Amazing Waffles

It's Sunday morning and our routine in the winter usually involves a nice breakfast and Scrabble.  This waffle recipe is AMAZING.  I found it a few years ago and now it is the only one I use.

Combine and let sit for 5 minutes:
1/2 Cup warm water
1 Package Yeast
2 tsp. sugar or honey

Combine:
Yeast mixture
3 Cups Flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick melted butter
2 Cups Milk

Cover and refrigerate over night and the batter will look like this, and smell like heaven.

Mix in 2 eggs and 1/2 tsp baking soda and mix well.  The batter will look like this...

Now, cook in your waffle maker and they will look like this...

Enjoy!!

Rough days

So far this New Year has been a bit of a bust.  With the news of my Mother's diagnosis and then being sick for a week myself, I haven't been able to do much of what I had planned.  That is the way life goes I guess, but I still have hopes that things will get on track and I can accomplish some of my goals.

While I was sick I re-watched the Netflix series The Big Family Cooking Showdown. It is a popoff of The Great British Bake Off.  I really like the chemistry of the hosts and the skills and personalities of all of the contestants.  What makes the show really great for me is that each family makes a meal for the judges in their own homes.  I love that part the most.  It is fun to see their kitchens and how they interact with their family in their own homes. It reminded me of being in the kitchen with my Mother and Grandmother cooking a meal.

Season two is not as good.  The hosts have changed, the set is not as welcoming and they omitted the cooking at home part. Netflix, please bring back the original format and hosts.

Well, I'm off to start my day. The Big Guy has caught what I had and I can hear him coughing down the hall.  Poor guy.  I have to catch up on a weeks worth of tasks here at home and be somewhat prepared to go to work Monday and catch up on everything there.  Sometimes being a responsible adult bites.

Bad news soothed by cake

It's hard to believe we are already 13 days into the New Year.

Our New Years Eve was quiet.  We played Scrabble and had a few cocktails and appetizers.  I was in bed by 11pm and said hello to 2020 around 8am on the first.

I meant to post sooner but I've been hit with some news that has taken some serious processing. My Mother has been diagnosed with dementia.  At first I had a really good cry.  Something I haven't done in a very long time. Now I am somewhat numb.  I don't know what to think or how I feel. My Grandmother also suffered from dementia so I am somewhat familiar with how this is going to unravel.  I got the news from my Step Father.  My Mother and I haven't really talked about the diagnosis other than she told me she "has a really bad memory and  there is something wrong with her brain and she can't get a new brain."

My Mother is an amazing baker and cook as well.  One of my favorite cakes that she made for me throughout my entire child hood is Orange Kiss Me cake.  It is a delicious cake that is not too sweet and can be eaten for breakfast as well.  I remember my Dad would always get so upset with my Mom for letting me have cake sometimes for breakfast but she just shooed him away and said "it is no different than a donut."  Thanks for letting me have cake for breakfast Mom.

For the cake:
3/4 Cup Orange Juice ( I used the juice from one orange and the zest )
2 Cups Flour
1 Cup Sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 Cup shortening or butter
1/2 Cup milk
1 tsp Triple Sec
2 Eggs
1 Cup raisins
1 Cup chopped Walnuts

Combine Orange Juice with flour, sugar and salt.  Add butter, milk, eggs and triple sec and mix with an electric mixer on medium for about 2 minutes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Grease and flour a 9 x 13 cake pan
Bake approximately 40 minutes until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Nut Topping:
1/3 Cup Sugar
1/4 Cup chopped Walnuts
1 tsp. cinnamon

Drizzle warm cake with OJ or the juice and zest of one orange.
Sprinkle on nut topping.

* My Mom originally used 1 can of frozen orange juice concentrate.  She did not mix with water but used half of the can for the cake and half f the can for the topping.

2019 Christmas thoughts

So it is the last Sunday of this decade.  2020 will be here in the blink of an eye.   I've spent a lot of time this week reviewing my year and my life and I am excited for a brand new decade.

Our holiday was very nice.  I catered lunch for one of the groups of doctors that I work for.  I'm not saying it is true for all but for the group I work for... the way to their heart is through their stomach.  We had a really nice time together, sharing a meal and time with each other.  It was very festive and well worth the seven hours I spent in the kitchen.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day the big guy and I spent at home together.  What a treat to just be able to relax and enjoy a few days with no hustle or bustle. The day after Christmas one of our dear friends came for dinner and we enjoyed spaghetti and meatballs, yeast rolls and a wonderful salad.  Along with a number of cocktails.

One of my gifts was the new cookbook Fix It With Food by Michael Symon.  I have flipped through a little and already see a number of things I want to make.  I'm feeling the need to lighten up our diets.  When we lived in SW Florida we ate more of a Mediterranean Diet with primarily sea food, fruits and vegetables.  Moving back to the Midwest we had a very difficult time finding good sea food.  Well earlier this year I found Sea 2 Table and their products are amazingly fresh and it feels so good knowing exactly where they come from.  So this year I will be taking you along on our journey to an even healthier way of eating. (No affiliation with the cook book or Sea 2 Table)

I hope everyone was able to have a few moments of peace throughout the holidays.  I know it can be a very difficult time for some.

I started this blog to share my love of all things food. I have a lot of plans and goals for 2020 and I plan on sharing it all here so there will be more posts and more on my day to day journey through life.

Wishing everyone a fabulous New Year!

I'm going to share the Banana Pudding recipe I made for Christmas Day.  It's not exactly healthy but it does have a lot less sugar than most recipes.

Vanilla Pudding:
1/3 Cup sugar
3 Tbs. corn starch
1/8 tsp. salt
2 1/3 Cup whole milk
2 Egg yolks
1 Tbs. unsalted butter
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Add the first 5 ingredients and cook over medium heat whisking frequently.  It takes about 8-10 minutes to completely thicken.
Remove from heat and whisk in butter and vanilla.

Let cool for just a few minutes and then add to a pie crust or a pie pan lined with vanilla wafers.  Let sit about two minutes and add in 3-4 medium sliced bananas.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.  At least 4 hours.

With a mixer whip whole whipping cream and a tablespoon of vanilla until thick.  This takes about 8 minutes.

Things That Make Me Smile

Right before it started snowing, our yard was filled with birds filling up on bird seed.  They fly around so quickly it was hard to capture what I saw but I did get these two pictures.

Christmas Baking

I can't believe Christmas is ten days away.  I don't know why but this year seemed to fly by even quicker than most.  

The house is decorated for Christmas.  It is cold and snowing.  A perfect day to start my Christmas cookies.

I try to make cookies that freeze well so I can pull out a variety when I need them between now and the New Year.

This year I am keeping it pretty simple.  I am taking two trays to work for the Doctors and I want a tray to put out on Christmas Day so I won't need as many as I usually bake.

So far, I've made Peanut Butter Blossoms and Magic Cookie Bars.

Next, I will make Wedding Cookies and Sugar Cookies.

The house smells wonderful.

Any holiday baking at your house?

Thanksgiving Leftovers

Friday night we had all of the usual leftovers from Thanksgiving and I wanted to try something a little different.  Eggroll wrappers and wonton wrappers have SO many uses.  I've made a large variety of appetizers with them over the years so I thought why not try a thanksgiving leftover eggroll?


Now I was a little skeptical at first but I have to say they were really good.


I took eggroll wrappers and spread on mashed potatoes, cornbread stuffing and turkey.  I pan fried the eggrolls and we used my cranberry sauce as a dipping sauce. Yummy!


We had a couple of turkey sandwiches over the weekend and then Saturday night I used up the rest of the turkey in a big pot of Brunswick Stew.


My first encounter with Brunswick Stew was way back when I was 19 and waitressing at a BBQ place in SW Florida.  Apparently a lot of BBQ places make this to use up the leftover smoked turkey, chicken and even sausage.  There is a lot of controversy as to where exactly and who exactly originally created the stew.


I love the taste of it.  This is the recipe that I use. It is from The Farmers Almanac.  It is a versatile stew so add whatever veggies you like or have on hand.  I usually add corn and lima beans.

Smoked Turkey Brunswick Stew

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large yellow onion, diced
5 cups smoked turkey breast, shredded
2 (28 oz.) cans diced tomatoes
2 ½ cups diced Yukon gold potatoes
2 cups mixed vegetables, frozen (corn, baby Lima or butter beans, green peas, green beans, and carrots)
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups water
1 cup barbecue sauce (Recipe here) 
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
 Worcestershire sauce
1 ½ teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
½ teaspoon hot pepper sauce
½ teaspoon garlic powder

Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the diced onion and cook until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
Add the shredded smoked turkey meat and remaining ingredients to the stock pot and stir to combine. Bring the stew to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 2 hours or until potatoes and vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.


*Roasted turkey works just as well as smoked.

Thanksgiving 2019

Happy Thanksgiving!

I started preparation on Tuesday and followed my list each day.  It made things so easy doing a little each day instead of a marathon on the day of. The big guy, aka my husband, doesn't cook much but loves food and makes a pretty good sous chef.  It was fun spending time in the kitchen together.

Everything turned out delicious.  We ate around 1 pm and now I have the rest of the holiday weekend to spend as I wish.

Tomorrow we will have turkey sandwiches and Saturday I will make Brunswick Stew which is one of my favorites. I think I have enough turkey to make a few turkey pot pies as well.

I hope everyone had a very Happy Thanksgiving however you decided to celebrate.

                                                      Pumpkin and Sweet Potato Pies

                                                                         
                                                                            Turkey

                                    The big guys plate.  I don't know how he can eat so much.

Icewine from Canada.  It has a really nice flavor.

Thanksgiving Day preperations

We are going very traditional this year for our Thanksgiving Dinner.

Turkey
Mashed Potatoes
Cranberries
Cornbread Dressing
Stand up Deviled Eggs
Bacon Brussel Sprouts
Yeast Rolls
Pumpkin Pie
Sweet Potato Pie

I finished my last minute shopping today and I've worked out my timeline.

Tuesday:

Make pie dough for the two pies, wrap and store in the fridge.
Bake the sweet potato for the pie. Wrap and store at room temperature.
Cut up carrots, onions and celery.  Store in the fridge.

Wednesday:

Make and bake sweet potato pie.
Make and bake pumpkin pie.
Make a pan of cornbread for the dressing.
Make the cranberry sauce.  Store in the fridge.
Clean the turkey and store in the fridge.

Thursday:

Boil eggs and make stand up deviled eggs.
Put together cornbread dressing. Cooking in the crock pot to save oven space.
Put turkey in the oven.
Set out yeast roll dough to rise.
Bacon Brussel Sprouts.
Mashed Potatoes.

It is going to be a very busy week.  Looking at this list, I'm really questioning why I didn't plan to take off work Wednesday.
I am going to wish every one a very Happy Thanksgiving now.  I will post pictures on Friday and share my recipe for Brunswick Stew that uses up left over turkey and warms you up on these cold days.

Things That Make Me Smile

My husband loves grits and eggs so this morning I fried the egg in a heart shaped cookie cutter.  It came out pretty well and put a smile on his face.

Happy Saturday!

Stuffed Shells

It was a super crazy, stressful week at work.  On top of that we broke all kinds of record low temperatures and had a snow storm that dropped a few inches of snow.

I decided I needed comfort food.  Stuffed shells are my winter weather go to when my weary soul needs soothing.  Along with a salad and some warm delicous bread, this dinner will warm you up.

For the meat sauce...

In a sauce pan heat olive oil (1-2 tablespoons)

Add 1 diced onion and saute for about 3 minutes

Add 2-3 garlic cloves diced 

Add1 pound ground beef

When the ground beef is fully cooked add 3 cups of your favorite sauce.  I've used my own homemade and I've used my favorite jarred sauce. Both were great.

Season with basil, pepper, salt, oregano to taste

Let simmer on low for around 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Shell filling...

2 cups of ricotta cheese

1 cup of mozarrella cheese

2-3 garlice cloves pressed

1 egg

Season with basil, pepper, salt, oregano to taste

Combine ingredients and chill for about 30 minutes.

Pre heat oven to 350. Cook shells just until aldente and let cool.

Cover the bottom of the pan ( I used 13x9 glass pan) with some of the meat sauce.

Fill cooled shells with shell filling and add to the pan.

Spoon remaining meat sauce on top of the filled shells.

Top with mozzarrella cheese.

Sprinkle with a little oregano and pepper.

Bake for around 30 minutes covered and then another 10 uncovered or until the cheese is bubbly.

These freeze and reheat wonderfully!

The Holdiay Season Is Here!

Here in the Midwest the weather has been breaking all kinds of records in October.  The first week of October we had record highs in the high 90's, we've had record rainfall throughout the month and now for Halloween we  hit a record low of  25 degrees.  I think the cold kept the trick or treaters away. I know when I was a kid (many moons ago) no amount of rain, snow or cold would keep us from trick or treating. My husband and I always dress up (somewhat) and enjoy handing out treats to the little goblins.  We ended up with about 35 kiddos showing up.






For as long as I can remember I have made a big pot of beef chili and an appetizer or two for dinner on Halloween.   Last night was no different.  We had chili and stuffed jalapeno peppers.  It was delicious and helped warm us up a little.  Last night was the first time we had to turn on the furnace.  It's funny we had a fireplace when we lived in Florida but we do not have one here.  I don't know what we were thinking buying a house without a fireplace in the Midwest.


I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween.




It's now November and I can't believe it.  Why does time seem to go by so much more quickly the older you get?  I'm going to start working on my many lists for the holiday season.  Thanksgiving dinner, marathon cookie making, Christmas dinner, New Years Eve and New Years Day.  I will be doing so much cooking and baking for the next two months and I am so excited.




What are some of your holiday traditions?  'Tis the season.