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.

Ummmm Clams & Cookies....

(Photo from Palace Kitchen)
I have to share a recipe (if you can call it that) that we made the other night.  A little history.  My husband & I had our first weekend away in a year.  It was definitely much needed since he had worked every day except one since January 31st...count them...47 days on with one day off.  No I'm not kidding.  Anyways, we decided on just heading to Seattle for the weekend.  We went to a wonderful restaurant called Palace Kitchen.  We ordered clams (of course) and they were amazing.  They were by far the best clams I have ever had and I have eaten a LOT of clams!  So the best part was the smoke flavor they had.  So here is our take on those amazing clams.

Smoked Clams

Steamer Clams
Butter
Chopped Garlic
Chopped Onion or Shallot
Stock
White Wine
Fresh Thyme
Chopped Tomato
Lemon
Pancetta or Bacon (cooked & chopped)
Salt & Pepper

Soak hardwood chips in water (we used hickory for this recipe).  Start your BBQ.  Temp around 400.  Add wood chips. 

Use a shallow pan that is safe for the oven as well (cast iron would work well).  On the stove top over medium heat melt butter, add garlic & onion or shallot.  Saute until soft.  Add stock, white wine, 1/2 lemon squeeze (you can add the entire 1/2 lemon), fresh thyme, salt & pepper.  Continue to cook to reduce slightly.  Add Pancetta or bacon & clams.  Stir until well mixed.  Move entire pan to BBQ.  Be sure that you are getting a good smoke first!  Do not cover you want the smoke flavor.  Cook on the BBQ for 6-10 minutes until clams open up.  Remove from BBQ, add tomato, more butter & stir.

Serve with crusty bread to soak up all the yummy juices!  Enjoy.

NOTE: Be sure to soak clams in cold water for at least an hour to purge the sand.  I usually change the water a couple of times and sometimes add cornmeal to the water.


 (I don't have exact measurements because I don't use them except for baking.  Here is what I think we used.  I have found that too much wine gives the clams a bitter aftertaste so we incorporate stock as well.  We used about 5 lbs of steamers, 1/4 onion, 5 cloves garlic, 4 Tablespoons butter divided, 1 cup stock, 1/2 - 3/4 cup wine, small bunch of thyme, 1/2 large tomato, 4-5 slices bacon,  S & P to taste.  Also get the BBQ really smoking, we soaked our chips for approximately 1/2 hour first.)



OK so the title is Ummmm Clams & Cookies right?  My 5 year old niece came to spend the night and brought "her" recipe and insisted we make "her" special dessert.   So off to the kitchen we went.  Thank you to her for this sinfully good recipe!  Kids in the kitchen, you gotta love it!


Simple Deep Fried Oreos
or as I so fondly call them "heart attack in a bite"

1 cup dry pancake mix
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
6-8 oreo cookies
Powered sugar
Small paper bag
Oil for frying

In a bowl combine pancake mix, egg and milk.  Stir until lumps gone.  Let rest a few minutes.  In a medium sauce pan heat about 2 inches oil to 350༠.  Dip cookies in batter covering completely and  slowly drop into oil.  Fry until golden on each side (just a couple of minutes.)  Remove from oil and drop into a bag of powered sugar.  Shake bag, remove cookies and eat-em-up!


(I thought I might try different cookies and maybe experiment with flavorings in the batter.)



Hope you all enjoy.  Please let me know how your clams and cookies turn out and what changes you made.