by Mlissa | May 16, 2013 | In the kitchen with...
Me. Again. And Pinterest, too.
I try a lot and I do mean A LOT of recipes that I find on Pinterest. I try a lot of recipes from the 100+ food blogs I follow via RSS feeds. A few times I’ve been disappointed, and only once have I ever had to throw anything away uneaten.
I can look at a recipe and see in my head the modifications I need to make, what would work for the comfort food palate of my family. And when it comes to trying recipes found online, or even in cookbooks, I have found this intuitiveness life saving, especially since I cook from scratch more than I cook from a box.
On Mother’s Day, I tried a recipe I found that was very simple and very delicious. I wanted shrimp and I wanted pasta. So, I found a recipe for Creamy Cajun Shrimp Pasta.
The only modification I made was using whole grain penne pasta instead of linguine. It was delicious. You can click here for the recipe.
The internet is an invaluable tool for cooking questions, suggestions, substitutions, recipes, and general or very specific information.
There are several schools of thought when it comes to food. To fuel. To stay alive. To enjoy. I fall into the ‘to enjoy’ category. Food is a pleasure. It should taste good, whether you’re eating very healthy or not, it should still taste good and be prepared with good quality ingredients. I say this and yes, I’m one of the fat chicks. I have what I like. I expand my palate often. But some days, I go all out.
I’ve eaten health food and wanted to gag knowing that with a little hot sauce, a piece of cardboard would taste better. I’ve eaten no carb, low carb, vegetarian, sometimes vegan, full fat, no fat, diet, non-diet, sugar free, and loaded with sugar. I love trying new things, cooking new things, introducing my family to new things. I love farmer’s markets, local farms, local dairy, and gourmet.
Food is a pleasure to me. Life sometimes is full of drama and sadness. Life is also short. Everything in moderation is the key. So is changing things up. Food is also inspiration for my writing. I love foodie romances and I love writing them. One of my favorites is Amanda Usen’s Scrumptious and Luscious and I’m dying to get my hands on her next book, Into The Fire. Cooking and baking are also one of the ways I relieve stress. Getting lost in a recipe, knowing I have to focus my brain on it or I may end up blowing up my kitchen, helps clear my mind and relax me.
I hope you’ll give the recipe a try. It was truly, very very good. And check out my Pinterest boards, Deliciousness-Savory and Deliciousness-Sweet. I bet you’ll find something fun that makes your mouth water.
~lissa
by Mlissa | May 9, 2013 | In the kitchen with...
I posted pictures on Facebook of the Ice Cream Sandwich cake I made earlier this week for my son’s 14th birthday. It was easy. It was a bit messy. It is oh so good!
And it can be made using Sugar-Free ingredients for a Sugar-Free cake as well and my husband has already put in an order for one for his birthday next year.
If you didn’t see the picture of a slice of it, here you go…
The recipe for it can be found here on this blog. Honestly, it’s not much more than a box of ice cream sandwiches, a box of pudding, some hot fudge sauce, a few Oreos, and Cool Whip.
If you know me at all, you know I don’t usually use boxed anything. If it can be made from scratch, that’s what I will do to keep the amount of chemicals and preservatives out of our diets. I haven’t quite figured out the stabilized whipped cream yet, but I’m working on it. This though, was easy to do and with as much as I’ve been writing, we’re doing home school testing, and the fact that I wasn’t going to be home the day of my son’s birthday, making this recipe using all the convenience items saved an enormous amount of time. It is yummy. Very much so and I’ve always been a sucker for ice cream sandwiches.
I’ve always loved ice cream treats, usually much more than ice cream in a bowl. The Good Humor Chocolate Eclair ice cream bars were my favorite. Still are, though I don’t buy them but maybe once a year and then I eat the whole box in one sitting.
What about you? Do you have a favorite ice cream treat?
Give this recipe a try though. Will make a wonderful summertime treat!
~lissa
by Mlissa | Apr 25, 2013 | In the kitchen with...
Me.
It’s been a long time, huh? I know. I feel it too. I need to get back to talking to y’all. It’s not that I don’t love ya anymore, only that I’m trying to get books written for y’all to read.
I’ve been cooking a lot lately too. I actually cook every day so… In my house we’ve gone with theme nights. At least that’s what I call them.
Monday: Comfort Food
Tuesday: Italian
Wednesday: Crock-pot
Thursday: Finger Foods (Pizza, Burgers, BBQ Nachos, etc…)
Friday: Mexican
Saturday: Salads and Leftovers
Sunday: Breakfast
This has helped me a great deal in dinner preparation. It breaks down things enough that I can try different things without having to rack my brain going through every food category on the planet. If I already have an idea in my head, it makes my life that much easier. It’s not as tedious as meal planning, because I still like the open-ended creativity without the planning, but it narrows things down for me. It helps my family too with making requests/suggestions…
Do you do meal planning to any degree? If so, what is your process?
Something else I’ve started doing lately is taking some of my herbal and flavored teas from Teavana and making quarts of iced tea. It’s finally starting to get warm out and while my typical beverage menu (for myself) includes coffee and water, I do love iced tea. I am a Southern girl, after all. This week I’ve made Watermelon Mint Chiller and Blackberry Mojito. I made a simple syrup (2 parts water to 1 part sugar for a slightly thinner syrup) to sweeten them with, and it’s been a very nice deviation from the norm. (I think I’m trying to channel Chrissie from Keep It Together with her iced tea)
I’m going to get back to writing now, but we’ll get together again soon to talk about what I’m cooking up or baking…
~lissa
by Mlissa | Nov 11, 2012 | Coffee, In the kitchen with...
Everyone waits with baited breath and eager anticipation for Starbucks to bring out the Pumpkin Spice latte each year. Okay well, almost everyone. Not me. I tied one once and promptly returned it. It was too sweet for me.
So, while the majority of latte drinkers seek out the Pumpkin Spice, I await the Gingerbread latte. It’s not advertised as much anymore and I’ve been in several Starbucks stores that won’t even make it. Makes me very sad. I had to take matters into my own hands more this year than usual. Instead of buying gingerbread syrup for the latte, I decided to make my own.
The internet has more food blogs than one could visit in a year, even if you tried to visit one several in one day. And because there are so many food blogs, there are many recipes for homemade gingerbread syrup. I’ve only tried one so far, and it’s very good. When it’s gone, I’ll try a different one simply because that’s what I do. I like trying different versions and modifying, tweaking…
Most of the recipes I read through use whole spices. I don’t usually have whole ones. I might invest in them for the next time. For now, I had to find an equivalency chart for whole spices to ground spices. I had to fiddle with the amounts a bit, but it worked just fine, I think. The chart I used was Cook’s Thesaurus: Global Spices
The recipe I tried came from the blog, The Galley Gourmet. I’ve visited this site many times and really like her recipes.
Homemade Gingerbread Syrup:
(modified from The Galley Gourmet)
Homemade Gingerbread Syrup
makes about 1 1/4 cup
1 cup water
1 cup granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon molasses (the only molasses I have is Sorghum, but Blackstrap would be good)
1 (1-inch) piece of fresh ginger, peeled and sliced into 1/4″ rounds
1 (3-inch) stick cinnamon
8 whole cloves
1/2 teaspoon whole allspice berries
1/2 teaspoon whole peppercorns
1-2 teaspoons vanilla extract (though I think I added more like 1 Tablespoon)
In a medium saucepan, bring all the ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 10-15 minutes. Strain the syrup through a cheesecloth or very fine mesh strainer and transfer to a container to cool. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
The vanilla is my own addition. It cuts the sharpness of the spices and adds a bit of sweetness in a way that only Vanilla can.
If you are looking for a Gingerbread latte recipe, the Galley Gourmet has one on her site as well. I never follow a latte recipe exactly because some days I want it stronger and some days I want it sweeter.
Usually though, a latte is 2 oz espresso, 3/4 cup steamed milk, 1-2 Tablespoons syrup (gingerbread, cinnamon, caramel, etc…), and whipped cream or the froth from the milk. I add a dash of nutmeg to the top of the whipped cream… Yummy!
The Gingerbread latte is my holiday indulgence. I make one several times a week. If I bought one from Starbucks (when I can get them to make one), I’d be broke very quickly. My espresso machine was relatively inexpensive given how often I use it in the fall and winter. After the holidays I usually make caramel or cinnamon lattes, sometimes a mocha (I’m still trying to get a mocha right).
For now though, enjoy…
~lissa
by Mlissa | Aug 30, 2012 | In the kitchen with...
Today’s recipe is boiled peanuts. In the crock-pot. Why? Because it’s game day. Today marks the start of the NCAA 2012 College Football season.
My team doesn’t play tonight or tomorrow night. My team doesn’t play until Saturday night against, well, we won’t discuss it. See, my Florida State Seminoles like to start off the season with a little pre-season play against teams who, we should be able to win over if the mood and gods and tide are on our side. Otherwise… Yeah, again, we just don’t discuss it. My second team, Cincinnati Bearcats, don’t start playing until next Thursday night…
What we do discuss is that it IS game day. It actually is game weekend! There are games from tonight straight through to Monday night. I am stoked. I am excited. I am bouncing up and down in my chair. And be very glad you can’t see that… I have the FSU serving platters out, the cups out, the t-shirts and hats and flag and banners. It’s football, y’all. It’s college football, y’all. It’s college football in the South, y’all. Let’s play.
Boiled peanuts. I can’t go to a college football game without getting a cup of boiled peanuts. They’re sticky from the salt water brine, they’re hot (both in temperature and if you want, taste), they’re a staple in the South, especially in the summer/fall.
I made mine this year in the slow cooker. It took 18 hours. I added water when it needed it. I taste tested the peanuts a few times. But otherwise, I just left them to cook. Awesome!
The following recipe is from the 2006 edition of the Southern Living Slow Cooker Cookbook…
Yield: Makes 18 cups
Cook time: 18 Hours
Prep time: 3 Minutes
Ingredients
- 2 pounds raw peanuts, in shell
- 3/4 to 1 cup salt
- 12 cups water
Preparation
Combine all ingredients in a 5-or 6-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on HIGH 18 hours or until peanuts are soft. Drain peanuts before serving or storing. Store in zip-top plastic bags in refrigerator up to 2 weeks.
Cajun Boiled Peanuts: Add 1 (3-ounce) package boil-in-bag shrimp and crab boil and 1/3 to 1/2 cup hot sauce (we tested with Frank’s) to slow cooker before cooking.
Freeze It!: Freeze these peanuts in zip-top freezer bags up to 2 months. Reheat them in the microwave before serving.
Note:
Slow-Cooker Size: 5- or 6-quart
Adjust salt to your taste… better to start with less and add more 🙂
Y’all have a great day!
~lissa
