I've updated my other blogs!

House update here

Recipe you have to try here

My latest wedding post here

The Bread Spread

As requested, here is the recipe. Next month in enrichment, we are being taught a wheat bread recipe, so I'll have to pass that one along as well. And for those who inquired, yes, I do believe this is going to save me quite a bit of money in the long run.

Bread Making 101, by Lori Fleischer (credit where credit is due, always)

Now, these recipes depend on what kind of a mixer you are using. If you have a giant mixer like a Bosche, the 5 loaves recipe is for you. If you operate with a KitchenAid Mixer (like me!) you'll be using the 3 loaves recipe.

5 Loaves

2 heaping Tablespoons yeast

2/3 cup sugar

5 cups warm water (105-110 degrees)

5 teaspoons salt

2/3 cup shortening

2/3 cup powdered milk (non-instant)

bread flour

3 Loaves

1 1/2 Tablespoons yeast

1/2 cup sugar

3 cups warm water

1 Tablespoon salt

1/2 cup shortening

1/2 cup powdered milk (non-instant)

bread flour

(save 1 cup water and add the powdered milk and whisk well. Then add to yeast mixture with salt, shortening and flour.)

Put yeast and sugar in mixing bowl. Pour warm water over. Proof for 5 minutes.

Add: salt, shorting and powdered milk. Mix on medium speed. Gradually add enough flour to make a batter. (Same consistency of a cake batter.) Continue to mix about five to seven minutes until the flour is completely incorporated and the batter is smooth. This is an important step as it develops the gluten. Gradually add enough flour, 1 cup at a time, mixing well each time, until the dough leaves the side of the bowl. Continue to mix (on about speed 5 ish) for about 5 to 7 minutes. Put dough in a Pam sprayed bowl and cover to raise until double in bulk, about 1 hour. If you are using a KitchenAid, you can leave the dough in the mixing bowl.

Punch dough down.

Divide into 5 (3) pieces.

Form into loaves

place in greased 8x4x2 pans seam side down. Let rise until double - about 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place loaves on low rack so that the tops of the pans are in center of oven. Pans should not touch each other or sides of the oven. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until deep golden brown and loaves sound hollow when tapped. Remove from pans. Let completely cool on rack before storing in plastic bag. Loaves can be frozen.

Updates

Delish new recipe HERE

Photos of an awesome wedding album HERE

Random picture my sister-in-law Stacey took HERE:

Yummy soup!

In honor of autumn being upon us, I just posted my most favorite soup recipe ever over at the group cooking blog. If you would like to join this cooking blog and share some of your favorite recipes, leave me your e-mail address here and I'll get you added!

Yummy yummy!

When Jason and I got married, we received this cookbook as a gift and I use it all the time! I just posted two of my new favorite recipes on my cooking blog ... check it out!

Head on over ...

To my cooking blog for some yummy recipes



And my photography Web site for more of this adorable family

Fourth of July treats

Tomorrow my family is having a nice little get together involving sun, snacks and swimming and I'm contributing these little delights to our shmorgishborg.

Mini Cheesecake Tarts

2 8oz packages cream cheese (you can use 1/3 less fat)
2 eggs
3/4 C sugar
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 t vanilla
canned pie filling (Blueberry, Strawberry or Raspberry)
Nilla Wafers

Foil cupcake liners. (You'll want to use foil ones because they separate from the cheesecakes better, and they look prettier :)

Preheat oven to 375. Soften cream cheese if needed. With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar. Then add in the lemon juice, vanilla, and eggs. Beat until combined.

Fill a muffin pan with cupcake liners and place one vanilla wafer at the bottom of each one. Fill each one 3/4 full of batter. Bake for 15-20 minutes.

But you don't want them to get brown. When you take them out, place them on a cooling rack and let them cool completely. While they cool, they will sink down in the center. Don't worry- that's normal! It makes the perfect little well to fill up with the fruit filling. Before you top them, chill in the fridge for several hours, overnight if you can. Then top and serve. You certainly could be creative and top with other things too, like chocolate, caramel, lemon curd, whatever! Makes 12 tarts.

Recipe found here (one of my favorite recipe Web sites)

My other blogs

I recently updated my cooking blog with some amazing recipes.

I also updated my photography blog with pictures from this fantastic wedding I shot with Rebekah Westover.

Baked Ziti

Found this recipe on Kelsey's Kitchen and Jason loved it! I did this sans beef and added a fresh diced tomato for texture instead.

INGREDIENTS:
8 oz. ziti
½ lb. lean ground beef
½ yellow onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 C. tomato sauce
½ tsp. dried Oregano
½ tsp. dried Basil
1 C. shredded mozzarella cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the ziti and cook for about 8 minutes. The ziti should be slightly undercooked and chewy. Drain; set aside.
3. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the beef with onion and garlic. Stir in the tomato sauce, herbs, and salt.
4. Mix the ziti with the sauce and cheese in an ovenproof dish, saving some cheese to sprinkle on top. Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 20 minutes.

Cookies!

Jason and I have made a habit/tradition of watching Food Network on Sunday nights. We're big fans of Iron Chef America and Throwdown with Bobby Flay. Oftentimes when I watch all the yummy dishes being made, it makes me want to hit the kitchen. Usually I resist the urge because it's late, but tonight I gave in and made my favorite chocolate chip cookies. I thought I had posted this recipe earlier, but I searched for it and couldn't find it, so here it is!

Best Ever Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 cup real butter
1 tsp vanilla

Mix together

Add:
3 cups flour
1 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup chocolate chips (I usually just add the whole bag)
1 1/2 cup nuts (optional)
1 cup coconut (optional)

Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes

Daisy Ann Cake with Lemon Curd

Photo and cake by me

This recipe came from a Williams-Sonoma cake pan Jason and I received for our wedding from Ashley and her mother. I've only made this cake once, but it was delicious and I want to make it again. It's the perfect cake to welcome spring!

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
16 Tbs (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup milk
1 cup lemon curd
1/3 cup heavy cream, whipped to medium-firm peaks
12 rasberries or 6 strawberries hulled and halved lengthwise
1/4 to 1/2 cup blueberries
Confectioners sugar for dusting (optional)

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour the Daisy Ann Cake Pan (if you do not have the Daisy Ann Cake Pan, a regular one should work just fine) Over a sheet of waxed paper, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, 1 to 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the granulated sugar, beating until blended. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue beating until the mixture is light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrap down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and stopping the mixer occasionally to scrap down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the vanilla.

Reduce the speak to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour, beating just until blended and no lumps of flour remain.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes. Carefully turn the cake out onto the rack and let cool completely, at least 1 hour.

Put the lemon curd in a bowl. Using a large rubber spatula, gently stir the whipped cream into the curd until no white streaks remain. Spread the lemon curd mixture in the well of the cake. Place 1 raspberry or 1 strawberry half, cut side down on top of the curd in each flute. Mound the blueberries in the center of the lemon curd. Dust the cake with confectioners' sugar. Serves 12 to 16.

What's Cookin'?

I'm of the mindset that the best recipes are those passed on by friends and family members, because you know they've been tried, tested and given a stamp of approval by people you trust (hopefully). So with this idea in mind, I started a group blog with some of my friends and we've been posting recipes that can often be found on our dinner table.

Check it out HERE.

If anyone else would like to join the blog and share your own yummy recipes, leave a comment with your e-mail address and I'll add you, thanks!

Yummy Cupcakes

I've been searching for the perfect basic chocolate cupcake recipe, and I think I found it! These yummy gems and cooking in the oven as I type, and if they taste half as good as the batter did, these are going to be real winners.

Here's the recipe thanks to Chockylit:

Old-Fashioned Chocolate Cupcakes
14 regular cupcakes / 375 degree oven

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temp
1-1/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs, room temp
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoons vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Beat butter until softened. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well combined.
4. Measure the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder into a small sized bowl and whisk to combine.
5. Measure out the milk and vanilla and stir to combine
6. Add about a third of the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar and beat to combine. Add about a half of the milk/vanilla and beat to combine. Continue adding, alternating between dry and wet and finishing with the dry.
7. Scoop batter into cupcake cups about 2/3’s full. Turn oven down to 350 degrees and bake cupcakes for about 22-25 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.

Yummy Christmas Caramel

When I made this caramel, we all just devoured it. It so simple, and such a hit!

1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 cup butter
1 16-ounce package (2 1/4 cups) packed brown sugar
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup light-colored corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. line an 8x8x2 inch or 9x9x2 inch baking pan with foil, extending foil over edges of pan. Butter the foil. If desired, sprinkle walnuts over bottom of pan. Set pan aside.

2. In a 3-quart heavy sauce pan melt butter over low heat. Add brown sugar, sweetened condensed milk and corn syrup. Mix well. Cook and stir over medium-high heat heat until mixture boils. Clip a candy thermometer to side of pan. Reduce heat to medium; continue boiling at a moderate, steady rate, stirring frequently until the thermometer registers 248 Fahrenheit, firm ball stage (15 to 20 min).

3. Remove saucepan from heat; remove thermometer. Stir in vanilla. Quickly pour mixture into prepared pan. When firm, sue foil to lift it out of pan. Used a buttered knife to cut into 1-inch squares. Wrap each piece in plastic wrap. Store up to 2 weeks- if it lasts that long!!

California Fruit Salad

This is a recipe my family got from our great aunt Shirley. It can usually be found on our table most Sunday dinners. Not only is it delicious, but it's so easy!

California Fruit Salad

2 large cans pineapple
1 can mandarin orange
1 large package cook and serve vanilla pudding
bananas
kiwis
Maraschino cherries (optional)

Drain pineapple juice from can into a sauce pan. Add the vanilla pudding to the pineapple juice and stir occasionally until thick. Meanwhile, drain and discard the juice from the mandarin oranges and put drained oranges and drained pineapple into a serving dish. Pour pudding mixture over oranges and pineapple. Let set in fridge for several hours or overnight. Add other fruit right before serving.

Cranberries

I absolutely love Thanksgiving and all it entails, but especially the part where I get to help make a delicious feast!! This year, I'm making the cranberries and some of the potatoes (and probably more.) I made some yummy apple spice cranberries last year, so I wanted to try something new and yummy again this year, and here's the recipe I'll be using!

Apple-Orange Cranberry Sauce

1/2 orange
2 cups water
1 tart apple, such as Granny Smith, pippin or
McIntosh
3 cups fresh cranberries
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground cloves



Squeeze the juice from the orange and set the juice aside. Remove and discard the membrane from inside the orange rind and cut the rind into small dice. In a small saucepan over high heat, combine the rind and the water and bring to a boil. Cook for 10 minutes, then drain and set aside.

Peel, core and quarter the apple. Cut into 1/2-inch dice and place in a saucepan. Sort the cranberries, discarding any soft ones. Add to the apples along with the orange juice, orange rind, sugar, cinnamon and cloves. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce the heat to low and cover the pan partially. Simmer gently, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, the apple is tender and the cranberries have burst, 10 to 15 minutes.

Transfer the cranberry sauce to a heatproof bowl and let cool for 1 hour before serving. Or cover and refrigerate; bring to room temperature before serving. Transfer the cranberry sauce to a sauceboat and pass at the table. Makes 3 1/2 to 4 cups.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library Series,Thanksgiving & Christmas,by Chuck Williams (Time-Life Books, 1993).

image from snagwire

What's for dinner?

Now that Jason and I are both working all day until at least 5:30 or later, it's been hard to make dinner like I used to. That's why I appreciate yummy, easy recipes like this one.

Chicken and Broccoli Pie
1 lb chopped chicken
1/4 C chopped onion
2 Tbsp flour
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1 1/4 C milk
3 oz cream cheese, softened
1 egg
10 oz chopped frozen broccoli cooked and drained
4 oz shredded cheese
Pastry for 9 inch pie pan

Saute chicken and onion in 1 Tbsp oil till done. Add flour, coat chicken; add salt, garlic salt and milk. Stir until bubbly, add cream cheese until melted. Stir some of hot mixture with the egg, then stir egg into pan. Add broccoli, pour hot mix into baked pastry shell and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 for 30 min.

My alterations: I eliminate the chicken and use 16 oz of broccoli, I also use the 1/3 less fat cream cheese. It tastes just the same, but I feel like it melts faster than regular cream cheese.

Best Cupcakes EVER.

I have so much to update you all on, and I know I need to post more pictures!! But I couldn't resist sharing this amazing recipe with you all. I found it on the Cup Cake blog, and it's to die for. I won't post the whole recipe here since it's long, but here's the link! They're blueberry/rasberry ricotta almond cupcakes, and Jason and I loved them.

Yummy Eggplant Recipe

Last night I tried out a new recipe from my "Essentials of Healthful Cooking" cook book and Jason and I loved it!! Despite the lengthy directions, it really was an easy dish to make - and according to my cookbook, it's high in protein and low in cholesterol, which is always a good thing. Pair this with a fresh salad or a side of pasta for a filling meal.

1 globe eggplant
Kosher salt
4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped yellow onion
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 can (14 1/2 oz) whole or diced plum (Roma) tomatoes with juice
1/4 cup torn fresh basil leaves
Freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup (4 oz) part-skim ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese.

Cut off the stem end of the eggplant. Standing it upright on the cut end, cut the eggplant vertically into 8 slices, each about 1/2 inch thick. (I used my mandolin and it worked wonderfully.)Finely chop the outer slices, which are mostly skin, and reserve. (Instead of chopping by hand, I used my food processor.) Sprinkle both sides of the 8 eggplant slices lightly with salt and layer them in a colander set over a plate. Place a second plate on top to weight them down and let stand for 1-2 hours. Rinse the slices well and pat dry with paper towels.

Preheat the oven to 400.

Lightly brush both sides of each eggplant slice, using 2 teaspoons of the olive oil for all of the slices. Arrange the slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake them until the bottoms are lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Remove from the oven.

Meanwhile, in a large, nonstick frying pan over medium heat, warm the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil. Add the onion (which I also chopped in my food processor) and reserved copped eggplant and saute, stirring until tender, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and their juice and half of the basil and bring to a boil, breaking up the tomatoes. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring, until the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes. Stir in 1/4 teaspoon salt and season with pepper. In a small bowl, combine the ricotta, Parmigiano-Reggiano and a grind of pepper and stir to blend.

Have ready a shallow, 1 1/2 quart baking dish. Place 4 of the eggplant slices in a single layer in the dish. Divide the ricotta mixture evenly among the eggplant slices, spreading it slightly. Top with half of the tomato mixture, dividing it evenly among the slices, the top with the remaining4 slices. Spoon the remaining tomato mixture over the top, dividing evenly. Sprinkle evenly with the mozzarella.

Cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake until the sauce is bubbly and the eggplant is heated through, about 25 minutes. Remove from the 0ven and sprinkle with the remaining basil.

French Silk Pie

Last night I was in charge of desert for my family dinner, and wanting to avoid our typical Chocolate Churchmouse Cake (which is tasty, but way over-done at my house) I came across this delish recipe for French Silk Pie.

1 baked pie crust
1 C butter, softened
1 1/2 C sugar
4 oz unsweetened chocolate squares*
2 tsp vanilla
4 eggs
1 pint whipping cream

1. In microwave, melt chocolate, set aside to cool.
2. In medium bowl, cream butter. Gradually add sugar, cream well.
3. Mix in melted, cooled chocolate and vanilla.
4. Add eggs, 1 at a time. Beat five min. each and scrape bowl occasionally to incorporate all sugar.
5. Beat until smooth and no grains of sugar remain.
6. Spoon and smooth into pre-baked pie crust.
7. Chill until set, about one hour. Meanwhile, whip the cream.
8. When pie is chilled, cover with whipped cream and serve. You may also top with chocolate shavings.

*Unsweetened chocolate squares may be substituted with chocolate baking powder. 3 Tbs powder plus one Tbs oil equals one ounce.