Month: September 2013

Beef · Breads · Meats

Great & Simple French Dip Sandwiches

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

Today while at the grocery store , I saw bolero rolls, 2/$1 so bought 2 and decided that tonight we would have French Dip Sandwiches. I wadddled over to the cheese/sandwich meat aisle and picked up a package of Oscar Meyer sliced roast beef, Havarti cheese. Proceeded well, you are probably not really wanting to hear about each aisle I went down, so will just give you the recipe. We just finished these and Randy (oops, Peter Pumpkin) and I both agreed that they were delicious sandwiches. So try them next Fri night when you are tired and not wanting to cook.

1 package Oscar Meyer sliced roast beef

2 slices Havarti cheese

1/2 green bell pepper

1/2 onion, sliced

1/2 teas garlic powder

1 package McCormick or Lawry’s au jus gravy mix

2 bolero rolls (or sub rolls)

Butter

Prepare the au jus according to directions. Put gravy in small saucepan and add roast beef. Cook over low heat while you are sautéing the bell pepper and onion.

In a small skillet, melt about 1 tables butter. Add the sliced bell pepper and onion and cook until they are both tender. While you are stirring them, sprinkle the garlic powder over it.

Slice the rolls in half (but leave them attached on one side) Butter each side. Put rolls on a baking sheet. Place roast beef and veggies on roll. Place two thin slices of Havarti cheese  on the veggies on each one and place in a preheated 425 oven to melt cheese. (about 2 minutes)

Serve with au jus

Breakfast · Cakes · Holiday Fare

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Strusel Coffee Cake

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

Tomorrow morning we are having several friends over for breakfast and I wanted to serve a coffee cake.  I found two different ones so I combined them and it is in the oven at this moment. Cannot wait to try a bite (or a huge piece)

The cake portion is from Taste of Home

2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups canned pumpkin

1/4 cup oil

1/2 teas vanilla extract

2 1/4 cups flour

2 teas ground cinnamon

1 teas baking soda

1/2 teas salt

Filling:

1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese, softened

1 egg

1 tables sugar

Topping (this is from a new cookbook that a friend of mine just completed, thank you Mary)

Crumble Topping

 1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup flour

1 teas ground cinnamon

4 tablespoons butter, cold

Directions

In a large bowl, beat sugar, eggs, pumpkin, oil and vanilla. Combine the flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt; add to egg mixture and mix well. Pour into a greased 13×9″ baking dish.

In a small bowl, beat cream cheese, egg and sugar until smooth. Drop by tablespoons over batter and swirl into pumpkin mixture with a knife. Combine topping ingredients and cut up butter with pastry blender or 2 forks until mixture is crumbly.  Sprinkle over cake mixture and bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Serves 12-15

Beef · Breads · Meats

Comfort Food For Dinner

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

IMG_1289IMG_1288

Last evening we had some dear friends over for dinner. Knowing that they had had a very emotional week,  I wanted them to really feel wanted and loved. When trying to decide what to make, I began to think of how I used to love walking in the door when I was growing up to the smell of a roast baking in the oven and the comfort I received at sitting down to a table that had all my favorites, roast and gravy, mashed potatoes, carrots, green beans and hot bread. So that’s what I made last night. I tried something a little different with the roast and the bread and because both were scarfed up quickly, I knew I needed to share the recipes today.

Chuck Roast

1 (2-4 pound) chuck roast

1 tables oil

1 onion, sliced

1 package of brown gravy mix

1 regular size can cream of mushroom soup

1-2  tables (use 1 for a 2 lb but 2 tables for the 4 pound) Kikomon Soy Sauce

Preheat oven to 300. Heat the oil over medium heat in an oven proof baking Dutch oven and brown your roast on both sides. Sprinkle garlic powder (not salt) over each side of the roast before browning. Sprinkle 1 teas pepper over roast, after you have flipped it from browning on one side. Add 1 tables dried parsley over top of roast.  Place the sliced onion over the roast. Then sprinkle the Kikomon sauce over the top. Spoon the cream of mushroom soup over the top and then mix the brown gravy packet with 1 1/2 cups water; stir until blended, then pour over roast. Place in preheated 300 degree oven and bake for 4 hours. The last 2 hours, I cut up 5 carrots and placed in the pot.

When ready to serve, remove the meat and carrots and if gravy needs anymore thickening, add 1 tables cornstarch to 1/2 cup water, stirring until it is blended. Allow gravy mixture to get to a boil, over medium heat and stirring constantly, slowly pour cornstarch mixture into gravy and stir until thick. Pour into serving bowl. The gravy that this makes is so rich and oh so good.

Bread

Using 1 large can of Grand Biscuits, cut each biscuit into 4th’s. Melt 1/2 package of Boursin Garlic & Fine Herbs Cheese with 1/2 stick butter in the microwave for 30 sec, or until melted. Stir to blend. Take each biscuit piece and roll in butter mixture; place in a lightly greased baking dish (I used a 11×7″  baking dish) and bake at 350 until the tops are golden brown. Serve immediately.

Am posting a picture of the cheese so you will know what to look for. It is found in the specialty cheese section of the grocery stores.

Beef · Casseroles · Holiday Fare · Meats

Beef Lombardi

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

There is nothing much I enjoy more (well, actually I guess there is a lot more that I enjoy, such as: grandchildren, traveling, shopping, baking, AGT, Candy Crush to name a few) than getting out old magazines from years gone by to search out the tried and true recipes. Peter Pumpkin lets me keep the magazines in “seasons” in plastic tubs which are stored away in the infamous storage shed about 5 miles from our house. When fall comes rolling around, I pull out the old ones, some going back as far as the 90’s. Doesn’t it seem like it was just the 90’s, but seems weird that that is now considered “far back”? Well, last night while waiting for Forte to sing on AGT, I was thumbing through a 2003 October Southern Living and found several recipes that sound scrumptious. It’s interesting as different seasons of our lives roll around, different recipes appeal to us than they would have before. I cannot believe that I didn’t even look at this one, or if I did, my memory fails me (which since I am still so young & hip, I’m sure it is not that). Guys will love this because of the name, goes perfectly for those Monday night football game meals.

Serves 6
1 lb lean ground beef (or turkey)
1 (14 1/2 oz) can chopped tomatoes
1 (10 oz) can diced tomatoes and green chiles
2 teas sugar
2 teas salt
1/4 teas pepper
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 (6 oz) package medium egg noodles
6 green onions, chopped
1 cup sour cream
1 cup (4 oz) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1 cup (4 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese
Garnish: fresh parsley sprigs
Cook beef of turkey in a large skillet over medium heat 5-7 minutes, stirring until it crumbles and is no longer pink. Drain
Stir in chopped tomatoes and next 4 ingredients; cook 5 minutes. Add tomato paste and bay leaf and simmer 30 minutes.
Cook egg noodles according to package directions; drain.
Stir together egg noodles, chopped green onions and sour cream until blended.
Place noodle mixture in bottom of a lightly greased 13×9 baking dish. Discard bay leaf and the top with meat mixture; sprinkle evenly with cheeses.
Bake, covered with foil at 350 for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 5 more minutes. Garnish with parsley, if desired.
*This freezes up to 1 month if desired, before baking. To bake, thaw completely in refrigerator overnight and bake as directed.
*To lighten use fat free sour cream and reduced fat cheddar cheese and reduce amount of cheese on top to 1/2 each type. (but really, if you make this during football season, you are using so many calories jumping up and down for your team, you can afford to use the real stuff)

Desserts · Fruit · Holiday Fare

Mini Berry Cobblers

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

There is nothing quite like walking into a home filled with the scents of something baking in the oven. These berry cobblers are quick and just made to serve individual desserts to put a wow factor to the ending of a delicious meal. Taken from last years Southern Living, they give the web site where you can buy the individual mini iron skillets for $10/each. I have so many individual dishes already that because cabinet space is so limited in these cute little “turn of the half century” condo’s, I  don’t want to have to head out to the garage to retrieve any thing else before baking, so will be using ramekins.

Serves 12

18 oz mixed fresh berries (4 cups)

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoon butter, melted

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 1/2 cups flour

1/3 cup sugar

3 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teas salt

2/3 cup cold butter, cubed

1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400. Toss together first 4 ingredients in a bowl. Whisk together the four and next 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Cut cold butter into flour mixture with pastry blender or fork until crumbly. Add buttermilk, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead 3-4 times. Pat into a 6×4″ (1″ thick) rectangle. Cut into 6 squares; cut squares diagonally into 12 triangles.

Arrange 12 (3 1/2″) lightly greased miniature cast-iron skillets on an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Divide berry mixture among skillets (or ramekins). Place 1 dough triangle over berry mixture in each container.

Bake at 400 for 20-24 minutes or until fruit bubbles and crust is golden brown. Cool 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temp.

(if you use the ramekins, you can use 1/2 of the triangles for bottom of ramekins and use the other 1/2 for the top, making 6 individual pies. You might not use all of the berry mixture if you do this.

Daily Thoughts

Styrofoam Plates Lead to Marriage Counseling

Chocolate Castles1 Comment

It really is all my fault. I should never have ask poor Randy to take out the garbage. Really. Everything was going along splendidly all weekend until last night. We had worked together bringing home all our fall pumpkins and enjoyed a hamburger for lunch on Saturday.  We drove down to the coast for a wonderful seafood dinner and attended church, having lunch with some friends yesterday. But then….after emptying out several plastic containers of old books and making a huge stash to be thrown out, our romantic work weekend came to a halt.

As the sun began to set and we both decided it was time to eat, I told him that if he would take the garbage out, I would get dinner ready. That’s just what us wonderful wives do, we feed our men. We both had worked feverlshly all day carrying the huge containers up the stairs and I was now exhausted.  So I quickly got out two Styrofoam plates out of the cabinet and nuked our left over Mexican food we had not finished at lunch. Grabbing forks from the drawer, I set the foam plates down on the table as he was walking back in from playing garbage guy. I was so proud that I had managed to nuke two plates of food, filled two plastic glasses with tea and had them sitting on the table by the time he walked in the door. Yes, I did all that in 5 minutes and thought to myself, “what a gal”. We sat down, said the blessing and he began our table talk. “well, I noticed that our neighbors downstairs are having dinner by candlelight on their china AGAIN tonight. Isn’t that nice? Oh, look, here is our leftovers from lunch, combined with the half melted Styrofoam plates blended with the cheese enchiladas. But, it’s ok, at least we aren’t eating with plastic forks, AND…we have brewed tea. What more can a guy ask for.” OK, Mr. Wonderful, what is your point? Does he not know that the couple downstairs are still in the honeymoon stage? She is still trying to get him to put a ring on her finger. If that were still my goal, I would be using my fine china also. But we have passed through the fine china stage and am on to Styrofoam already. After all, I am so busy writing a cooking and hospitality blog that I just don’t have time to do all that fancy stuff. Does he remember that? I guess not. But, being the great little wife that I am, tonight, we will be eating our frozen TV dinners with a candle on the table. I might even get out the nice pottery, but I’m not going to go to storage to get the china. After all, the rings are already on my fingers and I don”t want our china broken if he makes any more remarks like the one last night. Besides the heavy pottery plates would make better impressions.

Soups · Vegetables

Green Vegetable Soup

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

Don’t turn up your nose just yet. Think, environmentally  green and clean. We have green cleaning products, green energy and now, here is green soup. Not only will you feel clean, but hopefully energized.

Serves 4

3/4 cup uncooked orzo

4 teaspoons olive oil, divided

1 1/2 cups thinly sliced leeks (about 2)

1 cup thinly sliced celery

1 tablespoon minced garlic, divided

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 1/4 cups unsalted chicken stock

1 cup water

3 thyme sprigs

1 cup frozen green peas

1 cup green beans, cut into 1″ pieces

1 (15 oz) can cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

2 cups baby spinach leaves

2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese

2 teaspoons grated lemon rind

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat. While pasta cooks, heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add 2 teas oil; swirl to coat. Add leeks, celery, 2 teas garlic and salt; sauté 5 minutes. Add stock, 1 cup water and thyme. Cover bring to a boil. Add peas and beans. Simmer, uncovered 4 minutes. Discard thyme. Stir in pasta and 1 cup spinach.

Place 1 cup spinach, basil, cheese, rind, juice 1 teas garlic and 2 teas oil in a food processor; process until smooth. Divide soup among 4 bowls; top with spinach-basil pesto.

 

Holiday Fare · Meats

Slow-Cooker Cranberry-Orange Pork Roast

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

2 Tablespoons oil

1 flat boneless pork loin roast (about 4 pounds)

1 can (14 oz) whole berry cranberry sauce

1/2 cup Kraft Classic Catalina Dressing

1 tablespoon less-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon cornstarch

1 teaspoon zest and 1/4 cup juice from 1 orange

Heat oil in large skillet on medium-high heat. Add meat and cook 4-5 minutes on each side or until browned on both sides. Transfer meat to slow cooker.

Mix cranberry sauce, dressing and soy sauce; pour over meat. Cover with lid. Cook on low 4 to 5 hours. Remove meat from cooker, reserving liquid in the slow cooker. Whisk remaining ingredients in small bowl until blended. Stir into liquid. Cook covered on high 10 minutes or until thickened.

Slice meat and place on serving platter. Drizzle with some of the sauce. Serve remaining sauce on the side.

*For best results do not cook meat on “high” setting in crock pot.

Makes 12-14 servings

Daily Thoughts

Prelude to Fall

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

It is so easy for me to tell when fall has arrived, even though the temps are still in the 90’s. The minute I begin to diligently sit all evening trying to find new recipes for the holidays is the first clue. The second clue is when I simply cannot stay out of my kitchen. Even when I know a new Hobby Lobby is opening about 45 minutes away, I just cannot keep my head out of the oven, oops, I mean the kitchen.  While I am waiting for the carrot cake to cool before frosting, I will post a new recipe that I know my sister-in-law will rave about. It has two of her favorite ingredients, cranberries and pork roast. Perfect for the Thanksgiving and Christmas family dinners. While writing this, I was just thinking about how different foods define different parts of the year and specific holidays.

January is black-eyed pea month

February is chocolate month (actually every month is chocolate month in this household)

March is when we start thinking about coconut cakes and Irish coffee

April is ham and deviled eggs (making use of the Easter eggs)

May is picnic baskets, filled with your favorite Memorial Day fried chicken

June is, well, I couldn’t think of what food is associated with June, so I went to Google and it just told me that June is Natl Candy Month. Who knew? So June is right up there at the top of my favorite months. I was getting ready to say that, since nothing came to mind when I thought of June, that would be my month to loose weight before the picnic month and the ice cream month, but never mind, now that I know it is candy month. Diet will have to wait till some other time.

July 4th, hot dogs, potato salad and flag cakes

August is National Ice Cream month (my hubby’s fav month)

September is Labor Day patio barbeques

October is pumpkin breads, pumpkin cookies, peanut-chocolate cakes decorated with candy corn

When you see the word November anywhere, your mind immediately sees a stuffed turkey

December is visions of sugar plums, every type of cookie known to man, pork roast or standing rib roast, all dancing around in our heads.
Why did I get carried away with this? All I know is that from this day forward my focus will be food. Cobbles and cinnamon, pies and popovers, cakes and cookies, stews and soups. What an adventure lies ahead this fall as we begin to “gather around the table” giving thanks for the scents and smells of this fabulous season. While you’re at it, give thanks for the gift of smell. It is one of those gifts that we take for granted. Wouldn’t we miss being able to just walk through the door with wonderful aromas to welcome us out of sometimes a very hectic and hurried world.

Since this ended up being a rather drawn out “daily thought” I will post the pork roast recipe separately.

Cakes · Daily Thoughts · Desserts · Fruit · Holiday Fare

Apple-Spice Cake

Chocolate CastlesLeave a comment

My precious little hubby came home from the Nutritionist yesterday upset because he hadn’t lost the weight he had hoped. We finished dinner and found our way to our matching recliners (they are disguised as wing backs so people just walking in the living room won’t know we are old), when he proceeded to ask me what we were having for dessert. I looked at him and reminded him that he was just complaining an hour ago about not losing weight. He reminded me that that was an hour ago and he was wanting dessert. I hated to tell him that the dessert that I had made was long gone. It had been delivered to some friends and it was too late to make anything last night. He rummaged around our pantry until he found cookies.  This morning I promised him I would have dessert awaiting his arrival today. I found this recipe on the back of the Duncan Hines Spice Cake Mix box and have it in the oven as we speak (actually as I post). Am adding my own frosting as I still just cannot do canned frosting. It has a can of apple pie filling in it and I did add a half teaspoon of ground ginger to the batter. The house smells divine right now and cannot wait to  try it.

1 Duncan Hines Spice Cake mix

3 eggs

1/3 cup oil

1/2 teas ground ginger

1 (18 oz) can apple pie filling (not just the canned apples, but the “pie filling” apples

Frosting  of your choice (but please don’t tell me if you use the canned, I don’t want to know that)! ha

Combine eggs, cake mix, oil and mix for 2 minutes. Add can of apples.

1 cup chopped nuts (opt) can be added if you like

Pour into a greased 9×13 baking pan and bake until knife inserted in middle comes out clean. Cool and Frost

Browned Butter Frosting

1 cup butter

1 box (16 oz) powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk (might need a little more, but add by tables as needed)

1 teas vanilla

Cook butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, 6-8 min or until butter begins to turn a golden brown. Remove pan from heat immediately and pour butter into a small bowl. Cover and chill 1 hour and butter begins to solidify. Beat butter at medium speed with mixer until fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar, alternately with milk, beginning and ending with sugar. Beat mixture at low speed until well blended. Add vanilla. Spread over cooled cake. Sprinkle with chopped pecans if desired.