My sister has posted this recipe before, but ladies, it is SO good! The recipe orginally came from the book Saving Dinner, and I passed it on to Laura when I made her a little shower gift of favorite recipes. The best thing about it is how easy it is to make ahead. I served this dish for our guests yesterday. I made the cornbread and rice to go along with it the night before. So all I had to do was heat everything up, and dinner was on the table in less than five minutes!
I just wanted to recommended it again as the perfect company dish. It's so flavorful. Do note the cook time though: basically you just need to cook it long enough for the chicken to be cooked through, which actually only took about 2-3 hours for my slower cooker on low. But I cooked it another hour or so to be sure the flavors blended. This dish doesn't really suffer from cooking longer than is required because there is plenty of liquid. So whether you get everything in the pot early or late, it's going to be a winner.
My guest even asked for the recipe!! :o)
Monday, September 29, 2008
Friday, September 26, 2008
Snack for Birth Class :)
We have a supplemental class presented by our midwife for her "Fall Clients" this Saturday, and EVERYONE is supposed to bring a snack to share. (I'm excited, because I LOVE meeting people who are more or less as far along as we are, PLUS I can't wait to see what all the other mamas are cooking and baking!) We received a reminder flier in the mail last week, repeating the number of people who will be needing a shared snack, and adding, "Please don't everyone bring a veggie plate!" :) So I'm bringing these::
Teresa F.'s Grab-n-Go Breakfast Cookies.
1/2 c. softened butter or margarine
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp. vanilla
1 14 oz. can crushed pineapple, drained well*
3 c. quick-cook rolled oats
1 c. whole-wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 c. raisins, or dried blueberries, or cranberries**
1 c. walnuts, or pecans, or almonds, chopped***
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Beat butter and sugars with mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla, and beat to combine. Add pineapple to mixture, and beat to combine.
In large bowl whisk together flour, oats, cinnamon, and baking soda. Add flour mixture to the egg mixture, and beat just enough to combine. Mix in dried fruit and nuts by hand.
Drop 1/3 c. of dough on cookie sheet, leaving 2 inches between each cookie. With a damp hand press cookies to 1/2" thickness. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. These freeze well.
*I don't like pineapple, so I substituted some canned peaches that I ran through the blender real quick.
**I, for whatever reason, was out of raisins, so I chopped up some dried apricots, threw in a handful of dried cranberries, and topped it off with some dried coconut.
***Half cup of chopped pecans, half cup chocolate chips. I couldn't help it...but I think this time I might make half without nuts, just in case of allergies...maybe replace with seeds of some kind...
(Also going to add a few tsps of ground up flax seed...) If you want to make the cookies with less cholesterol, 3 tablespoons of water + 1 tbs ground flax seed = one egg. If you want to go completely vegan, replace the butter with "prune puree which will also obviously reduce the amount of fat. To use, puree 1/2 cup of pitted prunes with 1/4 cup of water. You will want to reduce the amount used, or the final product may be too moist. If the recipe calls for a half cup use 1/3 cup instead. You may also want to add a little oil, maybe a tablespoon per cup of fat needed, because a little fat goes a long way in taste and texture". I convert my baked goods to vegan when we'll be sharing with my In Laws, or with older people, just to make the goodies more cholesterol-friendly.
Teresa F.'s Grab-n-Go Breakfast Cookies.
1/2 c. softened butter or margarine
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tbsp. vanilla
1 14 oz. can crushed pineapple, drained well*
3 c. quick-cook rolled oats
1 c. whole-wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 c. raisins, or dried blueberries, or cranberries**
1 c. walnuts, or pecans, or almonds, chopped***
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Beat butter and sugars with mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla, and beat to combine. Add pineapple to mixture, and beat to combine.
In large bowl whisk together flour, oats, cinnamon, and baking soda. Add flour mixture to the egg mixture, and beat just enough to combine. Mix in dried fruit and nuts by hand.
Drop 1/3 c. of dough on cookie sheet, leaving 2 inches between each cookie. With a damp hand press cookies to 1/2" thickness. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes. These freeze well.
*I don't like pineapple, so I substituted some canned peaches that I ran through the blender real quick.
**I, for whatever reason, was out of raisins, so I chopped up some dried apricots, threw in a handful of dried cranberries, and topped it off with some dried coconut.
***Half cup of chopped pecans, half cup chocolate chips. I couldn't help it...but I think this time I might make half without nuts, just in case of allergies...maybe replace with seeds of some kind...
(Also going to add a few tsps of ground up flax seed...) If you want to make the cookies with less cholesterol, 3 tablespoons of water + 1 tbs ground flax seed = one egg. If you want to go completely vegan, replace the butter with "prune puree which will also obviously reduce the amount of fat. To use, puree 1/2 cup of pitted prunes with 1/4 cup of water. You will want to reduce the amount used, or the final product may be too moist. If the recipe calls for a half cup use 1/3 cup instead. You may also want to add a little oil, maybe a tablespoon per cup of fat needed, because a little fat goes a long way in taste and texture". I convert my baked goods to vegan when we'll be sharing with my In Laws, or with older people, just to make the goodies more cholesterol-friendly.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
Crock-Pot Breakfast
For crock-pot lovers, go over here to find breakfast recipes. Something I've never seen before.
Pumpkin Cream Muffins
It's our turn to bring snacks to our child birthing class tonight so I thought I'd make a fall treat! They are now one of Dan's favorite.
1-1/3 c. sugar, divided
1-1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
3 eggs, divided
3/4 c. oil
1 c. canned pumpkin
8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
Topping:
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 t. cinnamon
3 T. all-purpose flour
2 T. butter
Combine one cup sugar and flour, along with cinnamon, baking soda, salt, 2 eggs, oil and pumpkin; mix and set aside. In a separate bowl, blend together cream cheese, remaining sugar and remaining egg. Pour pumpkin mixture into greased muffin cups, filling 2/3 full. Place a heaping teaspoon of cream cheese filling in the center of each muffin. Sprinkle each with one teaspoon topping mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes. Makes 1-1/2 dozen muffins.
This recipe comes from Gooseberry Patch Pumpkin Cookbooklet #15.
1-1/3 c. sugar, divided
1-1/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
3 eggs, divided
3/4 c. oil
1 c. canned pumpkin
8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
Topping:
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 t. cinnamon
3 T. all-purpose flour
2 T. butter
Combine one cup sugar and flour, along with cinnamon, baking soda, salt, 2 eggs, oil and pumpkin; mix and set aside. In a separate bowl, blend together cream cheese, remaining sugar and remaining egg. Pour pumpkin mixture into greased muffin cups, filling 2/3 full. Place a heaping teaspoon of cream cheese filling in the center of each muffin. Sprinkle each with one teaspoon topping mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 18 minutes. Makes 1-1/2 dozen muffins.
This recipe comes from Gooseberry Patch Pumpkin Cookbooklet #15.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Staple
I have recently decided that pasta with Prego sauce and ground beef will be a weekly meal at our house. Why? Because it's a relatively easy meal to make, and it's one that we can and do all eat! No dairy or other scary things. Just straight up good food - even to the toddler's tastebuds!
Do you have any other regular old meals like this without dairy that I'm overlooking that a toddler might eat?
Peter and I both struggle with the fact the Charles has this allergy or sensitivity. Despite the many times we've watched him break out in hives from it, it still seems surreal to us. While we were eating pizza the other day, I was sharing my dairy-free crust with him, but I was so tempted to give him a bite of the real stuff. It seems so harmless. It seems so impossible that cheese can actually make someone sick. But I'm naive and new to this world of allergies. I try to keep a real respect for his allergies as we know them. I have a consultation with an allergist set up for next week, so hopefully we'll have a little professional guidance on this journey...
I also just checked out this book from the library. Though I don't intend to do a month's worth of cooking. I do want to get some dairy-free meals in the freezer. The recipes in this book look good. So hopefully I'll be sharing some with you soon.
Do you have any other regular old meals like this without dairy that I'm overlooking that a toddler might eat?
Peter and I both struggle with the fact the Charles has this allergy or sensitivity. Despite the many times we've watched him break out in hives from it, it still seems surreal to us. While we were eating pizza the other day, I was sharing my dairy-free crust with him, but I was so tempted to give him a bite of the real stuff. It seems so harmless. It seems so impossible that cheese can actually make someone sick. But I'm naive and new to this world of allergies. I try to keep a real respect for his allergies as we know them. I have a consultation with an allergist set up for next week, so hopefully we'll have a little professional guidance on this journey...
I also just checked out this book from the library. Though I don't intend to do a month's worth of cooking. I do want to get some dairy-free meals in the freezer. The recipes in this book look good. So hopefully I'll be sharing some with you soon.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
A Birthday Celebration
I had never made a German Chocolate Cake before. All the bakery German Chocolate Cakes I'd ever had had been dry, crumbly, and, frankly, very disappointing to a chocolate lover like me! I'd always assumed that Germans preferred their chocolate cakes dry and crumbly...until now...
We had a friend in town last night. She recently had a birthday, AND baby was wanting some cupcakes, so I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone and make her a birthday cake for her visit! I asked her what her favorite cake was, and groaned inwardly when she said "German Chocolate!" I'd thought my friends would have better taste... :P
Ah, well, she's a good friend, and if she wanted a "German Chocolate Cake", a "German Chocolate Cake" she would get! And it's off to Google!
As it turns out, a German Chocolate Cake is not German in origin at all! It's named after the brand of chocolate used in the baking of the cake! Huh. Maybe there's hope for this cake, after all.
Here's how it turned out:
It. Was. DELICIOUS. So moist and CHOCOLATEY.
And here is the recipe, which can also be found by clicking the link above: (Note: I don't have THREE layer pans, I have two. So, I made a two layer cake, and six cupcakes, five of which I gave to the neighbours after the hubby came over to help Matt unclog the shower. Ugh. I can't wait to move.)
German Chocolate Cake
1 pkg. Baker's German’s sweet chocolate (4 oz.)
1/2 cup Water, boiling
1 cup Butter or margarine
2 cup Sugar
4 Eggs, separated
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
2 cups Flour, all-purpose
1 teaspoon Baking soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Buttermilk
Coconut-pecan frosting
1. Melt chocolate in water and cool.
2. Cream butter and
Sugar.
3. Beat in egg yolks.
4. Stir in vanilla and
chocolate.
5. Mix flour, soda and salt. beat in flour
mixture, alternately with buttermilk.
6. Beat egg whites
until stiff peaks form; fold into batter. Pour batter
into three 9-inch layer pans, lined on bottoms with
waxed paper.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or
until cake springs back when lightly pressed in
center Cool 15 minutes; remove and cool on rack.
THE FILLING AND TOPPING
1-14 oz. can of condensed milk such as Eagle Brand
½ Cup water
3 egg yolks
1 t vanilla
1/2 C butter (1 stick)
1 1/3 c Pecans; chopped reserve 10 whole pecan halves for garnish.
1 ¾ c Angel flake coconut
(If you can not find eagle brand condensed milk then use this substitute
mix 1 cup + 2 T (250 gr.) powdered milk mix with 1/2 C water and 3/4 C granulated sugar
Directions:
Cook the milk eggs and water over a double boiler until thickened.
Cook it over direct heat if you use complete concentration.
Then add the vanilla and butter and whisk in until it is melted and
smooth.
Add the chopped pecans and coconut.
CHOCOLATE FROSTING (Optional) {Erin's Note: Or, not so optional. :P}
1 stick or 1/2 Cup (125 grams ) butter , softened
9 squares (50 ml) Baker's German's chocolate, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups (350 gr.)powdered sugar
1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla
1 1/2 TBS (45 ml) milk
for a richer chocolate flavor, add cocoa powder. or buy more German's chocolate
Mix butter and chocolate in mixing bowl. Stir in powdered sugar.
Beat vanilla and milk until smooth and of spreading consistency.
Assembly;
Divide the filling evenly between the 3 cakes putting the 1st layer
down, Then spread the filling evenly
Repeat with the other layer.
Frost the side of the cake only.
It sounds like a lot of work, and I suppose it is, but it was really a lot of fun!
We had a friend in town last night. She recently had a birthday, AND baby was wanting some cupcakes, so I thought I'd kill two birds with one stone and make her a birthday cake for her visit! I asked her what her favorite cake was, and groaned inwardly when she said "German Chocolate!" I'd thought my friends would have better taste... :P
Ah, well, she's a good friend, and if she wanted a "German Chocolate Cake", a "German Chocolate Cake" she would get! And it's off to Google!
As it turns out, a German Chocolate Cake is not German in origin at all! It's named after the brand of chocolate used in the baking of the cake! Huh. Maybe there's hope for this cake, after all.
Here's how it turned out:
It. Was. DELICIOUS. So moist and CHOCOLATEY.
And here is the recipe, which can also be found by clicking the link above: (Note: I don't have THREE layer pans, I have two. So, I made a two layer cake, and six cupcakes, five of which I gave to the neighbours after the hubby came over to help Matt unclog the shower. Ugh. I can't wait to move.)
German Chocolate Cake
1 pkg. Baker's German’s sweet chocolate (4 oz.)
1/2 cup Water, boiling
1 cup Butter or margarine
2 cup Sugar
4 Eggs, separated
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
2 cups Flour, all-purpose
1 teaspoon Baking soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 cup Buttermilk
Coconut-pecan frosting
1. Melt chocolate in water and cool.
2. Cream butter and
Sugar.
3. Beat in egg yolks.
4. Stir in vanilla and
chocolate.
5. Mix flour, soda and salt. beat in flour
mixture, alternately with buttermilk.
6. Beat egg whites
until stiff peaks form; fold into batter. Pour batter
into three 9-inch layer pans, lined on bottoms with
waxed paper.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or
until cake springs back when lightly pressed in
center Cool 15 minutes; remove and cool on rack.
THE FILLING AND TOPPING
1-14 oz. can of condensed milk such as Eagle Brand
½ Cup water
3 egg yolks
1 t vanilla
1/2 C butter (1 stick)
1 1/3 c Pecans; chopped reserve 10 whole pecan halves for garnish.
1 ¾ c Angel flake coconut
(If you can not find eagle brand condensed milk then use this substitute
mix 1 cup + 2 T (250 gr.) powdered milk mix with 1/2 C water and 3/4 C granulated sugar
Directions:
Cook the milk eggs and water over a double boiler until thickened.
Cook it over direct heat if you use complete concentration.
Then add the vanilla and butter and whisk in until it is melted and
smooth.
Add the chopped pecans and coconut.
CHOCOLATE FROSTING (Optional) {Erin's Note: Or, not so optional. :P}
1 stick or 1/2 Cup (125 grams ) butter , softened
9 squares (50 ml) Baker's German's chocolate, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups (350 gr.)powdered sugar
1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla
1 1/2 TBS (45 ml) milk
for a richer chocolate flavor, add cocoa powder. or buy more German's chocolate
Mix butter and chocolate in mixing bowl. Stir in powdered sugar.
Beat vanilla and milk until smooth and of spreading consistency.
Assembly;
Divide the filling evenly between the 3 cakes putting the 1st layer
down, Then spread the filling evenly
Repeat with the other layer.
Frost the side of the cake only.
It sounds like a lot of work, and I suppose it is, but it was really a lot of fun!
Monday, September 15, 2008
Another Pork Marinade
I am a big fan of marinades. I feel like sometimes that is all I post. Well, this one is FANTASTIC. I've used it for years, had it tonight, and felt you all needed to try it. I bought 1 package of pork tenderloin. In these packages, there are really 2 small tenderloins totally about 2 lbs. I was able to get mine for about a total of $8, so really not that expensive. Use this marinade..the longer you can marinade it the better, but today I only was able to do it for 6 hours. It is delicious. Enjoy
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup oyster sauce (found on oriental aisle)
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp red pepper (i use the flakes, but you can use ground)
2 TBS brown sugar (today I didn't have any, I used white and it was fine)
1 TBS ginger
1 TBS minced garlic (I of course used much more)
1 TBS ketchup
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Mix all ingredients and marinade. You can either grill it or bake it. If you grill it, use indirect medium heat and do 20 minutes, flip, then 20 minutes. If you bake....preheat oven to 350. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Place foil on top unsealed for 1 - 1 1/2 hours on 375. Continue turning during cooking.
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup oyster sauce (found on oriental aisle)
1/4 tsp. onion powder
1/4 tsp red pepper (i use the flakes, but you can use ground)
2 TBS brown sugar (today I didn't have any, I used white and it was fine)
1 TBS ginger
1 TBS minced garlic (I of course used much more)
1 TBS ketchup
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Mix all ingredients and marinade. You can either grill it or bake it. If you grill it, use indirect medium heat and do 20 minutes, flip, then 20 minutes. If you bake....preheat oven to 350. Bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Place foil on top unsealed for 1 - 1 1/2 hours on 375. Continue turning during cooking.
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