Visions of Caramel

I wasn’t kidding the other day when I said I found my mother’s caramel recipe on a scrape of paper!  Here is that paper.  Plus there is a bonus recipe also on the same paper!  Punch and Caramel!

I love her note to herself, “good” caramel candy.  She is right it is good.  And easy!

This caramel is a two part process.  Here is the recipe as I made it on Saturday.  Oh and turn off your cell phone and the TV and put the kids to bed and if the door bell rings don’t answer it.  Caramel wants your full attention, it will not tolerate interruptions. 

2 cups sugar

2 cups karo syrup (white)

Combine the sugar and syrup and cook to 244 degrees. Once everything gets mixed together well and the sugar is dissolved no more stirring is needed.  I know her recipe says 230 but I’m thinking that’s not enough; just sayin’.  I like my caramel a bit more chewy.  There is an excellent caramel tutorial here.

Preheat 1/2 cup of butter and 2 cups of whip cream.  I just put it in the microwave for a couple minutes.  You don’t want it to boil or anything you just want to warm it up.  Once the sugar mixture reaches 244 add the warmed up butter and whip cream.  Stir, stir, stir while adding the cream mixture into the hot sugar mixture.  Then once the two mixtures calm down because they will bubble up like crazy continue stirring until the mixture reaches 244 again.  This will take about 20-25 minutes to get back up to temperature.

Remove from heat and add 2 tsp. vanilla and 2 cups of chopped nuts, if you are feeling like you want nutty caramel; otherwise just pour the goodness into a buttered 13x9 glass pan.

Let cool, then cut into small pieces and wrap in wax paper.  Give it away or you’ll be wearing it on your hips for a good 3 months!

As to the cranberry punch.  I haven’t tried it but it looks tasty.  So if you try it out let me know what you think!

PS Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad where ever you are.

Bacon Candy

Does the word bacon just make your mouth water?  Do you have visions of goodness dancing in your head?  This little bacon trick is probably nothing new to the internet world but in my world it was a fun fancy way to twist things up when serving up the goodness.

You will need some wonderful bacon.

And some of these things:

And then you will go like this:

And then you will do this:

And then you will have a whole pan that looks like this:

Then just bake these babies for about 25-30 minutes at 400 or until your deserved doneness.  I’m a crispy bacon girl. 

And if you really want to enhance the goodness of the bacon, dredge each slice in a mixture of brown sugar (1/2 cup) and chili powder (4 teaspoons) this amount will cover a pound of bacon.  I did and it was better than candy.  Sadly in my excitement for the goodness of the bacon candy, I dredged it, rolled it, baked it and ate it and forgot to take pictures of it. 

It was heaven!!!

If it ain’t broke…

……there is no need to fix it!  I just love how the internet intertwines the world. You jump here, you jump there and in all that jumping you can find some really good stuff.  So as you know I’m a great lover of the potato, it’s just not a secret!  So when I found this recipe for potato goodness I thought why re-invent the wheel.  Just follow the link to goodness!!

Something New

I don’t remember having a fondness for this little gem, the (at least for me) dreaded spaghetti squash.  But I have a friend at work who loves, loves, loves, it! So I gave it a try and guess what.  I have moved over to the spaghetti squash lovin’ side.

And with this tasty little gem I made this:

It is kind of a spaghetti/chili sauce all in one.  This is how I made the sauce:

1 lb. of ground turkey

1 onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 – 2 oz. can of diced chilies

28 oz. can diced tomatoes

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. dried oregano

salt and pepper to taste

Cook the turkey and onion until the onion is translucent and the meat is nearly done.  Add the garlic, green chilies, tomatoes and spices.  Let it simmer over medium to low heat until it reduces to your liking.  I simmered it about 30 minutes and it was perfect.

Serve over the spaghetti squash and you will be hooked. 

I am! 

Potatoes

Who doesn’t love potatoes?  Don’t be raisin’ your hand if you don’t; just move on…….  Personally my life without potatoes would be nothing.  After all Mr. Man is a former “russet” himself.  Yes, it is true his high school mascot was a russet potato; hold the jokes we’ve heard them all! Anyway, I love all things potato.  And this recipe is my current mash potato favorite.  Seriously who would want to eat them any other way.

The Best Mashed Potatoes Ever

5 pounds potatoes, peeled and quartered
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons onion powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 egg whites, slightly beaten
4 tablespoons butter
In a large pot of boiling water over medium-high heat, cook potatoes until tender when pierced with a fork; remove from heat and drain. In the same cooking pan, mash potatoes your favorite way; with a potato masher, potato ricer or electric mixer. Mash potatoes until there are no lumps. Add cream cheese, sour cream, onion powder, salt, pepper, egg whites, blend well. Spoon into a sprayed (Pam or the like) large casserole dish or crockpot dish. Allow to cool slightly, dot with butter, cover, and refrigerate.  You can refrigerate these 2-3 days before your event! If preparing ahead, place in an ovenproof baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees, loosely covered, 40 minutes or until steaming hot in the center!  They will be perfect every time.  Trust me on this one!

I would share a picture of the goodness but I ate them all!

PS  This is my 1,000th post since I began this crazy blog....CRAZY!!!!

Donuts

I hope you won’t be totally disappointed over the fact that this post isn’t a recipe for donuts or even a great picture of yummy donuts.  Rather it is a post about standing firm for what you believe.  Let me explain.  In the September 1996 issue of the Ensign there was an experience shared that after all these years has stuck with me.  I read a lot but this one single story has stayed with me like no other.  It was written by Robert Layton, a member of the church in Alberta, Canada.  The title is “What about Abstinence?” It is impressive.  I share it here because it has had a profound effect on me; not just because of the obvious subject matter but because of the other things in life which we might need to avoid and simply don’t.   I know it is long but it is worth the read.

“I was holding a notice from my 13-year-old son’s school announcing a special parents’ meeting to preview the new course in human sexuality. Parents could examine the curriculum and take part in an actual lesson presented exactly as it would be given to the students.

When I arrived at the school I was surprised to discover only about a dozen parents there. And I was the only Latter-day Saint father. As we waited for the presentation to begin, I thumbed through page after page of instructions in the prevention of pregnancy or disease. I searched for the word abstain and any related words but found the idea of abstinence mentioned only in passing.

When the teacher arrived with the school nurse in tow, she asked if there were any questions before she began. I asked why abstinence did not play a noticeable part in the lesson material.

What happened next was shocking. I was verbally assailed by the other parents. “How stupid are you?” one sneered. “Idiot!” someone else muttered. There was a great deal of laughter, and someone suggested if I thought abstinence had any merit, I should go back to burying my head in the sand.

Through it all, the teacher and the nurse said nothing as I drowned in a sea of embarrassment. My mind had gone blank in the unexpected attack, and I could think of nothing to say.

The teacher explained to me that the job of the school was to teach “facts,” and the home was responsible for moral training. I sat in silence for the next 20 minutes as the course was explained. The other parents seemed to give their unqualified support to the materials presented.

“Donuts at the back,” announced the teacher during the break. “And since we’re all getting along so well, I’d like you to put on the name tags we have prepared—they’re right by the donuts—and mingle with the other parents and get to know them.”

Everyone dutifully stood and moved to the back of the room. As I watched them affixing their name tags and shaking hands, I sat deep in thought. I was ashamed that I had not been able to come up with an argument that would convince them to include a serious discussion of abstinence in the lesson materials. I uttered a silent prayer for guidance.

My thoughts were interrupted by the teacher’s hand on my shoulder. “Won’t you join the others, Mr. Layton?” The nurse smiled sweetly at me. “The donuts are good.”

“Thank you, no,” I replied.

“Well, then, how about a name tag? I’m sure the others would like to meet you.”

“Somehow I doubt that,” I replied.

“Won’t you please join them?” she coaxed.

Then I heard a still, small voice whisper, “Don’t go.” The instruction was unmistakable. “Don’t go!”

“I think I’ll just wait here,” I said.

When the class was called back to order, the teacher looked around the long table and thanked everyone for putting on their name tags. She ignored me. Then she said, “Now we’re going to give you the same lesson we’ll be giving your children. Everyone please peel off your name tags.”

I watched in silence as the tags came off.

“Now, then, on the back of one of the tags I drew a tiny flower. Who has it, please?”

The gentleman across from me held it up. “Here it is!”

“All right,” she said. “The flower represents disease. Do you recall with whom you shook hands?”

He pointed to a couple of people. “Very good,” she replied. “The handshake in this case represents intimacy. So the two people you had contact with now have the disease.” There was laughter and joking among the parents. The teacher continued, “And who did the two of you shake hands with?”

The point was well taken, and she explained how this lesson would show students how quickly disease was spread.

“Since we all shook hands, we all have the disease, and there is no escaping that fact.”

It was then I heard the still, small voice again. “Speak now,” it said, “but be humble.” I noted wryly the latter admonition, then rose from my chair. I apologized for any upset I might have caused earlier, congratulated the teacher on an excellent lesson that would impress the youth, and concluded by saying I had only one small point I wished to make.

“Not all of us were infected,” I said simply. “One of us … abstained.”

Savoring

This moment

Go Giants!!

Meatloaf Night – How Presidential can it be?

This meatloaf recipe is my grandmother’s and the only one I ever make.  I will admit I have tweaked it a bit.  Instead of baking it in the oven, I use the microwave.  Moist and perfect every time.

1 lb. Ground Beef
1 Cup Uncooked Oatmeal
1 Egg
1 Small Can Tomato Sauce
1 Small Onion Chopped
Salt and Pepper

Mix together well; get your hands in it and really work it together.  Take a round glass baking dish (cake pan size) and invert a custard bowl in the center.  The custard bowl acts like a vacuum and all the fat from the meat just goes right into the bowl.  Spray the glass dish with Pam and then gently place handfuls of the meat mixture in the dish to form a ring.  You don't want to pack it in.

Cook in the microwave for 8 to 10 minutes.  While it is cooking mix together the glaze.

Glaze:
1/2 Cup Ketchup
1 Teaspoon Mustard (your favorite kind)
2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar

Remove Meatloaf from microwave after initial cooking time and top with the yummy glaze.  Return to microwave and cooking for 3 more minutes.

Let Meatloaf Night Begin……….

Milk

This "Tasty Terrific Tuesday" is just a terrific tip!  I'm not really sure why it has taken me so long to actually get in the habit of doing this because I've known it was possible.  So what's the tip?  Frozen milk!!  We are not exactly close to a reasonably priced store; at least I don't call 50 miles close.  So I buy our milk at Costco.  And upon arriving home pour out about a cup to allow for expansion and put the gallon in the freezer.  It takes a while for it to defrost so when you are getting close to needing the next gallon just take it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge.  (It can take around three days to defrost so I usually let it sit on the counter for a couple of hours before putting it into the fridge.)  Now, don't freak out by the weird very yellow color of your milk; that's just the frozen fat.  I know special.  Even non-fat turns yellow.  But again not to worry just shake up that puppy and there you have a wonderful gallon of cold refreshing milk.  And just ignore the original expiration date.  I have never had a freshness problem after freezing; I usually use up my previously frozen milk in a weeks time!!

Milk, it does a body good!!





Lemon Goodness

I found this goodness over at Mel’s Kitchen Café.  She has good things. Although I did make some minor adjustments.  The end result was more than fabulous.
 

Lemon Yogurt Bread

*Makes 2 loaves

Ingredients:

Bread:
3 cups all-purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups granulated sugar
3 tablespoons lemon zest from about 3 large lemons
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil (I didn’t use oil; I doubled the applesauce)
1/2 cup applesauce (1 cup of applesauce)
1 1/2 cups plain yogurt, lowfat or regular (I used Greek Style Yogurt)

 

Glaze:

1/3 to 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (from the lemons that were zested for the bread)
4 tablespoons sugar, more or less according to how sweet you want it

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Coat two 8 1/2-inch by 4 1/2 inch pans with cooking spray. You may have a bit of batter leftover to also make 1-2 mini loaves or a few muffins. 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, combine the sugar and lemon zest and rub the mixture together with your fingers until the sugar is moist and fragrant. Stir in the eggs, vanilla, oil, applesauce and yogurt. Fold in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pans about 2/3 full (if you have leftover batter you can make mini loaves or a few muffins) and smooth the top. Bake the bread until the top of the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 45-55 minutes for a normal sized loaf and anywhere from 16-25 minutes for muffins or mini loaves.  

While the bread is baking, combine the glaze ingredients in a small saucepan and let it come to a boil. Take it off the heat until the bread is finished baking. When the bread is done baking, carefully turn it out onto a cooling rack. Gently pour the warm glaze over the top of the warm bread (if the glaze runs off without soaking in, poke tiny holes with a toothpick over the top of the bread and then pour on the glaze). Let the bread cool completely. Store in an airtight container. It will stay moist for 2-3 days at room temperature. However, it will probably be all eaten before the end of day 3 2 1... just sayin'!

 

Clean Hands

So as I continue my quest for learning more about bread making, I’ve learned that the most important tool in the process is one’s hands. In all my days of bread making I never really thought that to be. In fact I always thought it was so annoying that my hands were always covered with sticky dough and I couldn’t wait to get my hands clean and be done with it. Oh I was so lacking in knowledge in that department. I’ve learned that although it is a natural instinct to wash your hands off when they get the least bit sticky I do it no more. So today just stop what you have done in the past there is a new and much better well.  Before you start, set aside a small bowl of flour; we will call it your “hand flour.”


Now onto creating non-stick hands.  First let your hands get sticky,  it is going to be okay.


Once there are nice and sticky take some of that “hand flour” and rub your hands together really good.  This process dries the wet dough.  Just rub it off over your garbage can or I just used a paper plate or you could do it over a paper towel. 
 
 

Just don’t rub it off in the sink; unless you live with a plumber.  Raw dough going down your drain can be very problematic.  Okay, so.  Now that you have removed the sticky dough with your “hand flour” your hands should have a thin, almost non-stick coating on them. 

As you work with your dough you will notice a lot less sticking to your hands. 


 

And a finally note don’t use hot water to wash your hands, or you bowl or any other tool you might use.  Cool water is best.  Hot water makes it more difficult to clean up.  I didn’t know this but I do now and it makes all the difference!!

Egg Bread

So way back when, I blogged about making this bread.  But I never at least that I can remember actually posted the recipe for this goodness.  I love this bread because it is so easy to make and tastes terrific!  So be brave and try it out, you won’t be disappointed.

Egg Bread

Makes 2 Braided Loaves

Mix:

¼ Cup of Warm Water
2 Pkg. of Yeast

Set aside

Scaled 2 Cups of Milk*; let cool to lukewarm

Add the following to Milk:

2 Lightly Beaten Eggs

½ Stick Butter
3 Tbsp. Sugar
1 Tbsp. Salt
4 Cups of Flour
Yeast mixture
Mix for 10 minutes.

Let it rest for 10 minutes.

Add about 3 more cups of flour and mix well. Dough will be soft and somewhat sticky.  Put a little flour on your counter before turning out the dough; knead in to make dough workable and easy to handle.  Divide dough in half, and then divide each half into thirds and braid. Tuck under ends.

Let it rise for 20 minutes.

Bake in pre-heated oven at 425° for 15-20 minutes.  Will be golden brown on top. 

Optional: Brush the top with a little butter to make the crust soft

* When I use powdered milk I don’t scaled the milk. I don’t understand the whole “scaled the milk” process I just do it because that is what the original recipe said.

Rising Up

Fresh out of the oven!!

 

Happy Birthday Shout Out!

Love.This.Man!!

He

 
is
 
ALL
 
 Kinds of

Wonderful!!
Happy Birthday
Love you so!!

Salty Goodness

Although I am a sweet fan, mostly all things chocolate, I really really love love all things savory.  So when this idea was shared with me I couldn’t resist trying it.  So simple and so good.

Take equal parts of this

Fresh Basil
And this

Kosher Salt

Blend them up in this

Food Processor
(Mine is a mini but you can use a big one!)

Spread out the goodness on a baking sheet. Throw it in the oven for 30 minutes or so on 225° - toss it around half way through the cooking process ‘cause you don’t want any sticking.  Turn off your oven and let it sit in there until your oven is cool to make sure it is all the way dried out.  Then give it another pulse pulse in your processor.  And this is the goodness you get!

Yummy Basil Salt!

That is even better when you sprinkle it on the likes of these!

Back to Eggs

Seriously who doesn't love eggs and all you can do with them. You can hard boil them. Soft boil them (2nd personal favorite). Scramble them. Poach them. And my personal favorite, fry them. I love a sunny side up egg. Runny yoke and just set white. I've struggled to perfect the perfect sunny side up egg until I found this little gem. It does the trick perfectly.

Forming the perfect egg!

See I told you perfect!

Garlic Fries

Last night we went to dinner at a favorite roadside diner.  It use to be called Taylor's Refresher; I remember going their as a kid for ice cream and a hamburger.  It is now called Gott's Roadside and believe me today it is more than ice cream and a hamburger.  Last night we chowed down on yummy garlic fries, among other things.  Oh and the fish tacos, well let me just say they are to die for.  Check it out next time you want to enjoy some great outdoor dining.  It is a must!   Believe me you won't be disappointed!

Spices

I love to use them but have a hard time keeping track of them.  There has got to be a way to better organize them.  I have a whole cupboard dedicated to spices.  But sometimes I feel like some of the bottles of spices I have are as old as the marriage; which for the record we are coming up on 39 million years of togetherness.  The marriage is great but I fear these spices are not! (Rest assured D1 I've tossed them)

Recently I needed some chili powder for a dry rub.  I was out or it was lost in the abyss!  Most frustrating.  Is it just me or do others share in my spice run amuck dilemma?  I'm sending out a life line to all the organized spice people of the world; how do you do it?!?

Send me your best tip for organizing your spices  (or the best tip you can find) and the winner of the best tip (of course I will be the picker of the best tip) will get my favorite nutmeg grater. (Well not my personal one, I love it too much to part with it, but I will send you your very own!)

You have until July 21, 2012, at midnight in Hawaii to get your tip to me!!

On your mark, get set, GO!!!

This could be yours!
You know you want one!!

Quinoa Goodness

We love quinoa at our house.  I especially love to make it in the pressure cooker.  1 ½ cups of quinoa, 2 ¼ liquid, 2 minutes in the pressure cooker and 10 minutes natural release and ta-da you have perfectly cooked quinoa.

Last night I made quinoa goodness.  Here are the ingredients in the bowl of goodness:

• Quinoa
• Salmon
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini
• Fresh Basil
• Fresh Chives
• Fresh Parsley
• Lemon Juice

Jelly Belly

Yesterday my dil and I took the visiting grans to the Jelly Belly factory.  While they were all for visiting a place where candy is made, the actual tour wasn't really kid friendly in the sense that .......... well let's just say for them it was done right boring.  So combine that with an hour and a half drive and about a 45 minute wait in line to actually take the tour and well again boring!  There weren't enough jelly bellies in the whole place to compensate for their misery.  And believe me there were trillions and trillions of jelly bellies to be had.

So note to self.  When contemplating a tour of a candy factory probably the best thing to do is just get the candy, share it with the kids and then go in the backyard and let them play in the sprinklers.  That is what you call a win-win situation!!  Believe me, everyone will be happier!!!

The Wedge Again

Because I love "The Wedge" so much I decided I had to give it a try at home.  It just wasn't economical to keep going back to Mary's Pizza.
This is a wedge with a twist because I didn't have all the "normal" ingredients.  So I've put my substitutes in parentheses.  The end result was tasty nevertheless!!

Ingredients:

1 head iceberg lettuce, cut into quarters

Blue cheese dressing*

1 tomato, minced**

2 green onions, chopped

1/2 cup crumbled blue cheese (feta)

1 cup cooked bacon, crumbled (thinly sliced ham that I toasted up)

On each salad plate, place 1 wedge of lettuce turned on its side. Pour blue cheese dressing on wedge. Sprinkle with tomatoes, green onions, crumbled blue cheese, and crumbled bacon. 

*Dressing:

Puree 1 cup each Greek yogurt and blue cheese (feta) with 1/2 cup buttermilk (sour cream), 1 shallot, lemon zest (lemon juice), Worcestershire sauce, parsley, salt and pepper.


**I marinated my tomatoes in some olive oil, red wine vinegar and fresh basil.