Strawberry Country Cake

Have I really not shared this yet? It's our favorite version of shortcake (with exception to Ivanhoe's!)

Strawberry Country Cake (with my adjustments)

* Sometimes I make as muffins and everyone has individual strawberry shortcake – just adjust cooking time as necessary.

 Ingredients

•                12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

•                2 cups sugar (I do rounded cups to give it a touch extra sugar)

•                4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

•                3/4 cup sour cream, at room temperature (I sometimes use light sour cream with fine results)

•                1/2 teaspoon grated fresh lemon zest (optional)

•                1/2 teaspoon grated fresh orange zest (optional)

•                1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

•                2 cups all-purpose flour

•                1/4 cup cornstarch

•                1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

•                1 teaspoon baking soda

•                extra sugar to sprinkle on top after baking (optional)

**I sometimes use canned whipped cream or cool whip instead of the following

For the filling for each cake:

•                1 cup (1/2 pint) heavy cream, chilled

•                3 tablespoons sugar

•                1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

•                1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Butter the bottom of two 8-inch cake pans. Then line them with parchment paper and butter and flour the lined pans. Important to flour them well.

Cream the butter and sugar on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. On medium speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, then the sour cream, zests, and vanilla, scraping down the bowl as needed. Mix well. Sift together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda. On low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and combine just until smooth.

Pour the batter evenly into the pans, smooth the tops, and bake in the center of the oven for 25 to 35 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Sprinkle just a bit of sugar on top (optional). Let cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then remove to wire racks and let cool to room temperature. If using 1 cake, wrap the second well and freeze.

To make the filling for one cake, whip the cream, sugar, and vanilla in a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until firm. Slice one of the cakes in half with a long, sharp knife. Place the bottom slice of the cake on a serving platter, spread with 1/2 the whipped cream and scatter with sliced strawberries. Cover with the top slice of the cake and spread with the remaining cream. Decorate with strawberries.

Fresh Basil Pesto

One of my favorite things about my garden is the abundance of basil it has produced.  We have been making tons of pesto, using a recipe from one of my favorite food blogs, Our Best Bites.  Due to the OUTRAGEOUS cost of pine nuts from the grocery store ($43/lb), we ended up buying some pine nuts in bulk from Amazon ($16/lb) and are storing them in the freezer. 


INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 – 3 C basil leaves, gently packed
3/4 C fresh Parmesan cheese
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 C pinenuts, toasted
1/2-3/4C extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
a few cracks pepper


DIRECTIONS
Place everything but olive oil in a food processor. (For the salt, start with 1/4 t and add the rest at the end. The final amount really depends on the saltiness of your cheese, so give it a taste first.) Give it a few pulses until things are chopped up.

Slowly pour in olive oil while processor is running until you reach the consistency you want. It’s gorgeous and green and perfectly wonderful! Eat it right away or store in the fridge or freezer.

I also highly recommend their Cheesy Garlic-Herb bread recipe.  I made two loaves of my artisan bread - one for eating with fresh pesto right away and the other to store and make the herb bread the following night. YUMMY!

Peach Salsa

We had some fabulous peaches this year. I had the bright idea to use some jalapenos and cilantro from our garden and make peach salsa. This recipe from Two Peas & Their Pod was just the ticket.


INGREDIENTS
4 large peaches diced, pitted and skinned removed
1/2 of 1 red onion, diced (* I used a sweet onion)
1-2 jalapenos, diced
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped
Juice of 1 large lime
Salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, add the peaches, onion, jalapeno, cilantro, and fresh lime juice. Stir well. Season with salt and pepper.

Enjoy!

Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

This is my favorite recipe for chicken enchiladas.  I found it on allrecipes, one of many variations they have listed. It's a no-fail, comfort food that we've enjoyed for years.



Ingredients
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon margarine
1 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 cups chopped cooked chicken breast
1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers, drained
8 (8 inch) flour tortillas
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese


Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• In a small bowl mix the soup and sour cream; set aside.
• Melt margarine in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Add onion and chili powder, and saute until tender. Stir in the chicken, chile peppers, and 2 tablespoons of the soup mixture. Cook and stir until heated through.
• Spread 1/2 cup of the soup mixture in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Spoon about 1/4 cup of the chicken mixture down the center of each tortilla. Roll up tortillas, and place, seam-side-down, in the baking dish. Spoon remaining soup mixture on top, and sprinkle with cheese.
• Bake 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until bubbly and lightly browned.

Serves: 8

Blue Cheese Salad Dressing

Not for the dieter but you can try to use yogurt and/or lite mayo/sour cream to bring the calorie count down:

3/4 c. sour cream (or try with yogurt)

1 1/3 c. mayo

1 t. Worcestershire Sauce

1/2 t. dry mustard

1/2 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. black pepper

4 ounces blue cheese, crumled

Mix all together, chill then serve.

Chipotle Chicken Tacos

We've taken to watching Cook's Country on PBS. I love Netflix, but it is not real big on the cooking shows! This recipe looked SO yummy that we had to try it. I will be hard-pressed to make tacos any other way now. They are THAT good.  Here is what we did:

INGREDIENTS:

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 garlic cloves , minced
2 teaspoons minced chipotle chilies in adobo sauce *
1/2 cup orange juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
3/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 teaspoon yellow mustard
Salt and pepper
12 (6-inch) flour tortillas

DIRECTIONS:

1. Melt butter in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic and chipotle and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in orange juice, Worcestershire, and ½ cup cilantro and bring to boil. (At this point, the original recipe calls for poaching the chicken  for about 15 minutes, but I have NEVER had any luck with this method. ) Instead, I put the chicken into my crock pot, poured the skillet contents on top and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

2. Pour sauce from crock pot into skillet and heat to medium-high. Cook until liquid is reduced to ¼ cup, about 5 minutes. Off heat, whisk in mustard. Using 2 forks, shred chicken into bite-sized pieces and return to skillet. Add remaining cilantro to skillet and toss until well combined. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with tortillas.


Serves: 6

* Note: This recipe only calls for a small portion of the can of chipotle peppers. I portioned the rest onto wax paper covered cookie sheet, flash froze and then put them into a plastic bags for future use. This recipe is so good I know that they won't be in there too long!

Mushroom Sage Pasta

For Mother's Day this year, I really wanted some good Italian food. Playing it frugal, Doug made me a five-star meal and we enjoyed a fabulous dinner with wine and artisan bread for a fraction of the cost of a restaurant. Sometimes, if I'm craving a restaurant meal, I'll look up the menu and then try to find a similar recipe online.  This one was found on TastyKitchen. It's not an inexpensive dish, but if you were to calculate out how much Maggiano's would charge, it's a steal!
Ingredients

• 1-½ cup Dried Mushrooms (shiitake Or Porcini)
• 1-¼ cup Warm Water
• ½ pounds Bacon, Fried And Diced (optional)
• 1 whole Large Yellow Onion
• 6 cloves Garlic
• 12 ounces, weight Farfalle Pasta (dry)
• 2 Tablespoons Fresh Sage Leaves, Chopped, Plus Extra Whole Or Chopped Leaves For Garnish
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• 1 Tablespoon Oil
• 16 ounces, weight Sliced White Mushrooms
• Salt And Black Pepper To Taste
• 1 cup Dry White Wine
• 8 ounces, weight Mascarpone
• 5 ounces, weight Gorgonzola
• 2 teaspoons Cornstarch
• 1 Tablespoon Water

Preparation Instructions

1. Soak dried mushrooms for 20-30 minutes in the warm water. While they are soaking, dice and fry the bacon, if you’re using it. When it’s crispy, remove it from the pan onto a paper towel-lined plate to drain.
2. Chop the onion, garlic, and sage.
3. Remove the soaking mushrooms from the liquid and squeeze them out–but save the soaking liquid! Chop the soaked mushrooms up nice and fine.
4. Put the pasta water on to boil, and salt it liberally. When it’s boiling, add your pasta and cook according to package directions.
5. Heat the oil and butter together over medium-high until the butter is melted. Add the onion and diced (previously dried) mushrooms, and cook for about 8 minutes.
6. Add the garlic, fresh mushrooms, and sage. Salt generously, and sprinkle in black pepper as well. It’s important to season well at this stage so that the button mushrooms absorb some flavor and release their liquid. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
7. Then add the wine and the soaking liquid from the dried mushrooms. Turn the heat to medium-low and simmer gently for 5 minutes. Your pasta should be cooking away by now. Check in on it every now and then.
8. Turn the heat on the mushrooms to low, and stir in both the mascarpone and the gorgonzola. Taste and re-season. My sauce is usually a little thin at this point, so mix the cornstarch and water together into a slurry and add this into the pot to thicken it.
9. Drain the pasta when it’s done, and add it directly into the mushroom sauce. If you’re using bacon, this is the time to add it in. Stir until it’s incorporated, and serve! Garnish with whole sage leaves or some more chopped sage.

Serves: 6

The Best Chicken Rice Casserole

I've had this recipe in the hopper for a long time.  Last night was the night we finally tried it out.  It took longer than the recipe called for but it was SO worth it! This is the ultimate comfort food.  I originally found this on recipezaar, which is now food.com.  

INGREDIENTS

4 tablespoons butter

1 medium onion, chopped

1 stalk celery, chopped

1 carrots, chopped (*1 used 2 carrots)

4 garlic cloves, chopped fine

1 teaspoon seasoning salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon mild chili powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (* or red pepper flakes)

4 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 1/2 cups chicken stock

3 1/2 cups whole milk

1 1/2 cups long-grain rice (*I used one cup long-grain brown rice and 1/2 cup wild rice, since it was what I had on hand)

2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cubed (* I used 3 cups cooked chicken, thawed from the freezer)

2 2/3 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

1 cup green beans

2/3 cup breadcrumbs

2/3 cup cheddar cheese or 2/3 cup parmesan cheese, shredded

2 teaspoons garlic powder

DIRECTIONS

Melt butter in a large dutch oven over medium heat and cook onions, celery and carrots until soft but not brown. Add garlic, seasoned salt, pepper and chile powders and cook until very fragrant. Add flour and mix well. Cook until starting to color.

Slowly whisk milk and stock into vegetable flour mixture, stirring constantly. Turn heat to medium high and continue to whisk as mixture comes to a simmer. Taste and adjust seasoning. Add rice to sauce and lower heat to medium low. Cook until the rice absorbs most of the liquid and is tender, stirring occasionally. Will take about 20 - 60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add chicken to the rice and sauce mixture. Cut green beans into 1 inch lengths and stir into the mixture as well. Cook approximately 4 minutes or until the chicken is no longer pink on the outside. Stir in 2 2/3 cups cheddar cheese.

Pour mixture into a greased 9 x 13 inch casserole, or two 8x8 inch casseroles.

Combine bread crumbs, cheese and garlic powder and sprinkle evenly over top of the casserole. Place in hot oven and cook for 20 to 25 minutes or until topping is browned and casserole is bubbling.

You really should cool for 10 minutes before cutting. You could garnish with parsley and lemon wedges. Or not :).

SERVES: 6

Banana Chocolate Ice Cream

Ok - so this is NOT real ice cream.  Technically it may be a sorbet? But it is very yummy (provided you like bananas) and really satisfies my ice cream craving without all the calories and sugar.  I've tried a couple different variations of this "banana ice cream" and this one from Always Order Dessert is my favorite. See my modifications below:



Ingredients:
3 ripe bananas
3 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 squirt of chocolate syrup (sugar-free if possible)

Directions:
Peel and slice the bananas into small chunks. Spread on a tray (*on wax paper) and freeze overnight or for at least 4 hours.

In a food processor or blender, combine the frozen banana pieces, peanut butter, and cocoa. Begin to puree.  Add one quick squirt of chocolate syrup to help the process along. Puree until smooth, pausing to scrape down sides and push down banana chunks as needed.  This may take a few minutes!

 Eat right away (it will have a soft-serve like texture), or refreeze for 2 hours to give it a more scoopable texture.

Store in freezer in an air-tight freezer safe container. Can be made up to 48 hours in advance.

Yield: 3 servings

Easy Cinnamon Roll Muffins

I was looking for a new recipe to bring to my mom's group at church for breakfast. Cinnamon rolls are so yummy, but time-consuming and not the easiest to make in large quantity.  These muffins from Joy the Baker caught my eye.  They taste as good as they look! I think having the yeast in them makes them more authentic.


INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
4 tsp active dry or rapid rise yeast
2/3 cup warm milk (100-110F; low fat is fine)
3 tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg

Filling/Topping
2 tbsp butter, room temperature
2/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch ground cardamom (optional)

Icing  
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tbsp milk or cream

DIRECTIONS:
* DO NOT PREHEAT YOUR OVEN!!!


In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Dissolve the yeast in a measuring cup filled with the warmed milk, then stir milk mixture, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and egg into the flour mixture. Mix well, until very smooth. Divide evenly between well greased and/or papered muffin tin and let rest for 15 minutes. (*My silicon muffin pans worked well for these as the sugar filling that bubbled out was very sticky on the metal pan but popped right out of the silicon one.) (*Also, these will rise, so do not overfill. Make it come out to an even dozen.)

While the dough rests, mix together butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and cardamom in a small bowl using a fork until all the butter has been incorporated into the sugar and mixture is crumbly.  Sprinkle evenly on top of rested dough and press the mixture down into the dough with your fingertips (or swirl in with a spatula.) (*Be careful not to leave dents in the muffins or they will come out a bit sunken. The ones where I tried to cover back over the sugar with dough came out the prettiest.)

Place pan into a cold oven, then set the oven temperature to 350F.


Bake for about 20 minutes, until bread is lightly browned at the edges and the center of the bread springs back when lightly pressed. Some of the sugar mixture on top may still be bubbling.

Cool for at least 30 minutes before whisking the powdered sugar and milk together to form an icing and drizzling it onto the bread.

Serve warm. Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave.


Yield: 1 dozen muffins

Brownie Biscotti

One of my  kitchen "bucket list" items is homemade biscotti.  This recipe from AllRecipes.com caught my eye and I decided to give it a go.  I think I got about 16 biscotti from this recipe, but I should have gotten more, since I sliced them a bit too thick.  These were a special treat with my coffee and something I will make again and again!


INGREDIENTS:
1/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose f lour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate
chips
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 egg yolk, beaten
1 tablespoon water


DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease baking sheets, or line with
parchment paper. (* or use a Silpat)
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one
at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the f lour, cocoa and baking powder; stir into
the creamed mixture until well blended. Dough will be stiff, so mix in the last bit by
hand. Mix in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
3. Divide dough into two equal parts. Shape into 9x2x1 inch loaves. Place onto baking
sheet 4 inches apart. Brush with mixture of water and yolk.
4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until firm. Cool on baking sheet for
30 minutes.
5. Using a serrated knife, slice the loaves diagonally into 1 inch slices. Return the slices
to the baking sheet, placing them on their sides. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes on each
side, or until dry. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Strawberry Shortcake Scones

I know Mom just posted a strawberry shortcake recipe, which is essentially a yellow cake mix.  That is how the Doug's family has always eaten strawberry shortcake, and I admit that it is super yummy. This is a totally different animal.  Most strawberry shortcake recipes I've tried are either too dry or too biscuit-like, OR they are too sweet and cake-like. This recipe from Let's Dish is very close to a scone recipe, and I think it is perfect. You can shape it into a large round cake and cut into wedges for scones, or shape into individual squares and enjoy with strawberries and cream.  Either way, it's a new favorite. 


Ingredients
Shortcakes
2 1/2 cups flour
1/3 cup cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/3 cup + 1 tablespoon sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup milk
Strawberries
1 1/2 pounds fresh strawberries
1/4 cup sugar
Whipped cream
1 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons sugar
* Or just use Cool Whip, like me!
Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  In a food processor, combine flour, butter, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder and salt.  Process until the mixture resembles coarse meal.  Add the milk and pulse just until moistened, four or five times.  *This is VERY messy! Be sure to take your rings off, as the dough was very sticky when I started to work with it. 


Turn dough onto a floured surface.  With floured hands, gently pat dough into a 4x8 inch rectangle, about 1 inch thick. Sprinkle with remaining sugar.  Using a large knife, dusted with flour, cut the dough into 8 equal squares.  Transfer to a lightly greased baking sheet (or use a Silpat!).  


Bake until golden, about 25 minutes.  Cool on the baking sheet.  


Meanwhile, hull and quarter the strawberries. Toss with 1/4 cup sugar in a medium bowl.  Let stand until syrupy, at least 20 minutes, or up to one day covered and refrigerated.  


In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream until soft peaks form. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar and beat until soft peaks return.  Do not over beat. 


Carefully split cooled biscuits with a serrated knife.  Layer bottom half of biscuit with strawberries, then whipped cream.  Replace top half of biscuit and serve.


Serves: 8

I Believe in Fondue too!

Two fondues, both alike in delectable deliciousness,

In fair fondue pot, where we dip our spears...

Classic Fondue

1/2 lb. Swiss Cheese

1/2 lb. Gruyere Cheese (I used a little more Gruyere and a little less Swiss)

2 T. cornstarch

1 clove garlic, minced

1 T. fresh lemon juice

1 c. dry white wine

Dash of nutmeg

Directions: Toss cheeses with cornstarch until coated. Combine all ingredients in fondue pot. Melt and serve.

Silky Chocolate Fondue
Ingredients:
8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped or use chips
1/2 cup caramel ice cream topping
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
Directions:
In small (2-qt.) saucepan, bring 1 inch of water to a simmer over low heat. In double boiler, combine chocolate, ice cream topping and cream; mix well. Set double boiler over simmering water in saucepan. Heat chocolate mixture 7-10 minutes or until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth, stirring occasionally.
Serve fondue immediately with assorted dippers.
Yield: 1 1/3 cups (10 servings)