Chocolate Delights - Edible Gifts

Here we go, it is officially Christmas Season in the kitchen. Let's start with a quick and easy recipe called Pecan Delights.

I made these Friday morning and sent them to my husband's new office.  They are so quick and easy, they practically make themselves.  You'll need:

8 oz  package semi-sweet chocolate squares OR  2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
14 oz can of condensed milk
2 cups chopped pecans
Pinch of salt

I placed my chips in a microwavable bowl and microwaved for 1 minute.

I stirred them and then heated again stirring every 15 seconds until they were smooth.  I stirred in the milk and nuts and scooped them out into cupcake liners.

I think the smaller scoop would have been a better size if I had chopped the pecans smaller, but I used the large scoop which probably made for a large satisfying bite.

I liked how the liners made the candy easy to box up and serve.  I sent my hubby to the office with two boxes, and that my dear readers is how to win friends and influence people, tee-he-he.  Enjoy and don't forget to share with a friend.

Pumpkin Bread & Gift Giving

Hello all, I hope you enjoyed your weekend.  Mine didn’t go quite the way I planned, but I stilled managed to get everything done that I set out to do.  This included making and wrapping pumpkin bread to share in a post with you all today. 

I have been making this bread for the last three years after stumbling on the recipe at Décor Chick.  I am not going to reinvent the wheel, and all the details for this recipe can be found on this amazing blog.  Here are a couple of shots of me lining up all the ingredients and into the oven they went.  I made 8 mini loaf pans from this one recipe. 

After they baked and cooled I got started on the fun part, wrapping.  The holidays are fast approaching and regardless of what you celebrate in your home, I’m sure there is a fabric or scrapbook paper out there to suit your needs.  I made these for Thanksgiving and Christmas just to give you some ideas.  

I began by picking out some fall colored and Christmas themed scrapbook papers, and some coordinating colors of card stock.  All of these were 50% off at Hobby Lobby.  I also purchased and pair of fancy scissors, a circle template, raffia, some scrapbook mounting squares, and clear cellophane treats bags.  The fabric I bought at the local fabric store around the corner from my home. Out of my own closet I got out the paper cutter, pop-up tape strips, and my favorite PSA Essentials stamp.  The one for this project says “From the Kitchen of Marta”, but I’ll get into more detail on these later in the week. I’m a little obsessed with them. I usually stamp an entire sheet of Avery circle labels and keep them in the front pocket of my recipe binder. When I give food trays or bread to others I pull one out and pop it on top.   

I began with the easiest and that was to place the loaf in a cellophane bag, fold the end under the bottom and secure with tape.  I cut a 1 inch strip of the scrapbook paper and wrapped it around the center of the loaf and secured it with a circle label. 

Next with this same theme I wrapped the strip around the loaf, but this time secured it with a coordinating color card stock label.  I stamped the cardstock and carefully cut the circle out with the decorative edge scissors. I used a mounting strip to secure the label on top.   

 

I wanted to purchase a punch, but dang it all they weren’t on sale this weekend, so that will have to wait for another day.  The scissors were $1.99 and did the job quite nicely.  I liked the look of both of these and the possibilities are endless really. 

 

Next I dusted off the sewing machine and got to work on the next wrapping technique by sewing up some festive gift bags.  This was a trial and error process, and unfortunately there was one error. After I made the bag below I cut it a little too short for the loaf of bread, but hey don’t sweat it I’ll just have to wrap something smaller with that bag.  Nothing goes to waste around here. 

I used a clean loaf pan as my gauge for this project and found the measurements that suited me best.  I cut the fabric to a 14” square.  The 7" picture below is folded over.

 

I folded the right sides together and hemmed along the long side and one short side. I cut the opening with my pinking shears and I was finished.  This makes a nice little bag for giving the bread as gifts, and if you are not on speaking terms with your sewing machine, this is more than enough and you can stop here. 

But if you have developed a rapport with your machine as I have then move onto this next step to dress it up just a bit more.  I cut the next bag the same as before. After sewing the side and bottoms seam, I folded the sewn end to a point and secured it with a pin.  I eyeballed approximately 1 inch from the corner and sewed it straight across. 

 

I did this for both sides and when it is turned right side out it created it nice square end.  Because I wasn’t going for the cover of Craft Weekly, I cut the open end with my pinking shears and voila.  There you have it, quick and easy little gift bag for yummy gift giving. 

I made a couple of gift tags to coordinate and prepared to shower my neighbors with pumpkin bread.  Anyone who lives near me has come to enjoy this time of year because they know goodies will soon be coming their way. 

 

 

A couple of them were thrown off by the early Christmas present, but they all follow the blog, so they understood completely why I jumped the gun a little. 

 

We enjoyed some pumpkin bread for breakfast this morning, warmed for a few seconds in the microwave. I would like to tell you it was on fine china, but I would be lying.  In reality it was a paper plate with a smidge of Redi-Whip on top of the slices, cause in this house that’s how we roll.

Enjoy and remember to share it with a friend. Come back later this week for another simple sewing project and some stamping fun.

What’s Up Doc? Carrot Soufflé

Sorry I couldn’t’ help myself I had to go for the easy bunny reference.  Must be all the Looney Tunes my husband and son were watching last night.  It was cute the more big brother laughed the more the baby laughed.  Even with all the craziness in this working mom's day, those are the moments you have to just sit still and enjoy. 

Today we are making Carrot Soufflé.  We had our annual Thanksgiving pot luck at the office yesterday, and this is my go to dish for the fall.  Yeah sure it involves peeling and slicing 3 pounds of carrots and has ridiculous amounts of eggs and butter, but hey that's what are the holidays for. 

This is a recipe that I found in Southern Living in the late 90’s.  I lost it in a move once and spent an afternoon at the public library searching through 2 years of back issues to find it.  I think I made $2 worth of copies of it back then so I would never lose it again.  Here’s what you need.

Carrot Soufflé

3 pounds of carrots, peeled and sliced

6 eggs
1 ½ cups butter softened
1 cup flour
2 cups sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. cinnamon

 Start by peeling and slicing 3 pounds of carrots.  Nothing compares to my pampered chef vegetable peeler for this, it is super sharp and definitely the right tool for the job.  I always thought that the two sides of the blade were made for left or right handed people, until I saw Rachel Ray peel carrots.  She kept the peeler in contact with the carrot and in a back and forth motion peeled the carrots twice as fast. Thanks Rachel Ray for the tip.  Also I don’t need a knife to cut the tops off, because the PC peeler is sharp enough the cut the green tops off with a few passes. 
 

Next I slice the carrots using the food processor.  Of course a knife would work but this is more fun.

I add these to a pot of salted water and cook them until they are tender.  I like to serve this dish straight from the oven, but often to save time I prepare and cook the carrots the night before then place them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. 

 

I cooked these the morning of, so when the carrots were tender I strained them and ran them under cold water to stop the cooking, cool them off, and keep from melting the butter.  After rinsing I placed them back into the cooking pot, I used an immersion blender so I tried to dirty as few pots and dishes as possible.   

 

If you don’t have an immersion blender use a potato masher, mixer or food processor.  I add the softened butter and use the immersion blender to process the carrots and butter until they are mixed. Be careful not to over mix.  I like mine to still have a little texture to the carrots.

I crack all my eggs in a separate bowl and beat with a fork. I mix the flour baking powder and cinnamon together in a small bowl. 

I add these to the carrots, and then mix with my favorite mega Mix n’ Scraper and pour into a buttered baking dish. 

Because our get together was pot luck I used an aluminum catering pan that I sprayed with Pam for Baking. 

Put this in a preheated 350° oven for 1 hour and serve immediately. This will come out a little loose, so don't be alarmed.  You may need to add additional time in the oven, look for slight browning on the outer edges. 

The original recipe in Southern Living called for 3 cups of sugar, but I began to back out the sugar until I reached an amount that gave it plenty of sweetness without overpowering the carrots’ flavor. I have used as little as 1 ½ cups of sugar before.  Try it and find what works for you.  Some people sprinkled this with powdered sugar for presentation, but I prefer it without.  I usually only make this at Thanksgiving and Easter, but I sometimes get request from the family to make it more often.  This recipe also cuts in half beautifully for Sunday dinners.  If you’ve never had it before be adventurous and give it a try, you won’t be disappointed.  Enjoy and remember to share it with a friend. 

Have a nice weekend and come back next week for a mommy’s corner, more baking and some holiday gift ideas.

Crock Pot Mania: Beans & Greens

Good afternoon, today we’re making beans and greens.  I worked in an office not too long ago that would get all the people in the department together for a Beans & Greens lunch.  At least that’s what I named it because the menu consisted of red beans & rice, and mustard greens. 

Now brace yourself because I have a confession to make.  Hi my name is Marta, I live in Louisiana and I don’t like red beans & rice.  Take a moment to recover and then read on.  I know it sounds crazy but I have never really cared for red beans.  Truth be told I didn’t eat any kind of legumes, I have always had an issue with the texture.  I will eat legumes in a pinch, if it’s my only option, or if I’m trying to be polite, or contractually obligated holidays like New Year’s Day.  This is why this post is going to come as such a shock to my family members. 

Last year a coworker made a bean mix of 10 or so kinds of beans and gave each person in my office some to make soup.  Not wanting to confess my dislike of legumes I graciously accepted her gift and took them home.  I am not one to waste food so when everyone started coming in with recipes for how they cooked theirs I knew I had to come up with something fast.  Thus Marta’s Bean Stew was born.  Don’t stop reading now, because I know it sounds strange but it really is delicious. I had no way of knowing what types of beans she mixed together so now I use a bean soup mixture. Here’s what you need. 

Marta’s Bean Stew

1 package Stew Meat
1 bag Bean Soup Mix
1 carton + 1 can of Beef Broth
2 Bay Leaves
1 Tsp. Tony Chachere’s Cajun Seasoning
1 Tbsp. dried Parsley
1 Tsp. dried Thyme
¼ Tsp. dried Sage
½ Tsp. Cayenne (Optional)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Begin by drizzling oil in a preheated pan and browning the stew meat.

 

Then place the all of the ingredients in the crock pot on low for 8-10 hours. 

That’s it.  I cannot think of one more sentence to add here.  What you will come home to is this amazing dish with the texture of red beans, but with a much more complex flavor. 

The meat will start to shred as you stir and will distribute all through the beans. It will be this luscious dark color and it taste so good. If you feel it needs more liquid add some water give it a stir, let it warm as you make rice. It is that simple, Scout’s honor.

This goes great with your favorite recipe for corn bread, which for me consist of a box of Jiffy Corn Bread mix. But after having Beans & Greens so many times at my office my new favorite side is mustard greens.

Now I mentioned Monday that I had two crock pots going, check it out. 

I got this small crock pot with a removable crock at an estate sale.  I have owned small crock pots before but there were too small for cooking, there were made for warming dip and often had no temperature control.  When I saw this one I had to have it. I will never scald Rotel Dip again, oh happy tailgating!  As a bonus it is big enough to cook in.  Seeing as how I am the only one who likes greens in this house it is perfect for cooking up a half a bag.  Be careful to follow the recipe not my picture here, I made just enough for me.

 A co-worker Miss Linda gave me this recipe.  Side note; if you grow up in the South all adults are referred to as Mister or Miss fill in the blank.  Never mind that I am in my 40’s and we worked in the same office, if someone is my senior they will always be Mister or Miss.

Anyway here’s what you need for crock pot greens.

Crock Pot Greens

1 Package frozen Mustard Greens
1 Link of Smoked Sausage
½ cup of beef broth (can substitute Bouillon Cube & water)
1 can Rotel Tomatoes & Chilies or 1 cup of Pace Picante Sauce
Salt & Pepper to taste

Begin by slicing the sausage and placing it in the bottom of the pot and cover with the bag of greens.  Next add the broth and the can of Rotel. Cook this on low for 4-6 hours, or high for half that. 

What you get are greens with a great smoky flavor.  This recipe is very forgiving.  If I am worried about it being too spicy I use the Pace Picante, if I want it to have a little kick I use the Rotel.  I have even been known to add a couple of tablespoons  of apple cider vinegar to add a sweet and tangy flavor.  Put a bottle of Tabasco or Peppered Vinegar on the table to give people options. 

I would love to show you the picture of the beans & greens side by side on the plate but dang it all I was so excited to eat these I forgot to take pictures until dinner was over.  You should have seen the look on my guest’s face when I dirtied up two more plates to give you all a look see.  Oh well, anything for the blog right?  Be brave and try these out, they are plenty good I promise.  Come back later in the week, I have some baking planned. Enjoy and remember to share these with a friend.

Kid Friendly Hamburger Steak

Today is the day for all foodies and gourmet fans to look away. Today I am going to make kid friendly cuisine.  Someone asked me earlier in the week why I go into so much detail with these recipes, when I could just give out the ingredients and directions and call it a day.  Well friends the answer is simple. Not everyone I know was born with an inherent ability to cook.  Heck the first time I moved out of my parent’s house I knew out to make breaded cutlets, tuna casserole and mac & cheese.  Over the years I have asked questions, sought out adventurous recipes and cooked by trial and error.  I have some friends and family who are young college students and newlyweds and they are new to the whole cooking scene.  My goal is to help them out as much as possible and encourage them to cook and not rely on take out as often. 

For dinner last night I served up one of the first born son’s favorites, Poor Man’s Steak. 

He just loves it and I like to let him choose the meal every once in a while. It gives him a sense of autonomy and makes him feel like he contributes.  Here’s what we started with.

Poor Man’s Steak

1 pound ground beef

Slices of bacon

Salt & Pepper to taste

Lipton’s Beefy Onion Soup Mix

2 tablespoons Flour

I began by seasoning the meat with salt and a fair amount of pepper.  My mom believes that plenty of pepper is what makes a hamburger so good.  I formed the meat into Poppa Bear, Momma Bear and Baby Bear sized patties. I then wrapped a piece of bacon around each one and secured it with a toothpick. 

 

 

Next I preheated my pan and cooked them up.  You’ll notice here that I am using a splatter screen.  My mother used these when I was growing up, and you rarely see any of us cooking without one.  It works well to protect the chef from unwanted splatters and burns.  I usually hold mine in front of me shield style when I am in front of the pan. Believe it or not it has saved my eyes from a grease splatter or two.

After they were cooked I placed them on a paper towel, a poured off the grease in the pan.  I deglazed the pan and used the liquid gold to make the gravy.  I made the gravy by following the recipe on the side of the package, which consists of adding 2 tablespoons of flour and whisking with 2 cups of water to bring to a boil. 

Then I put the steaks back in the pan and poured the thickened gravy over the top.  You can use whatever gravy recipe you like, just remember the goal is to get dinner on the table between homework and bath time. Don’t be ashamed to use a package, I’m not.

I served “little man’s” with rice and corn as he requested.  He doesn’t like the gravy on his rice; he prefers to eat his plain. Check out the Star Wars plate, pretty snazzy huh?

For the grownups I put the hamburger steak on a bed of rice and ladled gravy over the top.  I have been known to smother this with grilled onions, bacon, and mushrooms, and a slice of cheese before covering it in gravy.  That’s how we served it at a restaurant I worked at in college.  So there you have it a kid friendly recipe for the weekend.