White Trash!

I was going to post the White Trash recipe here, but Kay did such a good job of 'step by stepping' it, that i'm just gonna link to her. after all, it's her recipe :)

Enjoy!!

AWESOME cooking videos

Martha turned me on to this cool cooking site that has videos of their recipes! whoa! and they're fun, not boring. So, check out this one for Rudolph Christmas Cookies. i bet you could change these up with Craisins and stuff too. FUN!

Katie's Famous Mac 'n Cheese Bites

Katie made these for her adorable baby boy's first birthday party, and man, were they yummy! Thought you might want to try as they make a good different appetizer/snack.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups uncooked elbow macaroni
1 tablespoon butter
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese (Keep 1/2 cup of this set aside for the bread crumb mixture)
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. (this is really important. definitely err on the side of overgreasing the pan, as they tend to stick to it) In a small bowl, stir together the bread crumbs, olive oil and reserved cheese; set aside.

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the macaroni and cook for about 8 minutes, it should still be a little bit firm. Remove from the heat, drain and return to the pan; stir in the butter and egg until pasta is evenly coated. Reserve 1/2 cup of sharp Cheddar cheese and stir the remaining Cheddar cheese, milk and mozzarella cheese, salt and pepper into the pasta. (Taste it before you spoon into the muffin tins to make sure that it's seasoned properly. I think that I used a little more salt)

Spoon into the prepared muffin tin. Sprinkle the reserved cheese and bread crumb mixture over the tops. (I used mini muffin tins b/c I liked the shape better)

Bake for 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the topping is nicely browned. Allow the muffins to cool for a few minutes before removing from the pan. This will allow the cheese to set and they will hold their muffin shape.

The refrigerate and I've heard that they freeze well. To reheat, I just placed on a cookie sheet and warmed them up in a 350 degree oven.

Dr. Pepper Cake

My super cool neighbors brought me a mini-loaf of this awesome Dr.Pepper cake. They made it bc they had been to Dublin, TX where the original bottling plant for Dr. Pepper is. and i guess they got inspired. Anyway, it's moist and delicious!

(btw, i totally stole this recipe from another blog)

Ingredients: Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
2 cups sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
1.5 cups mini marshmallow
3 Tbs. unsweetened coco powder
1 cup Dr. Pepper
2 eggs
1.5 cups buttermilk
1tsp vanilla extract

Ingredients: Icing
1/2 cup unsalted butter
6Tbs. Dr Pepper
3Tbs cocoa powder
1 pound icing sugar
1tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup chopped nuts (pecans or walnuts)

Method: Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 350F or 180C
2. Grease a 9x13 inch ( 23x33cm) pan
3. In a large bowl sift together the flour and baking soda, and then stir in the sugar. Set aside.
4. In a saucepan heat the butter, the marshmallow's, the cocoa and the Dr. Pepper. Stir constantly until the marshmallows and butter are melted. Do not allow to boil.
5. Pour the marshmallow mixture over the flour mixture. Mix well. and set aside.
6. In another bowl, beat the eggs until they are light and fluffy, stir in the buttermilk and vanilla extract.
7. Mix in the egg mixture with the flour mixture and mix until it is smooth.
8. Pour into the prepared pan.
9. Bake until the center of the cake springs back lightly when touched (around 50-55min).
10. Let the cake cool.

Method: Icing
1. In a saucepan combine the butter, Dr. Pepper and cocoa powder.
2. Bring to the boil over low heat, stirring constantly.
3. Remove the pan from the heat, gradually sift in the icing sugar until it is smooth, then fold in the vanilla extract and nuts.
Assembly
Put the warm icing on the cake.

Stuffing Stuffed Mushrooms

These stuffed mushrooms were a big hit at Thanksgiving. Super easy to make (especially if someone else makes the stuffing!)

20 large white mushrooms (about 2 pounds total),stems removed
1 cup stuffing
1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat the oven to 400°. On a lightly greased baking sheet, bake the mushroom caps, stem sides down, for 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, combine the stuffing and cheese. Flip the mushroom caps over and mound the stuffing into each one. Bake until the mushrooms are tender and the stuffing is golden, about 20 minutes.

3. Eat. mmmmmm...

I got this recipe from Rachael Ray Magazine....

Dump Cake

This is the easiest dessert recipe ever. i keep the three ingredients on hand most of the time in case there is a Dessert Emergency and i have to whip something up real quick.

1 Box White Cake Mix (generic brand is fine)
1 Stick butter, melted
1 or 2 cans of Pie Filling, any flavor. I prefer Cherry

Pour cake mix into a bowl. melt the butter. pour melted butter slowly over the cake mix and then combine until all cake mix is moistened. it will be very lumpy and somewhat crumbly.

in a pyrex dish, pour in the pie filling. Take the cake mixture and crumble it over the pie filling to make a 'crust' of sorts. fill in any gaps. this doesn't have to be pretty...it'll be lumpy and bumpy.

Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until browned.

Serve! yummo!

I also saw a variation of this online using devil's food cake mix and cherry filling. it looked delicious!

Pass the Butter

My friend Mariesa sent this to me today, and it really grossed me out. i think i'm switching to butter:

Pass The Butter
Margarine was originally manufactured to fatten turkeys. When it killed the turkeys, those who had put all the money into the research wanted a payback so they put their heads together to figure out what to do with this product. It was a white substance with no food appeal so they added the yellow coloring and sold it to people to use in place of butter.

DO YOU KNOW..the difference between margarine and butter?

*Both have the same amount of calories.
*Butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams compared to 5 grams.
*Margarine can increase heart disease in women by 53% over eating the same amount of butter, according to a recent Harvard Medical Study.
*Butter increases the absorption of many other nutrients in other foods.
*Butter has many nutritional benefits where margarine has a few ONLY because they are added!
*Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavors of other foods.
*Butter has been around for centuries where margarine has been around for less than 100 years. And it is all natural.

And now, for Margarine..
-Very high in trans fatty acids.
-Triple risk of coronary heart disease.
-Increases total cholesterol and LDL (this is the bad cholesterol) and lowers HDL cholesterol, (the good cholesterol)
-Increases the risk of cancers up to five fold.
-Lowers quality of breast milk.
-Decreases immune response.
-Decreases insulin response.

And here's the most disturbing fact....
-Margarine is but ONE MOLECULE away from being PLASTIC.
This fact alone is enough to avoid margarine for life and anything else that is hydrogenated (this means hydrogen is added, changing the molecular structure of the substance).

You can try this yourself:
Purchase a tub of margarine and leave it in your garage or shaded area. Within a couple of days you will note a couple of things:
* no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it (that should tell you something)
* it does not rot or smell differently because it has no nutritional value; nothing will grow on it even those teeny weeny microorganisms will not a find a home to grow. Why? Because it is nearly plastic. Would you melt your Tupperware and spread that on your toast?

Cream Cheese Hamburger

So, this is the verbal recipe i got from my neighbor Paul. You're gonna have to eyeball it bc i didnt get measurements, but we've all made hamburgers before, right? Here goes:

Ground Beef (he said to get the not-so-lean kind bc otherwise, they crumble too easily)
Block of cream cheese (dont get the kind in the tub)
Cilantro
Worschester Sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

Mix the ground beef, salt, pepper, desired amount of cilantro and worschester sauce together in a bowl. divide into desired sizes for patties. Take one of those patties and tear it in half, and pat down to a patty shape. take about a 1" cube of cream cheese and mold it into a ball and place it atop the 1/2 patty. Take the rest of that patty and put it atop the cream cheese and mold it around until the cream cheese is surrounded by ground beef. don't flatten the patty. it should be in a ball shape.

put it on the grill, foreman, or frying pan. as it cooks, press down on it with a spatula as the cheese melts to make it a flatter patty shape. be careful tho as it will begin to try to break apart. Cook to desired doneness.

Place on bun, top with sliced avacado and bacon. Enjoy!!

for the corn on the cob, wrap ears in tin foil, top each with a pat of cream cheese sprinkled with cilantro. put in the oven on broil for about 15 minutes or until done. YUMMO!

Thanks Paul!!

Swedish Chef

My favorite muppet character... and he's in the kitchen, so it's appropriate for my blog :)

Happy Monday :)

Grocery List

Ever go to the store all organized with a list, just to find out as you're waiting in the checkout line that you forgot ONE thing bc it wasn't grouped in with the veggies or dairy foods? Well, those days are over. Check out this grocery list Martha sent me this morning. Organized into nice, neat little categories. Makes it easy for you to print out your list and get everything you need while you're in that section of the store.

Thanks Martha!!! You Rock!

Download the PDF here.

Thanksgiving for Lunch

My favorite meal of the day is lunch, and my favorite thing to make is a sandwich. Since i've given up potato chips, i have to get creative with my side dishes for my sandwiches, bc you know, you HAVE to have something with a sandwich. Them's the rules.

So, today was Thanksgiving lunch day. Here's what i made:

Turkey and cheese sandwich with Cranberry and Spinach and a side of sweet potatoes.

Sandwich:
Two pieces of wheat bread
Turkey lunch meat
White cheese (i use Monterrey Jack)
Whole Cranberry cranberry sauce
Baby spinach

Sweet Potatoes:
Sweet Potato
Brown sugar
Butter

Sweet Potatoes - wash, peel and cube sweet potato. Put into a bowl and nuke until soft. Take out fo the microwave and add butter and light brown sugar to taste (about 2 Tbsp of each).

Put the turkey and cheese on the sandwich, 1/2 of each on each slice. Toast open faced. After toasted, spread on desired amount of cranberry on one slice, top with a handful of spinach, top with the other slice of bread.

MMMMM...Fajitas!

Quick and easy. i make this a lot after i get home from the gym bc it's easy to do and full of protein.


Ingredients
• Tortillas (big ones...I used wheat and they cracked a lot. might want to use flour)
• Fajita Meat (my grocery store, HEB, sells it preseasoned/prepackaged, so i just cut it open and grill)
• Avacado
• Onion
• Green Pepper
• Can of Black Beans
• Can of diced tomatoes
• Bag of Uncle Ben's Santa Fe 90 second rice
• Sour Cream, Shredded Cheese and Salsa if desired


Put the Fajita meat on your George Foreman grill (or an outdoor grill if you're feeling adventurous) and cook it up. i like it about medium, so check it for pinkness. While that's cookin, open the beans and warm in a saucepan. Open the rice and stick it in the microwave (but don't cook it yet). Start slicing up onions and peppers and set aside.

Slice up avacado and put into a bowl. Open tomatoes and put into a bowl.

Once the fajita meat is almost to your desired doneness, throw the onions and green peppers on top of it and grill them up. This works great with a George Foreman/Clamshell type grill. Not sure the best way to do it if you're using an outdoor grill.... might need to put them on earlier. Once you do that, turn on the rice for 90 seconds.

When it's all done (i like my veggies a little charred, so i leave them on till they're striped) plate it up. Tortilla, spread on sour cream, meat, peppers/onions, tomatoes, avacado, sprinkle with cheese. My BF likes the beans and rice right on the fajita, i prefer it to the side. Your choice.

Put chips and salsa on the table, and Voila, you have dinner.

This takes me right at 30 min to do. Eat your heart out Rachael Ray! :)

BLT Tomatoes

Or would that just be "BL Tomatoes??" either way, they're awesome. i've made them as an appetizer and with a meal as a side dish. easy to do and yummy too.

Ingredients:
Cherry Tomatoes (i tend to buy the ones on the vine as they're larger than the ones in the container)
Bacon (i use turkey bacon)
Romain lettuce
Mayo
Dijon Mustard

Cut the stem tops off the tomatoes leaving a hole large enough to stuff the stuff into.

Hollow out the tomato with a paring knife, discarding the innards.

While you're doing this, either fry up or nuke the bacon til crispy. make sure it's crispy bc it's just not the same when it's limp.

Cut up the romaine lettuce (the amount depends on how many tomatoes you're making, but it's really just kind of a garnish anyway. See photo for an idea of how much to use).

In a zipper bag, combine a couple tbsps of mayo and about 1/2 that amount of the mustard (you could also use something spicier or just use chiptole mayo or something...it's up to your taste). When mixed, cut a corner off the bag so you can squeeze the contents out into the tomato.

Start by shoving some lettuce into the tomato (push it down with your finger or a butter knife). Squirt in some mayo. Top with bacon crumbled into little pieces. i use a lot of bacon, but again, it's up to your tastes.

And Voila! You're done. and it's oh so fancy.

[and i can't take all the credit. i got this out of Rachael Ray's Fall magazine]

Brownie Bites

So, i bought some 'cookies' at the store on the 30th in anticipation of having to bring something with me to a halloween party. Well, all the parties fell thru, so i was left with 24 break and bake cookies in the fridge. Well, today i got a craving, so i opened em up (ah, the joys of working from home...cookies at any time!). But, when i opened them, i realized they were a bit mushier and chocolatier than normal. and super brown chocolaty. so i reread the label, and my oh my.... they're BROWNIE BITES!!! oh wow. so, they bake up and look like cookies, but they taste like brownies. YUMMO!

Go buy some. NOW!

Bacon-y Spinach

This is yummy! i made it tonight with meatloaf and garlic mashers.

Fry up some 3-4 slices of bacon in a large skillet. I used turkey bacon. Get it good and crispy. Set aside on paper towels to dry.

Keeping the bacon grease in the pan, on medium high heat, add as much spinach into the skillet as you can. it will begin to wilt. Stir as it wilts, then add more spinach until you have the desired amount. I used about 1/2 a large bag of spinach for 2 people. After it wilts, cook for about 2 minutes more until tender. Drain the excess water/grease out of the pan using a strainer. Mix 2 tbsp of White wine Vinegar into the pan and stir until mixed thru. Season with salt. Crumble bacon atop the spinach and serve.

(if you prefer not to cook spinach in bacon grease, you can nuke the bacon, then use olive oil in the pan instead of the grease...just as good, not as bacon-y)

Kay's AWESOME Mexican Chili

Got this recipe from my sis, Kay...so all props go to her on this one. It's one of my favs and i make it almost weekly during the winter.

MEXICAN CHILI

1 lb ground beef
1 small onion chopped
1 garlic clove minced
1 jar 16oz (?) salsa
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 can corn, I like shoepeg
1 pkt taco seasoning
1 small can chopped or crushed tomatoes

In large dutch oven brown ground beef. Drain off fat. Add onion and garlic and sauté until onion is soft. Add salsa, beans, corn, taco seasoning, and tomatoes. Bring to a boil for and reduce heat and simmer for at least 30 minutes. I just cook it until I’m ready to eat.

Great toppings include, chopped jalapenos, shredded cheddar cheese, and sour cream. We eat this with corn chips but would be great with corn bread too (or both if you're really hungry).



To make this in a crock pot, just brown the beef and add the onions and garlic. Then put that into a crockpot and add the other ingredients. Put on low for 4 to 6 hours or high 2 to 3 hours.

If you like your chili saucier, add some tomato sauce or V-8 juice.

Stacy's Corn Muffins

These muffins are great at formal dinners like Thanksgiving or Christmas, but would work just as well with a run of the mill dinner.

Or with Kay's Mexican Chili :)

CORN MUFFINS
1 cup fat free sour cream
3 tablespoons stick margarine, melted
1 large egg
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 (15.25oz) can no salt added whole kernal corn, undrained
1 (14.75 ox) can no salt added cream style corn
1 (8.5ox) package corn muffin mix
cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Combine first 3 ingredients in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk.

3. Stir in onion, corns, and muffin mix. Pour into an 8-inch square baking dish coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until pudding is set and lightly browned.
You can also make these in muffin tins. I don't know the exact time on baking them, but probably about 25 minutes.

Yield 8 servings.

Pumpkin Chip Cookies

These cookies are to die for (everyone i gave one to said so). And they're perfect for fall with that pumpkin-y taste. Beware tho, this recipe makes like 7 dozen cookies. i usually 1/2 it unless I'm taking a bunch to a party or something.

PUMPKIN CHIP COOKIES
2 cups mashed pumpkin (canned is fine)
2 eggs beaten
1 cup cooking oil
2 cups sugar
4 tsp baking powder
4 cups flower
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
2 tsp milk with 2 tsp baking soda dissolved into the milk
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients well. Add chocolate chips.
Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes.
Make sure center is done. They have the consistency of cake.

BEST. Salad. EVER.

I got this recipe from Oprah, i have to admit. My friend liked it so much that when she opened a restaurant, this was their signature salad (they added some of their own twists to it tho). The dressing recipe follows the salad recipe. Sorry, i dont have a photo of this one, but trust me, it's GREAT.

BIBB LETTUCE SALAD WITH PECANS, BLUE CHEESE AND PEARS
1 cup pecan halves
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon honey
4 small heads Bibb lettuce, washed, dried, and torn into bite-size pieces
6 tablespoons Late Harvest Riesling Dressing (see below)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3 ounces blue cheese, such as Maytag, crumbled
2 ripe Anjou pears, peeled, cored, and cut into matchstick-size pieces

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F.

Spread the pecans on a sheet pan and bake until heated, about 5 minutes. Stir together the corn syrup and honey in a small bowl. Pour the syrup over the nuts and toss to coat evenly. Bake until the nuts have absorbed most of the syrup and are glazed, about 5 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool slightly. Separate the pecans that are sticking together and cool completely.

Toss the lettuce with the dressing in a large bowl and season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide among 6 plates. Sprinkle equal amounts of the cheese, pears and nuts over the top of each salad. Serve immediately. Serves 6.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

WALNUT AND LATE HARVEST RIESLING VINAIGRETTE
1 tablespoon of mayonnaise
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 garlic clove
1/4 cup Late Harvest Riesling Vinegar
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Put the mayonnaise, mustard and garlic in a blender and process until smooth. Add the vinegar and process to combine. With the blender running, slowly add the olive oil in a steady stream until the dressing thickens. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (The dressing can be prepared up to 3 days ahead, covered, and refrigerated.)

Makes 1 1/2 cups.