting board with seam-side down.  Starting ½ inch from the steak roll’s end, tie 8 to twelve 14-inch pieces of butcher’s twine at 1-inch intervals underneath steak. Tie middle string first, then work from outside strings in to centre.  Skewer meat through outermost flap near seam through each piece of string. Allow skewer to extend ½ inch on other side. Cut roll between twine into 1-inch-thick pinwheels. Season lightly with salt and pepper.  Grill pinwheels until well browned, 3 to 6 minutes. Flip them until second side is browned, 3 to 5 minutes longer. Transfer pinwheels to cooler side of barbecue, cover, and keep cooking until centre of pinwheels hit 125 degrees, 1 to 4 minutes.  Transfer pinwheels to a plate, tent with foil, and let rest for 5 minutes.

This was so easy to prepare ahead of time and place in the fridge wrapped in plastic wrap.  When we were ready to grill I just had to pull them out of the fridge to come up to room temperature and grilled to perfection.  One thing I might change for next time would be to not on the "stuffing" side down, when the cheese melted the garlic herb mixture seeped out a little or to grill it in a fine mesh grill basket.  Still was delicious and we were all members of the "Clean Plate Club"!

To round out our meal I made my Aunt Karen's Surprise Potatoes.  Was a perfect addition to our meal.

Surprise Potatoes

In a large mixing bowl dump in 1 large package of Southern style hash browns, this recipe can easily be doubled so use more if needed.  Those are the kind that are cubed that come plain or with peppers and onions.  Get either, whatever floats your boat!  Add in 1 can cream of potato soup, 1 can of cream of mushroom soup, 1 large carton (16oz) sour cream and I medium onion, chopped.  Pour into a greased casserole dish and sprinkle the top with pepper and paprika.  Bake at 350 for 1 hour and surprise you just made a super simple potato side dish! 

 I tell you Aunt Karen…you make such great stuff!

 

Celebrate with Ease!

If you are looking for a super simple dessert, look no further.  When you dump all the ingredients into a mixer and have it do all the work for you how could you go wrong?  The only thing that I was looking for to turn out a little different is that I hoped that the chocolate chips would have stayed suspended in the pie, they all fell to the bottom and melted. It was still delicious and tasted like a chocolate chip.  Yum!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

2 eggs

½ cup flour

½ cup sugar

½ cup packed brown sugar

1 tspn vanilla extract

2 sticks butter, melted

1 cup chocolate chips

1 graham cracker pie crust

Preheat oven to 325.  In a Kitchen Aid mixer, beat eggs until foamy.  Beat in flour, sugar and brown sugar until well blended.  Pour in vanilla extract and butter.  Stir in chocolate chips and pour into the pie crust.  Bake for 60 minutes.

Serve warm.

Mine turned out to need more time in the oven. I left it in for an additional 15 minutes.

Happy Fourth!

Cookie Bottom Cheesecakes

3 pkgs 8oz cream cheese, room temp

1 1/3 cup sugar

5 eggs

¼ cup flour

1 tspn lemon juice

2 tspns vanilla extract

16 oz container sour cream

1 pkg Chips Ahoy cookies

In a mixing bowl beat the cream cheese until fluffy.  Add sugar and continue beating on low.  Add eggs one at a time and keep on low speed.  Add flour, lemon juice and vanilla.  Last add the sour cream.  Place cupcake liners in a pan.  Place a Chips Ahoy cookie in each.  Spoon cheesecake filling on top until just about full.  Bake at 325 for 30 minutes.

We added sliced strawberries to make them festive for the 4^th of July but you can also add an additional Chips Ahoy cookie on top ( just buy extra cookies) and reduce the baking time to 15 minutes.  That would make a fun Cookie Sandwich Cheesecake.

Bacon Wrapped Jalapeno Poppers

12 slices of Bacon

12 Jalapenos

1 pkg Cream cheese, softened

1 cup Cheddar cheese

3 Green onions, chopped

Half each jalapenos and scoop out the seeds and white insides.  If you like the heat of the jalapeno keep the white insides.  Cut the bacon in half.  In a small bowl combine the cream cheese, cheddar cheese & chopped green onions.  Spoon mixture into hallowed out jalapenos and wrap each with bacon.  Place on a baking rack with a grate on top to allow the bacon grease to collect in the pan.  Bake in a 350 oven until the bacon is crisp about 45 minutes to an hour.  Amazingly delicious. 

I made these for a party we attended once and while out at happy hour once a gal came up to us to say hello.  My friends thought we hadn’t met before and started to introduce me and the gal interrupted them and said “Oh I know you, you make those yummy jalapeno poppers!”  That story still cracks me up!  I made these for the 4^th of July party we attended and I thought making 40 of them would make them last a little longer, perhaps have some leftovers but nope it never fails they disappear faster than a fading firework! 

Finding Balance

Priorities…finding the time to do it all now that I am a part time worker has become a challenge for me.  I have been absolutely blessed to have had the opportunity to spend time raising my mini meringues for the last 7 ½ years.  During that time I also have gained a new hobby of recipe collecting and with this blog I have taken the time to thin out that collection.  I’ve tried many and those that are delicious I share, those that are not up to our par we discard but to try them along the way has been a joy.  I had high hopes on Sunday to try out 3 new recipes for a good ‘ol fashioned family dinner…we ended up trying one.  Like many working mothers you find that the time to run to the store, cook, serve and pirouette along the way turns into order a pizza, put on comfy clothes and play a spirit crushing game of Sorry with your children.  I won’t even discuss the many games of Old Maid….but how does that dang card find the “oldest” player every time…CONSPIRACY!!!!  Back on topic we grilled steaks and this delicious herb potato recipe.  I was thrilled to even use fresh herbs from my garden.  I’ve had herbs in my garden for the last few years but have never used them, crazy huh? Now that I have I am going to do it more often, don’t be surprised to see more using-herbs-from-my-garden-type recipes here!  “)

Grilled Potatoes with Garlic & Rosemary

4 tablespoons olive oil

9 garlic cloves, minced

1 tspn fresh chopped rosemary

Kosher salt

2 lbs baby potatoes, halved and skewered

Disposable 13x9 roasting pan

2 tbsps chopped fresh chives

Heat the olive oil, garlic, rosemary and salt in a skillet over medium heat until sizzling about 3 minutes. Place the potatoes in a single layer on a large microwave safe plate and poke each potato several times.  Oil and sprinkle liberally with salt.  Microwave 8 minutes. Stirring halfway through.   Reduce the heat of the garlic sauce to medium low and continue to cook until he garlic is light blond, about 3 minutes.  Transfer the potatoes to a bowl, add the herb mixture and toss to coat and season with salt and pepper.  Place the potatoes on the hotter side of the grill on a grill pan, cook, turning once until grill marks appear.  About 4 min.  Move to a cooler side of oven and cover with the aluminum roasting pan.  Cook 5 to 8 minutes more.  Remove the potatoes and place into bowl and add chives and toss until combined.  Serve immediately.

This recipe was adapted from the America's Test Kitchen recipe.  

Sunday is Funday!

Cake Batter Pancakes

2/3 cup yellow cake mix

1 ½ cups pancake mix

1 tspn vanilla

Sprinkles!!!!

1 ½ cups water or more to make the mixture pancake batter consistency not too thick, not too thin J

Mix together and cook on the griddle!  My mini meringues ate them plain but there is a “frosting” you can make to top them off with!

“Frosting”

1 cup powdered sugar, 1/2 tablespoon milk, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, assorted sprinkles.  Mix milk, extract and powdered sugar until glaze forms. You may need to add a little more sugar or water/milk to reach desired consistency. Mix into glaze and drizzle on pancakes.

This recipe came from a food blog that I subscribe too.  She makes creative and yummy stuff. Her recipe is a little different than mine but that is because she made her pancakes from scratch and I took the lazy approach and used the Kreutz mix we had in the cupboard.  We will make them again for sure and next time even "frost" them.  Click on the link to check out her food blog!  http://www.howsweeteats.com/

Tonight for supper we made a wonderful chicken dish that comes from my family’s collection of recipes.  When I was growing up we always loved having meals at my Aunt Karen’s, she is a fantastic cook.  I hope I become the kind of cook she is, the kind where everyone loves what she makes and talks about it for a long time after.  She makes a delicious turkey that she sets out buffet style for holidays or some of her sons graduations, or the Special “K” aren Bars we had at the lake or the Coke Beans that are so amazing we have been known to have them for breakfast!  I also must dedicate this meal tonight to Miss Julie Snow, my awesome neighbor that floated me a couple cans of cream of chicken soup tonight since when I went to my cupboard I only found split pea….um who in the world bought that and put it in my cupboard???  My cupboard fairy has a twisted sense of humor.  Enjoy the recipe and thanks again Aunt Karen & Miss Julie!

Sour Cream Chicken

Shred one or two packages of dried beef on the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan.  Place boneless, skinless chicken breasts on top of the beef.  Cover the chicken with sliced of bacon.  Bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees to start cooking the bacon.  In a bowl combine 2 cans cream of chicken soup and 1 large container sour cream.  Pour over the chicken and reduce the heat to 300 degrees.  Bake 2 hours.

I didn’t have any bacon in the fridge but did have a package of bacon bits in the cupboard so I used that instead, and I kept the oven temp at 350 and baked for only 1 hour.

We served this with mashed potatoes and green beans on the side.  This recipe makes extra sauce (you know us…we love the sauce) which is great on the mashed potatoes!

Sorry no photos were available to show you what it looks like, the meringues dug in before I could even remove the pot holders!  ")

Perfect Night!

What a perfect night for grilling!  We went to the store to get the ingredients for our meal and my mini meringues convinced me to get a watermelon too.  Instead of cubing it or cutting it into slices we used a melon baller and low and behold it worked!  I've had that gadget for years and never used it until now, makes me want to ball all my fruit.

Bacon Sliders

 2 pounds ground beef

1 tspn Lawery's Seasoned Salt

1 tspn pepper

1 tspn Lemon Pepper seasoning

1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce

Bacon

slices of cheese Cheddar, Jack, Etc.

Slider buns

Combine meat with all seasoning ingredients. Knead with hands to combine. Form into small-to-medium sized balls. Cut slices of bacon in half. Wrap one half around ball of hamburger, pulling slightly to keep taut. Smooth to secure seam. Repeat with other half of bacon, ending seam in the same place. Place patties, bacon seam side down, on a baking pan with a drip tray sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Press gently on each patty to flatten as much as you can without squeezing meat out of the edges. Refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes to firm. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until bacon is cooked to your specifications. Remove from oven and lay cheese on each patty. Serve on a roll with your choice of toppings/condiments.

We grilled ours!

Onion Stings

1/2 cup flour

1 tspn paprika

1 tspn garlic salt

1 tspn pepper

2 onions, sliced thin

vegetable oil for frying

Mix the flour, paprika, garlic salt and pepper in a gallon size plastic bag.  Add onions and shake to coat.  Heat the oil on medium high heat.  Add the coated onion strings and cook for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent burning.  Sprinkle generously with salt. They are onion strings after all!  Serve alone or on top of the bacon sliders!

Fo-ca-ca-ca-ccia!

Once your kids take their first steps, say their first words and have their first birthdays there isn't much to celebrate their "firsts" with after the age of 2. This weekend I was thrilled to be able to celebrate my oldest mini meringue's first......drumroll please...... foccacia!  I couldn't be more proud, yes I was beaming from ear to ear.  I've always been a little leery of my bread making skills, anything that deals with yeast puts doubts in my mind faster than it takes for the actual yeast to work its magic and rise the dough! After a trip to the local mall and a walk through what I call my heaven on earth aka. Willams-Sonoma, my little overachiever of a meringue talked me into making something out of her cookbook Kids Baking. She got all the ingredients together and I had her read through the directions before we began.  In two and half hours we were going to be blessed with an amazing focaccia that she made and I couldn't be more proud of her.

Foccacia

1. To make the dough.  In the bowl of your kitchen aid mixer, stir together the flour, yeast, sugar and salt.  The warm water must be between 115 and 125 degrees.  The directions said to use an instant read thermometer, we used our finger.  That's completly accurate, right?  Pour the water and olive oil into the flour mixture. and stir with the dough hook attachment until a rough, shaggy dough forms.

2.  Knead the dough.  The directions said to dump the dough onto a work surface and knead the dough for 10 minutes until its smooth and no longer sticky but since we used our kitchen aid mixer and 10 year olds have the upper arm strength of a gangly giraffe we took the kitchen aid route. Let it do the job for us.

3.  Let the dough rise.  Gather the dough into a ball.  Wipe out the bowl and oil it with about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil.  Put the dough into the bowl and turn the ball to coat it with oil.  Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap.  Set the bowl in a warm spot and let the dough rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. 

4.  Shape the dough.  Oil the baking sheet with 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil.  Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on the baking sheet and press gently to flatten into a 10 by 7 inch oval.  brush the dough with the remaining 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and cover loosely with a large piece of plastic wrap.  Set the pan in a warm spot and let the dough rise for about 20 minutes, until puffed and doubled in size.

5.  Prepare the topping.  Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.  We strayed from the directions at this point. In a small bowl we added a teaspoon and a half of already chopped garlic, some herbs we had on hand (basil, rosemary & thyme)  and added a small amount of olive oil.

6. Finish and bake the focaccia.  When the dough is ready, remove the plastic wrap.  Press the tips of your fingers into the dough all over the surface to create "dimples".  Scatter the garlic mixture evenly over the dough.  Drizzle the dough evenly with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.  Put the pan in the oven and bake the focaccia for 25 to 30 minutes, until puffed and the top is browned.  Remove from oven, let cool, cut into squares to serve with dipping oils.  Ours came from the local farmers market but can be found online.  They are delicious.

We loved the focaccia and we love our mini meringue!!!  On the "will we make again" meter its a 10!!!  So that means yes, yes and oh yes we will! 

French for "Pepper"

I have started dvr'ing...is that a word...a cooking show on the Cooking Network called  French Food at Home.  I love everything about this show.  I love the music that plays during the show, I love the kitchen Laura Calder cooks in and I love the clothes she wears.  As for the food I'm not that big into it, I mean when was the last time anyone you know made quail for dinner?  While looking at the website for her recipes and anything else I could find, yes it was a mild obsession that day, I can across this recipe for Steak au Poivre which is french for Steak with Pepper.  What intrigued me about this recipe was the sauce.  I am a fan of "the sauce", give me anything as long as it comes with a little sauce on the side and I will eat it up.  Which makes me giggle when thinking of a good friend of mine that won't eat anything that comes with sauce on it! I'm amazed I still think of her as a friend.  LOL!   This recipe was great for us because one I could use up some of our cow in the freezer and I had all the ingredients on hand to make it...well sort of as you will read.  Click on the recipe name to see the original recipe by Aida Mollenkamp below is my version of hers.

Steak au Poivre aka.  Steak with Pepper

2 sirloin steaks

Chicago Steak Seasoning by Weber

Grill the steaks on grill to desired doneness.

For the Sauce

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

2 small shallots (substituted a small yellow onion) thinly sliced

1/2 cup beef broth

1/4 cup bandy (which I substituted whisky)

1/4 cup heavy cream

I was unaware that the butter and oil were ingredients for cooking the steak in a pan on the stove so I included them in my sauce recipe....still turned out delish.  Add butter and olive oil to the pan along with the onion slices and cook until softened.  Stir in beef broth and the whisky.  Scrape the bottom of the pan to incorporate any browned bits and cook until slightly thickened, about 4 to 5 minutes.  Add the cream and simmer until the sauce coats the back of a spoon.  Season with salt and pepper or I just threw in a little more of the Chicago Steak Seasoning.  Serve in bowl along side those mouthwatering sirloins hot off the grill! 

We served these with Giada de Laurentiis Parmesan Popovers.  Love this recipe as they turn out great every time but I must make a public service announcement regarding these.....GREASE THE PAN LIBERALLY!!!!! 

On the "will we make again" meter its an 8!!!

Spring is here!

Spring is here and with that comes Mother Natures game of tease!  One beautiful day of summer like temps that get you itching for preparing the garden and flower pots then a week of cool temps and rain that would send any tomato plant heading right back to the store it came from.  My garden is pretty sparse this year since the temperatures at night get very cool still, I'm afraid if I plant anything it will just die from being too cold with not enough sun.  The sturdy rhubarb is up and pretty proud looking but then again it would take a nuclear event to wipe that stuff out!  The strawberry plants have flowers on them to signal they will bear fruit this summer.  The chives came back from last year which I was surprised that they were perennial.  A new rosemary plant adorns my front door as does some seriously wimpy looking basil.  I buy plant after plant of that stuff and never get it to keep.  So far this spring I am on plant #3 and I'm keeping my fingers crossed but its not looking good.  With all the dreary weather I headed to the library and checked out these books and will thoroughly enjoy kicking up my feet and snuggling under my lap quilt and browse through these great cookbooks.  Who knows by the time they are due back at the library summer like temps might be here to stay! 

Dutch Baby Pancake

A Dutch baby pancake, sometimes called a German pancake, a Bismarck, or a Dutch puff, is a sweet breakfast dish similar to Yorkshire pudding. It is baked in a pan and falls soon after being removed from the oven. It is generally served with fresh squeezed lemon, butter, and powdered sugar or fruit toppings and syrup have been used too.  According to Sunset magazine, Dutch babies were introduced in the first half of the 1900s at Manca's Cafe, a family-run restaurant in Seattle owned by Victor Manca. While these pancakes are derived from the German pancake dish, it is said that the name Dutch baby was coined by one of Victor Manca's daughters. In 1942, Manca's Cafe owned the trademark for Dutch babies, although the cafe later closed in the 1950s.  It is thought by some that the "Dutch" moniker refers to the group of German-American immigrants known as the Pennsylvania Dutch, where "Dutch" actually comes from the German word "deutsch."

The mini meringue's and I decided to make this for breakfast last weekend.  The recipe we had did not call for any sugar or vanilla to be added but next time I make this I will include it.  The Dutch Baby came out very blah in taste so I can see why syrup, fruits and powdered sugar would be needed to jazz it up.  This recipe was super simple to prepare...enjoy!

Start by preheating your oven to 425 degrees and place one stick of butter into a pie pan to melt while the oven is heating up.

Have your mini meringue's crack 5 eggs for you.  We use the crack in a bowl and transfer the "shell free" eggs into a separate container method!  Once all eggs are cracked and shell free pour them into a blender and blend on high speed for one minute.

With the blender running add to the eggs 1 1/4 cups milk and then add 1 1/4 cups flour.  Blend together ingredients for an additional 30 seconds.  Pour batter into pie plate with butter melted.  Bake for 20 minutes.  Allow to cool 5 minutes before cutting and serve with fresh fruit!

One of the mini meringues said it was great and had 2 pieces, the other two and myself thought that it was ok and needed something else.  Next time we will add some vanilla to the batter and sprinkle with powdered sugar at the end. 

Viel Spa!  That's German for Enjoy!  ")