Pumpkin Pie Smoothies

I think our blender gets used more than any other kitchen appliance we own. Jared and I make smoothies probably 3 or 4 times a week. We just buy lots of fresh fruit when it's on a good deal and freeze it, so we can turn it into smoothies whenever we want. We typically stick to bananas, strawberries, and other normal smoothie fruits, but tonight I decided to be adventurous. I made this to go along with dinner and it was just like drinking pumpkin pie. But better. And a whole lot better for you too. I really just threw together some leftovers in my fridge that I needed to use up, along with some other things, but somehow it turned out fabulous. I'm sure you could be pretty flexible with this recipe, but here's what I did (all measurements are just very rough guesses). Oh, and all the ingredients should be cold, or you'll need to add some ice.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie (Serves 2)
1 zucchini, peeled and chopped
1/2 cup (maybe it was more) canned pumpkin puree
1 frozen banana (using frozen bananas makes the texture really creamy)
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup milk
Sugar to taste
Cinnamon and nutmeg, to taste (probably 1/2 tsp. of cinnamon and 1/4 tsp. of nutmeg should do)

Blend everything up in a blender until smooth, and adjust to taste if you think it needs anything.

Pasta Salad

Dinner tonight was delicious, so I thought I should share it. The combination of all the ingredients just went perfectly together, and Jared and I agreed that it had a very fresh, vibrant flavor. Of course I didn't actually measure anything, so here's the rough estimate:

3 or so cups of cooked macaroni or other small pasta
2-3 tablespoons oil
1/4 cup lemon juice (you might want to start out with less and add more at the end to taste)
A couple shakes each of salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes, and basil to taste (you really don't    need very much salt at all)
About 2 cups of fresh spinach leaves
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 large tomato, diced
1 avocado, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
1/3 cup cubed mozzarella cheese
A couple shakes of parmesan cheese

While the pasta is cooking, combine the oil, lemon juice, and seasonings in a medium bowl and whisk together. Add the pasta and spinach and stir it up. Zap the pasta/spinach in the microwave for about a minute to slightly wilt the spinach. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir it so everything is coated in the dressing. Taste it and add more seasonings if needed. Serve at room temperature.

Tomato Eggs

I love Jared's grandpa. He's just the cutest old man, and we became friends pretty quickly over a few games of Settler's of Zarahemla. I don't think I've ever seen him cook anything because Grandma's so good at it, but there is one dish that he always makes when the extended family's over. Tomato eggs. It's basically stewed tomatoes with poached eggs that you put on top of toast. I've had his tomato eggs for breakfast a few times now and I really like them. Tonight I had the inspiration to make them for dinner, so I surprised Jared with it. I don't have Grandpa's recipe so I came up with my own and they turned out pretty good, and pretty similar to his I think. Here's my adaption:

1/2 onion, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 cup chicken broth or water
A couple shakes each of salt, pepper, basil, thyme, oregano, and red pepper flakes
3 eggs
Toast

Saute the onions in the olive oil over medium-high heat in a medium saucepan until the onions are nice and tender. Add the garlic and saute for a couple more minutes. Add the tomatoes, broth, and spices and let simmer, uncovered, on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. Crack the eggs and gently drop them into the tomato mixture, being careful not to break the yolks. Don't stir anything from this point on. Cover the pot and let it simmer until the eggs are fully cooked, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile make 3 or 4 pieces of toast. When the eggs are done, dish up an egg with a a good amount of tomatoes onto a piece of toast and enjoy! If you don't like the idea of soggy toast, feel free to eat them separately, it will still be delicious.

Holy Peaches!

I never realized how delicious fresh peaches are. They are simply amazing, at least when you pick them right off the tree. My problem before now is that I've always bought them from the grocery store, and they're usually kind of dry and bland. But this summer we loaded up on fresh peaches from a tree just 2 blocks from our apartment. We picked four whole grocery bags full! We've probably been eating at least 2 peaches a day each for the past week, and had tons and tons left. Most of them ended up in the freezer tonight, and we're going to turn some more into jam tomorrow. But we still have another bag of them left. We've used them in cereal, smoothies, oatmeal, and on waffles. Does anyone have any good peach recipes?

Chocolate Buttermilk Cake

I know the thought of buttermilk in cake sounds weird, but trust me on this one. This cake is delicious. My parents left us with a carton of buttermilk a few weeks ago, and of course the only thing I could think to use it for was pancakes. Luckily we found this awesome recipe on allrecipes.com when we had to make a dessert for something.

     2 cups white sugar

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 cup butter

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup water

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/3 cup milk

3 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup butter or margarine, 1/3 cup cocoa, and water. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted.
2. In a large mixing bowl stir together sugar, flour, soda, and cinnamon. Add cocoa mixture to flour mixture, and blend. Beat together eggs and buttermilk, and blend into batter thoroughly. Stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Pour batter into ungreased 9 x 13 inch pan.
3. Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
4. To Make Frosting: Five minutes before cake is done, combine 1/2 cup butter, 1/3 cup cocoa, and milk in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, and simmer about 3 minutes; remove from heat. Stir in confectioners' sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla, blending until smooth. Spread immediately over hot cake in pan.

Chicken Pot Pie

Don't you just love the week after Thanksgiving when you've got all those awesome turkey leftovers that seem to go into about half a dozen meals? So do I. We don't have any turkey leftovers, but we did roast a couple chickens for our cousin dinner last night. Happily we had almost a whole one leftover. So what did we decide to do with it tonight? Homemade chicken pot pie. Mmm was it good. I attempted to make a dessert pie a few weeks ago and it seemed like everything that could have gone wrong with it, did go wrong. Somehow it turned out okay, but I made sure not to make any of the same mistakes with my crust this time (like forgetting to turn on the oven, only to discover it sitting cold and pale half an hour later). Nope. This time it turned out perfectly flaky and delicious. Jared made up the gravy, which we mixed some cooked veggies and chicken into for the filling. But here's the recipe for the crust, along with some personal tips I've learned or discovered on my own.

Pastry             2 ½ C.  pastry flour          3/4 C. shortening

                        3/4 tsp. salt                    8 to 10 Tablespoons (1/2 c. plus 2 T.) ice cold water

1.         Combine flour and salt in a mixing bowl.

2.         Gently cut in shortening with a pastry blender until pea sized. If you don't have a pastry cutter, use 2 butter knives, one in each fist, and slide them past each other, cutting the shortening into the flour.

3.         Sprinkle 6 tablespoons of the cold water over flour mixture, tossing lightly with a fork or rubber scraper. Add the remaining water 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing with a fork, and press to the side of the bowl until all is moistened. Use just enough water for the dough to hold together.

4.         Divide dough in half, and gently pat into 2 lightly flattened balls. (Don’t over-work your dough at this point. You should just gently gather the dough into two slightly flattened pieces, not two tightly compressed dough balls.) Wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

5.         When you're ready to roll out the dough, spread a long sheet of plastic wrap or parchment paper on the counter (about 2 feet long) and put one of the dough balls toward one end. Fold the plastic wrap in half over the dough, so it is over and under it. This will prevent it from sticking to the counter and the rolling pin. Roll the dough out into a large circle. To measure it, take your pie pan upside down and hold it over the dough. The dough needs to be at least 2 inches bigger all the way around. Now peel back the top layer of plastic from the dough, lift it up and flip it over onto the pie pan. Press it into the pan, making sure there are no air bubbles. It's okay if there's some dough hanging over the edge. Put your filling in the bottom crust and lay the top crust over the filling. Use a fork to press the edges together, and then use scissors to trim the overhanging dough. Also use the scissors to cut a slit in the top crust.

6. Cover the pie with aluminum foil and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Then take the foil off and let it bake for another 10 minutes, or until the crust is nice and golden.

           

Bread Winner

Since Jared and I got married, we have made bread a few times. Homemade is delicious, and in the long run it saves you money, especially since the grocery store we have to shop at is a little pricey. The first couple batches were just meh, alright I guess. But then I found this amazing recipe on allrecipes.com that I tweaked a little, and holy cow it turned out perfectly! They were possibly the most beautiful loaves I've laid eyes on (at least that came from my kitchen anyway) and it tasted just as good. So here's that recipe:

Honey Wheat Bread

Makes 2 loaves

Ingredients

• 2-1/3 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
• 1-1/2 Tablespoons active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup honey
• 3-3/4 cups bread flour
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2-1/4 teaspoons salt
• 2-2/3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon and butter, melted

Directions

1.      In a large bowl, mix warm water, yeast, and 1/4 cup honey. Add the white bread flour, and stir to combine. Let set for 30 minutes, or until big and bubbly.

2.      Mix in 2 tablespoons melted butter, 1/4 cup honey, and salt. Stir in 2 cups whole wheat flour, or enough so that it doesn’t stick to the bowl too much. Flour a flat surface and knead with whole wheat flour until not real sticky - just pulling away from the counter, but still sticky to touch. This may take an additional 1 to 2 cups of whole wheat flour. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the surface of the dough. Cover with a dishtowel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled.

3.      Punch down, and divide into 2 loaves. Place in greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans, and allow to rise until dough has topped the pans by one inch.

4.      Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 20 to 25 minutes; do not over bake. Lightly brush the tops of loaves with 2 tablespoons melted butter or margarine when done to prevent crust from getting hard. Cool completely

There's also another bread recipe that I used for Sunday Dinner with Cousins tonight. It's more of a special occasion artisan bread, but is so easy to make. Everyone at dinner was asking for the recipe. Just keep in mind that you need to start it the night before.

No-Knead Bread

Adapted from Jim Lahey, Sullivan Street Bakery
Time: About 1½ hours plus 14 to 20 hours’ rising

3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.

2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it with a little more flour and fold it over on itself once or twice. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.

3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball. Generously coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 hours. When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.

4. At least a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) in oven as it heats. When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven. Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that is O.K. Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes. Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.

Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.

Best Brownies Ever!

So lately I've gotten into a series of cullinary mystery books by Josi Kilpack. They're pretty fun reads, and to top it off each book has a few delicious sounding recipes scattered throughout. The main character is a middle aged widow who solves murder mysteries, sometimes through her recipes. I know, it sounds ridiculous, but seriously- if you try this brownie recipe you will never doubt that these books are amazing, even if it is only for the recipes. So here it is, the brownie recipe that will make you never go back to a mix, or even ordinary homemade ones. Just keep in mind that this is a dessert, so it's okay if it's mostly sugar, butter and chocolate, right?

24 oz (2 bags) semi sweet chocolate chips (try to use good quality)

1 cup unsalted butter

6 large eggs

2 cups sugar

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350. Melt chocolate chips and butter in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in between. In a separate bowl, mix together the eggs and sugar. Mix in the melted chocolate and the vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder, and salt to the chocolate mixture and mix well. Pour into a 9x13 greased pan and bake for about 35 minutes, or until they look done.

I'm Back!

So I kind of quit this food blogging business for a while, partly because I was too busy with other things (school, work, and dating my now husband), and partly because I didn't have time to really cook anything good due to all of those things. Over the summer though, my husband and I have cooked up some delicious eats and it has made the foodie in me come back out. Luckily Jared also enjoys cooking and has quite a knack for it, so we are quite the team in the kitchen. I'm not saying that everything always turns out perfectly, especially since we experiment with no recipe most of the time. But I figure I'll use this blog to put some of our favorite recipes up. I hope I can somehow help someone out there who's looking for a good recipe, and that it can motivate me to keep up the good cooking.