My, what lovely weather we're having.

The weather has been amazing.  January with only a day or two of light snow, quite unlike last year.  I don't know if I haven't been cooking as much, or cooking and not posting.  Probably the latter.  


Heather told me about this broccoli she roasted in the oven.  I made it and really enjoyed it, but I'm not sure if this was the exact recipe.  There are several of them out there.  We had it last night, and I was reminded of how  much I loved it.  

Parmesan-Roasted Broccoli

1 head of fresh broccoli, cut into florettes
2 cloves garlic peeled and thinly sliced
olive oill
3/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp grated lemon zest
1 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425*.  Place broccoli on a sheet pan in a single layer.  Toss with garlic and olive oil.  sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 20-25 min.  It will be crisp-tender and the tips are starting to brown.

Remove from the oven and toss with another tablespoon of olive oil, lemon zest and juice, and Parmesan.  Serve right now!

Crabby Pants

In my classroom at school when someone arrives with a scowl or responds in a less than polite manner, I might as them if they have their crabby pants on. What that has to do this this recipe is really a stretch, but there is crab meat in the recipe!

Anyway....

Here is a crab Rangoon recipe that was quite tasty. Better for you because it's baked, but still has that oh so good flavor I crave.

BAKED CRAB RANGOON

1 can 6oz white crab meat, drained

4 oz cream cheese (could use Neufchatel) soft

2 green onions, thinly sliced & include some of the green

1/4 cup light mayo or regular

12 won ton wrappers

Heat oven to 350*.

Mix first 4 ingredients.

Place 1 won ton wrapper in each of 12 mini muffin cups sprayed with cooking spray. The edges will stick up, that's OK. Fill with crab mixture.

Bake 18-20 minutes of until edges of cups are golden brown and filling is heated through.

I had a few minutes left when I though the edges were the right color, so I took them out and gave them 30 seconds in the microwave to firm up the middles. Be sure to cool them a few minutes before digging in.

If you prefer a crispier texture bake the wrappers for 5-7 minutes before filling them, then another 6-8 minutes or till filling is heated through.

Birthday Salutations

For the last couple of days I kept asking Mike what kind of cake he'd like for his birthday. He just had trouble making a decision. James and Sarah are here from Lincoln, so we've been doing fun stuff instead of the usual ho hum. Shopping, eating out, etc... Today i flipped through some saved recipes I put on the back burner, and found these cupcakes that I wanted to try. He agreed -thank goodness! Before we went to Panda Garden I mixed up the cupcake batter, baked them and left them to cool. After we arrived home I quickly mixed up the frosting.

THEY ARE GOOD!!! Heather reminded me that James could bring some home for them, so I have their batch tucked away in a container ready for the road. I'm so glad Mike couldn't make up his mind. :-)

PEANUT BUTTER CUPCAKES = yum

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1/3 cup milk

1/2 cup peanut butter morsels

2/3 cup marshmallow fluff

Preheat oven to 350*

Cream butter and peanut butter together in the bowl of an electric mixer until smooth and creamy. Add sugar and eggs and beat together until fluffy. Add vanilla and mix for another minute or so.

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients mixing just until combined. Add the milk, and once mixed add remaining dry ingredients. Fold in peanut butter morsels and marshmallow fluff by hand.

My recipe said it would make 12 cupcakes, but I got 15 out of the batter.

Pour into cupcake tins with liners and fill 2/3 full. I use an ice cream scoop so they bake evenly. Bake for 18 (ish) minutes. Let cool completely before frosting.

MARSHMALLOW BUTTER CREAM FROSTING

1 stick butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup marshmallow fluff

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Beat butter in the bowl of an electric mixer until creamy. Add in fluff and beat for 2-3 minutes. Add in vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add in powdered sugar slowly, then beat on medium-high speed 2-3 minutes. If it seems runny add more pwd. sugar, if it's thick, add a bit of milk or cream 1 tbsp at a time. I needed to add liquid, but I think it would depend on the humidity level in your home.

After I frosted the cupcakes I warmed up some leftover genache, this step is optional.

The recipe said that the frosting will get hard, so make them the same day you are going to serve them. Okie dokie!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR. MULLEN!!!!

I'm Thankful

So much in our lives we take for granted. Each and every day we have more than we could ever deserve, even on our worst day. Another Thanksgiving has come and gone, and I was blessed to spend it with family that I love. My parents, brother, husband, children, and for the first ever Thanksgiving.... my granddaughter! It was fun, even though Lucy was not the best sleeper, ahem. Some day we will remind her of how she kept us awake at night. :-) Love you Lucy!

Here's the recipe I used for sweet potatoes, or yams? They reminded me of a German chocolate cake!!

Praline Sweet-yam-tatoes

40 oz can yams

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1/2 cup coconut

1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350*.

Place drained hams in a 2 qt. baking dish that has been sprayed with Pam.

Combine remaining ingredients and sprinkle over the top.

Bake 35-40 minutes or until bubbly.

I was also thankful there was leftover pecan pie!!! AND Cool Whip!!! wink wink

Back to the Basics

I never grew up eating a variety of foods. My mom was a good, but basic cook. We had chicken - fried in bacon fat by the way. We had fried hamburgers, plenty of pot roasts on Sunday, frozen pizza when I got older, and eggs. Not all at once. I don't remember a lot of other meals, oh but I do remember cinnamon rolls and chocolate cake. But, I think I made the cake. Anyway....

I don't have a memory of mac and cheese. We probably had it, but I'm sure it was from a box. It wasn't until recently I cooked homemade mac and cheese. It was super easy, and I kind of liked it! I know it's not a healthy offering, but sometimes you just have to have a bowl of mac and cheese.

Velveeta's 75th Anniversary Recipe

Macaroni and Cheese

2 cups (8oz) elbow macaroni, uncooked

3/4 lb (12oz) Velveeta cheese product, cut up (pretty sure I used 1/2 lb)

1/3 cup milk

1/8 tsp pepper

Cook macaroni as directed on package; drain well and return to pan.

Add remaining ingredients; mix well. Cook on low heat until prepared cheese product is melted, stirring frequently.

Yup, that's it.

What would you like for your side?

Whenever we go out to eat my husband has a terrible time deciding what to order, he just has trouble making decisions. Once he has labored over the list of choices, then comes the dreaded next question: "What would you like with that???? soup, salad, potato, rice, sauteed veggies" etc.....

I always feel like I need to have a meat, potato, veggie, salad at most meals. Who do I think I am, June Cleaver? AND I like different colors to be represented! Nothing makes me more distressed than sitting down to a meal and realizing everything is a shade of beige/brown. Well, almost nothing makes me more distressed. I may be exaggerating a little.

Here's an offering for a salad that combines a couple of food groups. Maybe this will make suppertime a little easier. :-)

COTTAGE CHEESE SALAD

1 tub small curd cottage cheese

1 can Mandarin oranges, drained

1 small can crushed pineapple, drain very well

3 oz box orange or apricot Jell-O

2 cups miniature marshmallows

1 small container Cool Whip

Mix all together and keep in refrigerator.

This salad will start to get watery in a couple of days, so eat it up!!

It's beginning to look a lot like....

December is hours away, and my mind is beginning to race for new appetizer ideas for Christmas. I was reviewing a few recipes on my iPad and found this pizza roll. I made it for a football game and it was pretty tasty. I think I found it on a blog, maybe Pioneer Woman?? Not sure.

Pizza Rolls

2 cans refrigerated pizza crust

garlic salt

Italian seasoning

1 cup sliced and chopped pepperoni

1 cup shredded cheese, whatever kind you like

1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese

spaghetti sauce for dipping

Preheat oven to 425*.

Dust a large cutting board with flour and roll out each pizza crust.

Season each crust with garlic salt and Italian seasoning, as much as you like.

Top with cheese and meat.

Start with a short end and roll crust into a tight log.

Slice into 1" sections.

Place on lightly greased pan and bake for 10-12 minutes.

Serve with spaghetti sauce for dipping.