God Bless America......9/11.....always remember!

 

It's about time!

Yup, it has been a several months since I last posted....AGAIN.  Seriously, where has the time gone?  Well after the Thanksgiving post things went a bit, well let's just say things got a bit crazy.  Let's break it down.
My boss gave her notice (at the end of October), HR did not post the job until mid-November, I applied, waited, waited and waited some more.  I finally got an interview mid-December, all while we were crazy busy at work.  I was offered the job and accepted.  YEAH!  Well to keep my long drawn out story shorter, lets just say I started my new job on January 3rd and had a crash course.  My days since the last week of December have been insane to say the least.
It is now September....where has the time gone? We made it through wrestling, baseball (2 teams), wrestling camp, football camp, 2 week vacation, school starting, football & Labor Day weekend horseshoe tournament camping extravaganza.  We are now back in the swing of all things routine.  Well except we now travel twice a week for football and our son is starting drivers education next week.  May all of you stay safe on the roads!

I have been doing little cooking since my schedule became so incredibly crazy at work, but still have managed to make a few recipes.  Today is also the day that my son and I spend in the kitchen for him to get his clock hours for his culinary class.  So far he has made zucchini bread with only a few words of wisdom from Mom.

Here is the recipe we used:  Zucchini Bread 
Just a couple of things.  For breads such as zucchini or banana, I like to butter and sugar the pans instead of flour.  Makes a nice crust and tastes really good.  Also, my son made one batch as written and I made a second batch substituting 1 c. unsweetened apple sauce for the 1 c. oil.  They both turned out great!


In addition I have a few of other favorites from the summer.  Try them out!

Watermelon salad with Balsamic Reduction

Cut up fresh watermelon
Chiffonade (thinly slice) fresh mint leaves

1/2 - 3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water

In a small pan over medium heat mix balsamic, sugar and water.  Reduce until syrup consistency.

Drizzle the balsamic reduction over the watermelon salad.  YUM!


Rhubarb Compote
4 cups diced rhubarb
1 1/2 cups sugar
1-2 T. lemon juice
1 T. corn starch
1-2 T. water

In a medium pan add rhubarb, sugar and lemon juice.  Cook until tender but not mushy.  Mix in a separate bowl the cornstarch and water.  Add to the rhubarb mixture.  Cook a few more minutes until thickened slightly.

This compote is great for topping French toast, ice cream or toast.

Last but not least here is MY recipe for stuffed pablano peppers....they may sound and look a little, well, interesting but they taste AMAZING!

Stuffed Pablano Peppers
4-5 Large Pablano peppers
1 package reduced fat pork sausage
2-3 ears of corn
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 bunch cilantro
1 tsp. cumin
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2-4 oz. Cotija cheese
Salt & Pepper to taste

Cut tops off of peppers and set them aside.  You will use them later.  Seed the peppers. In a large skillet, brown sausage over medium heat.  Pour off any remaining fat.  Reduce heat to medium-low. Add chopped garlic. Shuck and cut corn off of the cobs, add corn to the skillet.  Add black beans, smashing them slightly with the back of a spoon.  Chop up about 1/3 cup cilantro, add to pan along with 1 tsp. cumin (more if desired).  Stir until well combined.  Crumble in 2-4 oz. of Cotija cheese. Stir to combine and warm through.  Remove from heat.  Stuff peppers with mixture until almost to the top of pepper.  Replace the pepper top and stick with toothpicks to hold into place.  Grill peppers on the bbq, over medium-low heat until outside of peppers are soft and cooked through. Serve with sliced avocado & Mexican crema or sour cream.

This dish goes extremely well with homemade corn cakes, flat bread or tortillas.

This recipe is a great free-form recipe.  Change things up, add whatever sounds good to you.  Don't have Cotija cheese but have cheddar, then use the cheddar.  Don't have fresh corn, use canned or frozen. Do what sounds good to you!  Enjoy!

Thanksgiving ..... it's really a 4 letter word.

Turkey Chocolate Cupcakes

You might say that Thanksgiving just is not Thanksgiving without the turkey.  I say nonsense!  This year we did a traditional, non-traditional Thanksgiving.  Tradition in the sense that we all got together for good food, good fun and good family.  Family in my book is anyone coming to the gathering.  Blood or not if you are there you are family.  That is the best tradition in my humble opinion.
What we did do differently is the meal.  No turkey, no stuffing, no mashed potatoes & gravy, no cranberry sauce, no pumpkin pie.  None of it.  My husband, brother and father got together and pow-wowed about the dinner.  They decided to do the non-traditional dinner.  By the time they told my sister-in-law and I we were having perch and bass.  Can anyone say VETO!  I can do the non-traditional dinner, but it was not about to be perch and bass for the main course.
My father called to ask me if I would put together a menu and do the cooking.  When all was said and done we got input from the little kitchen helpers (my nieces) and had a nice menu.  We also came to an agreement that we would still have perch and bass, it would just be as an appetizer....and boy was it delish! 
Menu:
Crown roast of pork
Twice baked potatoes
Creamy Gorgonzola brussels sprouts
Roasted green beans
Homemade rolls
Bourbon pecan pie
Cranberry pie
Apple cheesecake
....and the best most amazing turkey chocolate cupcakes (see photo above)

I have to put a little about the turkey chocolate cupcakes....These were made by my two nieces and my brother.  They were the most amazing cupcakes I have ever seen.  Tasted great too!  These kids have talent, I see a cupcake business in their future.

I wish I had pictures of the dinner, but alas I was the cook not the photographer.

I spent the day in the kitchen, even getting help from the SIL....boy do I love her.  She can make a great cocktail too.  We managed to squeeze 12 around a table for 8 and all said what we were thankful for.  I have to say there were some really great things said around the table last night.  Many tears and lots of laughs.  We had two Marine vets with us (my baby sister and her boyfriend) and my baby brother was with us in spirit since he is currently deployed to Iraq.  So needless to say we were all very thankful for them and their selfless choices they have made for all of us.  One of the things that was really special is what my sisters BF said.  He told us how thankful he was to have all of us.  With our crazy antics, corrupt sense of humor and all that goes with being a big family, he was thankful for us showing him what it means to be family. He had never experienced the "family traditions" like our family has.  You see, we don't just get together for holidays to celebrate family and time together, we try to do it on a regular basis.  He has been to many of our gatherings and can't believe how much we enjoy being together and how important it is to our family to make time for each other.   We are very blessed to have him in our family.
My father is amazing.  He has taught us what is important in life...family.  It was so evident last night when he was saying what he was thankful for.  Now mind you it is not often that he gets worked up over anything.  He is the most even keeled, level headed, patient person I know.  Last night he had us all in tears.  He decided to tell us about a letter my brother had wrote from Iraq.  He told my father that he was so thankful to him for teaching my brother to be the best person he could be.  Well, my father, through the tears, told all of us how incredibly proud he was of each and every one of us and that we are who we are because of our choices, not because of him.  Now, I have to agree and disagree with him.  We are who we are because of our choices and because of his guidance and his complete faith in us.  He has been an amazing father and I could not ask for more.  He is my rock, my teacher, my guide, my Daddy.  He is amazing!  What he said was not just directed at me and my siblings, but to our spouses as well.  He is proud and loves each and every one of us.
I guess it all comes down to what is really important.  It is not the turkey, it is not the stuffing or the pumpkin pie.  It is not the meal at all.  It really is about family and about the time we take to be together.  It is really a 4 letter word.  Love.

A new look and a new attitude!

Oh my goodness, has it really been since March that I last posted?  I have had several people ask me why I had not updated and well, I don't really have any good reason other than....life.  My how everyday life sometimes gets in the way. 

My blog now has a new look to go along with my improved life attitude.  Yup, you heard it.  A new attitude.  I have decided that life is way too short and I must live each day fully.  Not to say that everyday will be a great day, but if I shoot for the stars, well you just never know! Today I am choosing happy!

I have had some great success these past several months in the kitchen and with some new cocktails.  I will start posting shortly.

Life will only be getting busier and more hectic, but one thing I will be getting back to is blogging.  This is the place that I can share my recipes and the crazy stories that are my life....with my new attitude!

My Bliss.

I guess you could say that I am easily entertained.  Who would think that someone would get so excited over their kitchen.  Well if you knew me you would understand completely.  My favorite place in the house is the kitchen.  My favorite thing to do at home is cook and entertain.  My favorite place to shop is Sur La Table and Williams-Sonoma.  My favorite kitchen tool is my kitchenaid....thank you Mom-in-law you are the best!  I bake my own bread, make my own pasta and experiment endlessly.  Sometimes success, sometimes not so much and the pizza joint in town sings a happy tune. 

I enjoy a good cocktail like a fresh raspberry mojito or a pomegranate pear martini.  I like to experiment behind the bar too.  Give me a shaker, some ice and a booze cabinet and you never know what you will get but guaranteed a buzz maybe more.

Last Saturday night was homemade pizza night and UFC Fights with the family and some friends (watching UFC not pretending to be in the UFC - seriously I'm not crazy).  What a blast.  Spent the entire day cleaning and prepping for the pizza.  Had my nieces and a friends little girl helping me in the kitchen.  Made the pizza dough from scratch and then prepped all the "condiments" since it is really all about the crust.  We made everything from basic pepperoni & cheese, "the works", margarita, to prosciutto with caramelized onion & goat cheese.  What a range of tastes and flavors and oh so yummy!  The best part is they were all cooked on the BBQ.  Yup, really.  The BBQ is not just for ribs and burgers anymore people.  Pizza on the BBQ is one of the best things ever!  Next to my kitchenaid, I think the BBQ is the next best kitchen invention. 

When we decided to remodel our house I designed the kitchen to have a bar (one to sit at, sheesh) and open to the dining and living room and also open to a large back deck...besides a 1969 build house really just needs to be remodeled or leveled and rebuild if you have the funds.

I cook to nourish, I cook for fun, I cook for stress relief, I cook for family, I cook for friends, I cook for entertaining a crowd, I cook because I can.  So I guess it goes without saying that I love my kitchen and love to cook.

In short, since this is a short story for me, you now know...... my bliss.