Tomato Pie

 

4 large tomatoes or equivalent volume of smaller tomatoes (about 2 to 2 1/2 cups peeled and sliced)
1 sweet onion
1/8 to 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 c grated cheddar cheese (I used Colby/Monterey Jack cheese)
1 c grated mozzarella cheese
1/4 c grated sharp cheddar, or other strongly flavored cheese
1 c mayo
salt and pepper to taste
1 pre-baked 9inch pie crust (deep dish, if available)


1) If making the crust from scratch you can bake it while you do the following 3 steps. Be sure to apply a glaze to the crust so that it doesn't get soggy during the second baking. Otherwise, preheat a store-bought crust in a 350 degree oven for around 10 min just before adding the filling.

2) Peel and slice the tomatoes. Tomatoes can be easily peeled by scoring the ends with an "x" then plunging them into boiling water (eg, with a slotted spoon) for a few seconds. The skins should then come off easily by hand.

3)Slice the onions and quarter each slice so that there are chunks of onion no longer than a couple of inches (the fastest way to do this is to quarter the onion along the root axis and then slice across the quarter cuts)

4) Stir approximately 1/2 of the grated cheeses and all of the chopped basil into the mayonnaise.  Season with salt and pepper if needed.

5) Layer the filling in two levels: cover the bottom of the warm pie crust with tomato slices and sprinkle lightly with salt, then add half of the onions and half the remaining grated cheese. Spread half of the mayonnaise mixture evenly over the top. Repeat for the second layer. If desired, reserve a few of the best looking tomato slices to decorate the top.

6) Cook at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for around 35 minutes or until the filling seems set and the top mayo/cheese layer is browning noticeably

Italian Meatloaf

Give it a chance! I generally don't like meatloaf, but I LOVE this one!!

2 lbs lean ground beef (or 1/2 ground beef/1/2 ground turkey)
1/3 c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 lb sausage
2 - 3 cups FRESH whole basil leaves
2 c. breadcrumbs
1 med onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 T dried oregano
1 teas ground black pepper
3 large eggs
2 cups of your favorite Marinara sauce, divided
Garnish:
Mozzarella slices
10 small basil leaves
Optional: 1 c. chopped, drained, rinsed oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes

Preheat oven to 375 F.  Mash all meats and shredded cheese in large bowl. Saute the onion and garlic in a bit of olive oil til the onions are translucent.  Add the remaining ingredients to the meat mixture-- mash between every few ingredient to get a thorough mix. Mix 3/4 cup of the Marinara into the meat mixture. Shape into a loaf.  Place into 3 loaf pans. Brush the tops of the loaves with remaining Marinara. Bake meatloaf until cooked through (about 160 - 170F). Check at 65 minutes.
Serve meatloaf hot, with a slice of mozzarella melted on its side. Garnish with a leaf of basil.

artichoke chicken

1 (15 ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained, rinsed, dried and chopped
3/4 c grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 c mayonnaise
1/2 c sour cream
1 t lemon pepper
dash garlic powder
skinless chicken breasts
2 T parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium bowl, mix together the artichoke hearts, Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, lemon pepper, and garlic powder. Place enough chicken to fill a greased 9 x 13 baking dish, and cover evenly with artichoke mixture.

Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until chicken is no longer pink in the center and juices run clear.

Note:  I made this for our anniversary dinner and served it with the tri-color rotini pasta.  I also made the caprese recipe available on this site with toasted french bread.

Chicken Noodle Soup

Whole Chicken

3 1/2 qts Water, or enough to cover chicken

1 Onion, peeled, quartered, and sliced

2 t. Italian seasoning

2 t garlic powder
1 1/2 t. lemon pepper seasoning
3 bouillon cubes
salt and pepper to taste



Add all ingredients to a big pot. Cook until chicken is tender. Remove chicken from pot and set aside to cool.

Remove and throw away onion. When chicken is cool, pick all chicken off the bones. Throw the bones away. Set chicken aside.

Next ingredients:

2 cups sliced carrots (about 4 regular carrots)
2 cups sliced celery with leafy tops (about 4 also)
3 cups uncooked egg noodles
salt and pepper to taste (if needed)

Bring stock back to a boil, add carrots and cook for 3 minutes.

Add celery and cook about 6 minutes.

Add egg noodles and cook according to package.

Add chicken and cook 2 more minutes.

Add salt and pepper if needed.

Note:  When I made this today, after adding the carrots and celery I added the chicken back in.  Then I took out half of the soup (about 8 cups) to cool so I can put it in jars and freeze it for future use.  When I make this soup we eat it for a few days, I give some away, and we still have a lot left over.  I've tried to freeze it with all of it put together, but the noodles don't unthaw well.  So this time I decided to freeze it before the noodle stage.  I can add those when I unthaw it later.

Creme Brulee ... Pear, too.

My all time favorite dessert...

1 vanilla bean
4 c. heavy cream
6 egg yolks
1/2 c. superfine sugar
3 T. almond extract
1/3 c. brown sugar (not shown in pictures)

Preheat the oven to 350. Place 6 (1/2 c.) ramekins in a roasting pan and set aside. With a small, sharp knife, split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the black seeds into a medium saucepan (put the remainder of the whole bean in as well). Add the cream and bring just to a boil over medium heat, stirring. Remove from heat and cover with plastic wrap. Set aside for 15-20 minutes. Remove the bean.
In another bowl, whisk the egg yolks, superfine sugar and liqueur, if using, until well blended. Whisk in the hot cream. Pour into the ramekins.
Pour enough boiling water into the roasting pan (to make a water bath for the ramekins) to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the pan with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, until the custards are just set. Remove ramekins from the pan and let cool. Drain pan. Return to the dry roasting pan and chill.
Sprinkle the brown sugar on top of each of the brulees. Using a propane kitchen torch, caramelize the sugar. (Careful not to burn yourself or the sugar!) Let sit for a few minutes to harden.

Options:
Don't run to the store option: Use 3T of vanilla extract. The better quality vanilla extract, the better it will taste.... Superfine sugar isn't a necessity--just make sure you whisk the egg/sugar mixture very, very well! Don't have a torch? Just preheat the broiler. Sprinkle the sugar evenly over the custard and broil for 30-60 seconds until the sugar melts and caramelizes. (Do not let the sugar burn or the custard curdle) Place in fridge to set the crust and chill completely.

Pear Brulee:
10 pieces of dried pear
Tear 7 of the pieces of pear into small pieces. Tear the remaining 3 pieces in half to get 6 halves. Set the halves in the bottom of the ramekins. Set aside. After bringing the creme to a boil, add these small pieces. Cover and set aside for 20 minutes. Remove vanilla bean, but leave the pieces of pear. Follow the above directions, but the almond extract is left out or reduced to 1 T. Pour the finished mixture over the pear halves and follow the rest of the above directions. Very yummy.

Slow cook: My recipe book calls for 300 degrees, but we have to cook it for about 50 minutes. We tried the 350 last time and it turned out great...

Kids snack mix

Around Christmas time, my aunt makes Chex Mix (with Crispex now though).  She does a regular flavor and a spicy flavor.  I always love it, but never make it for myself.  My daughter was looking through a cookbook we got from the library and she pointed to a recipe and said, "Can we have chex mix?"  It is a great recipe that doesn't involve the oven, so my 4 year old did the whole recipe by herself.

6 cups rice/corn cereal (we used the Walmart brand and it tasted just the same as the brand name)
3 cups pretzles
1 10 oz package oyster/soup crackers
1/3 c vegetable oil
1 package dry Ranch seasoning mix

When we made it, I halved the recipe thinking that it would be too much, but after putting it in our container it wasn't that much.  So next time I'm going to make the full amount.  Also, I added some of my dry Italian seasoning mix to it to give it extra flavor and it was tasty.  It'd been a hit all week.  The great part is that it's a basic recipe that you can change for your family.  I'm going to put some slivered almonds in next time because we like those.

Hawaiin Haystacks

This is a tasty dish that I learned during my college years.  We had a social get together on Friday called Friday Forum where we had a nice lunch  for $1 (very in a college student budget).  I thought it was a little weird the first time I heard about it, but it was tasted great.  I didn't have it again for years.  My husband loves it (just this week asked for it for his birthday lunch) and its good because you can adapt the toppings to fit different 'tastebuds'.  You can put basically whatever you like on top.  It's also a nice meal to make if you are having company because you can feed lots of people for not much money.

Recipe for 2 adults and 2 children.  You can double or triple the sauce and rice for more.

1 1/2 cups uncooked rice
3 c water
6 chicken tenders, cooked then shredded or cubed.
1 can cream of chicken soup
chicken broth
pepper to taste

Cook the rice in water for amount of time on bag of rice.
For the sauce, mix the soup and half of a can of broth (or water when you are done with cooking chicken). Heat and add as much pepper as desired.  Add chicken.

Serve rice onto plate, top with sauce/chicken mixture.  Then add the toppings of your choice.

When I have all day, I will put the raw chicken into the crockpot and top with soup and broth. Cook on low for 4-6 hours (longer if you will be using breasts instead of tenders). The chicken is so tender it just falls apart when you go to shred it.


topping ideas:
pineapple tidbits
green onions, sliced
grated cheese
crunchy chow mein noodles
chopped tomatoes
chopped mushrooms
black olives, sliced
slivered almonds

Baked Spaghetti

I love to have spaghetti.  Sometimes it's nice to have it a different way though.  We had this last week and everyone seemed to like it.  It's a basic recipe.  Feel free to replace the ground beef, add vegetables to the sauce or different spices that your family like.

10 oz spaghetti
1/2 lb ground beef
dash italian spices
dash garlic powder
1 jar spaghetti sauce
mozzerella cheese

1. Pre-heat oven to 350.
2. Cook the spaghetti according to box directions.
3. Brown the beef while pasta is cooking.  Add the spices to the beef and stir.  Add the jar of sauce.
4. Grease a 9 x 13 pan.  Add the pasta and sauce mixture and combine.  Make sure there is enough sauce to mix evenly with the pasta.  If there isn't, the pasta will get hard and not taste good.
5. Sprinkle as much cheese on top as you would like.
6. Bake for 20 minutes or until the cheese is melted.

Eggs in a roll

We like scrambled eggs, but sometimes I like to add things to them.  This morning I decided to add tomatoes, mushrooms, and cheese.  We had some rolls so I decided to make breakfast fun and put the eggs in them.  Just a different way to eat a yummy meal.  I was telling my daughter that she got a serving of all the food groups too, so that's a healty bonus.  You could add any vegetables that you like.  I had tomatoes and mushrooms on hand, so that's what I used.

1 roll per person

2 eggs per adult, 1 per child

few mushrooms

3 campari or roma tomatoes

cheddar cheese

splash of milk

salt and pepper to taste

1. 
   
   Cut tomatoes in half and take out the seeds, then dice into small pieces.  Slice the mushrooms into bite size pieces. Grate as much of the cheese as you would like.
   
   
   
2. 
   
   Remove the tops of the rolls, then take out some of the filling.  For children, leave a bit of the inside of the roll because 1 egg won't fill a whole roll.
   
   
   
3. 
   
   Saute the mushrooms, then add tomatoes.  Remove from pan.
   
   
   
4. 
   
   Beat the eggs with milk, salt, and pepper.
   
   
   
5. 
   
   Spray pan with Pam so the eggs won't stick.  Cook egg mixture until it just starts to get firm, then add tomato and mushroom mixture and the grated cheese.  Continue to cook until done.
   
   
   
6. 
   
   Serve eggs in the hollowed out roll.  Eat and enjoy!
   
   
   

Roasted Veggie Sandwich

1 - 2 c. mushrooms
1 small/med zucchini
1 red bell pepper
1 orange or yellow bell pepper
1 Onion
1 head garlic
Olive oil
Seasoning salt or S & P, for taste
Hoagies/Outdoor rolls

Preheat oven to 350.  Wrap onion in tin foil.  Place in oven while heating. Prepare veggies as follows:  clean mushrooms; remove stem and seeds from pepper and cut into 4 flattish pieces, slice zucchini into for long slivered quarters. Place all in large mixing bowl. Drizzle with olive oil. Mix around so oil covers most of the veggies and season with seasoning salt. Lay veggies on baking trays--mushrooms stem up, peppers & zucchini skin down.  Place garlic whole on tray.  Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until veggies are tender but cooked through.

Toast hoagie rolls. Spread with butter or mayonnaise. Slice off the tops of the garlic and squeeze out roasted garlic. Spread on top of the butter or mayo. Lay veggies on bread... and eat!

Optional: Add Insalata Caprese (bake & flip) to sandwich. Adds a few more flavors! Very yummy. (in photo)

Semi-homemade pizza

I've been checking out children's cookbooks from the library lately since Jen told me about some of the ones that she's read recently.  All of them listed mini pizzas as fun for kids to make and eat, so I decided that we would give it a try.  I bought the premade dough from Publix (a local grocery store).  I've tried to make dough, but kneading and I don't go well together so this was a good solution.  The great part about homemade pizza is that you can add whatever toppings you want, and as much as you want.

     My daughter doesn't like red sauce on her pizza, so she made the pizza with ricotta, mozzerella and parm cheeses.

    On my dough I put a light layer of Bertolli spaghetti sauce, then topped it with ricotta, calapari tomatoes, green pepper slices (from my garden!), pineapple, mozzerella, and parm cheese.  It was so good!

  My advice: when using fresh dough, brush it with olive oil and cook for about five minutes, then top with what you would like and bake until the cheese is melted and crust is done.  The time it took to get the crust to be done made the cheese a little browner than we like.  Also, for the white pizza, I would mix the ricotta with oregano, parsley, garlic powder, and onion powder.  Just to add a little more flavor.  They were really good though.  My youngest daughter doesn't usually like pizza (or dinner in general) and she ate two pieces.

Sushi

No, I'm not a sushi chef.  But in the last month I have become a sushi eater.  About 11 years ago I tried it for the first time when my friend Sabrina made it while I was visiting for a college graduation.  It was good, but at the time there weren't lots of sushi places, so I forgot about it.  In the past two months, my husband would bring home the mini california rolls.  So after a while of my being a little skeptical about them, I decided to try them.  I figured...well, I love avacado, so I might as well try it.  Avacado-yum Cucumber-yum sticky rice-yum. green wrap-no taste so it's okay  fish-barely tasteful  So all around it was a good experience.  Now I stop by the local grocery store that has a nice man that makes sushi.  I always buy it and tell my husband that he can take it to work for dinner, then I have one before he leaves.  This week he didn't take it with him.  So I took out the package and had two rolls for dinner.  My 4 year old daughter asked what it was and I told her.  She asked if she could have a bite and I let her.  Then she wanted the whole thing.  She really liked it a lot.  I was proud of her for trying something new and liking it.  It's always hard for me to get my girls to try anything.  I guess it just had to look fun. =)

Herbed Tuna with Sesame Dressing

Our neighbor brought over about 3 lbs of Tuna that her husband had just caught. I had never made Tuna before so I found a few recipes online and melded them. I am quite happy with the way that this turned out. Even my husband with top shelf tastes, said, "Its actually really good!"  Whoo hoo!

2 lbs fresh tuna  (ie.. not from the can)
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1 1/2 c. finely chopped fresh basil
2 teas black pepper
1 teas coarse kosher salt
1/4 teas salt
Olive oil for searing
Basil and cilantro for garnish... (ooops, I forgot to do this with mine!)

1 T soy sauce
1 T honey
1 t. pure sesame oil (in Asian food aisle)

Rinse tuna steaks. Pat dry with paper towls. Cut tuna into long blocks (1X1X5"). Mix together the basil, cilantro, salt, and pepper; cover fish with the mixture. Let sit for 30 mins.

Using a heavy bottomed saute pan or cast-iron pan, warm olive oil. Heat pan to high. Place tuna in pan. Sear for 2 minutes, turn over carefully. Drop temp to med (pan will still be hotter than this) and sear other side for another 2 minutes. (Do not over cook tuna or it will become dry and flavorless. It will be med-rare) Remove from heat.

Prepare plates. Add tuna and garnish. When pan has cooled a bit, add soy sauce, honey and sesame oil.  Mix well. Drizzle over tuna.

Storing fruit

Have you ever bought too much fruit at the store?  Do you like to have fruit that tastes good in the fall and winter?  I've got a tip for you.  We love grapes, watermelon, honeydew, peaches, and nectarines a lot.  During the fall and winter though, the fruit is never ripe and doesn't taste as good as it does when you get it in season.  What I do is spray a cookie sheet or jelly roll pan with cooking spray.  Then I slice up my fruit and put it in a single layer on the jelly roll pan.  I put the pan in my freezer.  When the fruit is frozen (in individual pieces) I put it in freezer Ziplock bags or in tupperware type storage boxes.  Then you can take a few pieces out and enjoy when you want them.  Grapes and bananas are really good as a snack.  The fruit is also good to use in smoothies too because it is already frozen and makes it a little thicker than when using fresh fruit.

Creamy Chicken Veggie Soup

This is a really easy recipe for a good soup.  I think it took me about 45 minutes to make this meal.

2 T butter/margarine

1 cup sliced mushrooms

1/2 c skinny strips of onion

1/2 red pepper in strips

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 1/4 c chicken broth

1 1/2 c milk

2 chicken breasts or 6 tenders, cooked and cut up

pepper

garlic powder

parsley flakes

bit of nutmeg

half of a small bag of frozen broccoli

1. 
   
   
   In a large saucepan saute mushrooms, onions, and pepper in butter until the veggies are tender.  Stir frequently.
   
   
   
2. 
   
   
   In a bowl, combine soup and broth until smooth.  Add milk and stir until combined.  Add this to the saucepan.
   
   
   
3. 
   
   
   Stir in chicken.  Season with herbs as you like.  Add broccoli and heat until just boiling.  Reduce heat to low.  Cook until broccoli is tender-about 5 minutes.
   
   
   

We like to eat this with dinner rolls or crusty bread.  You could add as many vegetables as you want.

Insalata Caprese

We have these 3 or 4 nights a week when the garden is producing tomatoes and basil. Simple and yummy!

Italian Salad Dressing
1/2 lb mozzarella cheese, sliced 1/4" thick
2-3 ripe tomatoes, sliced 1/4" thick
20-30 basil leaves
Salt & Pepper to taste
Italian bread, thinly sliced

Slice cheese and 'marinate' in dressing. This struck me as strange the first time I made the recipe. I thought it would make the cheese all slimy and gross, but it didn't. Let sit for an hour or two. On a plate, lay a piece of cheese, then a basil leaf--slightly staggered, then a slice of tomato--slightly staggered. Repeat this pattern in a circle around the plate. Sprinkle on a bit of S & P if you want... Enjoy on top of a slice of Italian bread... or just eat as it is!

Variations:

Flip and Bake: Lay the tomato on a baking sheet, with a piece of basil directly on top, then a slice of cheese on top of that. Don't over lap these as they will all melt together.  Bake 350 for about 10 minutes until the cheese has melted. Don't over bake as the cheese will run everywhere and the basil will crisp up or get too chewy.

Shredded cheese: My daughter likes these made with a shredded 4-cheese mix. Prepare like flip and bake, just sprinkle some shredded cheese on top of the basil leaf and bake!

Baked Apples

A fun recipe for little helpers!

Small to Medium Apples
Raisins
Butter
Brown Sugar
Cinnamon
Salt


Preheat oven to 350. Core each apple. Place whole apples in a baking dish. Fill cored area with some raisins, a 1/2 T of butter, dash of cinnamon, sprinkle of salt and a T. of brown sugar. Cover with foil. Bake for about 30 minutes or until the apples are cooked through. Let cool for a few minutes. Serve in bowls and drizzle the cooking juices over the top of the apples.

Although these aren't beauties, the aroma while baking is worth the whole experience! My kid's think they are great to make and great to eat! Tip: If you pierce these with a fork before baking, they may not split like the ones in the picture. (let me know if you try it and it works!)

Measuring cups are worthwhile... every once in a while!

When I make soup, I make enough for an army. So, I haven't been cooking much, since we've been eating soup at least once a day! Anyway, I was thinking that since I don't have a recipe to post, I'll post another aha 'kitchen' moment. So, if you've read many of my posts, you know I don't follow recipes much. I've tried to create the recipes here from my head so that you can get a general idea of how to make the dish, but I like to improvise.  By being creative with your recipes and ideas, you can make a dish that will suit your tastes to a tee! BUT... I realized there is a time and a place for measuring!!  I am a stickler for measuring the ingredients when I make oatmeal and rice, etc. I always measure those! I've realized that texture is a big deal to me. I don't do well with clumpy food and its inevitable if I don't measure the rice or oatmeal,  that I end up with mushy clumps! So, be creative, but be wise!

Butterfly

I love to butterfly or thin cut my chicken breast. I love it. I'm almost adamant about it! Here's why. First, it cooks much more quickly (saves time for last minute planners, like me) and doesn't dry out before the center is cooked through. Also, the seasoning/marinade goes all the way through because the pieces are thinner. And... it saves money (not theoretically proven, but I'm working on it). My theory is that when you serve a breast of chicken, it will be eaten, regardless of its thickness. I've noticed that 1/2 thickness is usually filling enough not to need seconds. So, you are stretching out your chicken budget! Okay, so if you've never butterflied, here's the quick version: Take a chicken breast, remove fat, rinse in water, lay chicken on cutting board,  cut through the chicken (knife parallel to the cutting board) to halve its thickness....

Raincheck

Just another 'thrifty' reminder. Always get a raincheck if the store is out of a sale item that you wanted!  Its a great way to have your own personal sale... whenever you need it! I do this with roasts, chicken, Fishy crackers, etc--when the store is having an especially great deal. Sometimes they won't raincheck, but 90% they do!!

Tangy Crockpot Pork Chops

I got this recipe from a friend who had us over to dinner one time.  I thought this recipe was great!  It was the start of my using the crockpot.

4 pork chops                                                              
1/2 t salt
1/8 t pepper
med onion, sliced in strips
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 green pepper, sliced in strips                                             
1 can stewed tomatoes (14.5oz)

Sauce:
1 beef bouillion cube (or 1 T granuals)
2 T cider vinegar
2 T brown sugar
2 T Worchestershire sauce
1 t lemon juice
1/2 c ketchup


Thickener                                               
2 T cornstarch                                         
2 T water

1. Place pork chops in slow cooker, sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Add onions, celery, green pepper and tomatoes.
2. In a small bowl, combine sauce ingredients.  Pour sauce over veggies and chops.
3. Cover and cook on low for 5-6 hours if chops are thawed.  8-10 hours on low if frozen.
4. Mix thickener until smooth.  Stir into liquid in slow cooker.  If you don't stir well enough, it just goes to the bottom of the crockpot.
5. Cover and cook on High for 30 minutes.
6. Serve with hot cooked rice.

Smoothie

Emma loves it when I make smoothies for breakfast.  It's a nice way to get fruit in the mornings.  The amounts depend on how big you want the smoothie to be.  My recipe makes about 36 oz (enough for my 4 year old, my husband, and myself).

16 oz orange juice
3 small scoops orange sherbet
8 frozen whole strawberries
handful of frozen peaches
half a sliced banana

Add the ingredients in that order to a blender.  Blend until smooth.  You may have to turn off blender periodically and shake blender to move the frozen items so they don't get stuck in the blender blades.

If you want a thicker smoothie, add a scoop of ice after the last of the fruit.  You can use any juice you would like paired with any fruit you like also.  For a creamier smoothie you may use frozen yogurt or ice cream instead of the sherbet.

Hide-the-Healthy Chicken Soup

Chicken cut-ups or Whole chicken, skinned
Veges of your choice
Herbs
Seasoning
S & P

Chicken Soup is a great way to get nutrients to your kids. Shhhhh.... I've learned that my kids will pick out certain foods they don't like, so I hide them! When making Chicken Soup, I cook the chicken cut-ups and remove the meat. Continue cooking the bones to make more broth. While I am doing this, I skillet-fry onions, garlic, celery until well cooked.  (Very important to cook well or the broth will taste like raw onions!) I transfer these ingredients (or any other that my children dislike at that moment in time) to the blender and puree away. The kids love the flavor of the broth, the just don't like the slime of the onions, celery, mushrooms...  All the nurtrient and flavor... just hidden!! Then I prepare the rest of the veges--thick chunks of broccoli, mushrooms, carrots, zucchini, etc. (Thick chunk help prevent mushy (hence, slimy) veges. After removing the bones from the broth, I add the pureed mixture and season with rosemary, thyme, and sometimes basil. Then, toss in the rest of the veges and cook. Season to taste with salt and pepper... Add noodles or rice. My love it with the Fluffly Spanish Rice--tastes fabulous!

Trying new things...

Well, since I'm trying new things with this blog--new recipes and blogging for that matter... I thought I'd just go ahead and try my new mortar and pestle. Okay, its not new. I bought at IKEA about... uh, ... oh, ... a year ago. Anyway, it isn't that I haven't had a chance to use it, I just haven't. So, I'm making soup and ready to add the dried rosemary and the thought comes to me--I shouldn't put this in whole, he kids will complain about 'the sticks' and not eat their soup. Aha! The mortar and pestle. It worked great! Brings out more flavor than chop, chop, chopping!  Hmmm... hope I use it again before another year goes by.

Now its here, now its gone Cini Rolls

Very fun recipe for kids! Very yummy treat for everyone! When cooking with your children... help them see the magic of the disappearing marshmallow!

1 pkg Crescent Rolls
10-15 large marshmallows
3 Tbsp butter
Cinnamon
1/3 c. Sugar

Preheat oven to 375. Open pkg of cresent rolls and separate. Do not roll yet. Melt butter in a ramekin or small bowl. In another bowl, mix sugar with a bit of cinnamon. Dip/roll the marshmallow in butter, then roll in cinn-sugar mix. Next, place the covered marshmallow on the wide end of the crescent and roll up as usual. Repeat until you run out of the crescent dough. Place on a greased baking pan. Bake for 11 - 13 minutes or until the rolls are lightly brown. Let cool for a few minutes as the goo will be extremely hot and sticky. Remove from the sheet to a rack within 10-15 minutes!