Where, oh where have I gone?

Ah, the depths of graduate school work. Yes, it's online, but that doesn't mean I'm not printing out lots of stuff and using lots of paper.

More updates as soon as I get all the food photos downloaded. 2010 was a banner year for interesting recipes, so we'll see what we can get in 2011.

Sometimes I feel this way...

Umlaut fixed.

Waiting for class to be over so I can update my recipes! Just too much writing now on school topics.

See you later...

I love my Crock pot

And so did Mable. Thank you!

Random sights from my world

Peach alstromeria, one of my favorite flowers

Peach cobbler, version one.

Blueberry crisp delivered to the one of the St. Louis FUSRAP sites.

Banana bread baked for the Boniface crew 7/30/09

Recipes to follow...

I'm not in Casablanca...

However, from the looks of the recipes I've been cranking out today, you'd think I was in Casablanca!

The house is currently being perfumed by Moroccan Meatballs and Chicken and Chickpea Stew. How did I do it? Well, I took a couple of recipes from the internet and adapted them to my situation. Chicken thighs and ground lamb were on sale at my local store, so I bought some of both.

First, I made the Chicken and Chickpea Stew in my SmartPot crock pot from this recipe from www.goodhousekeeping.com. Below is my adaptation.

• 5 pound(s) chicken thighs, skinned
• 3/4 teaspoon(s) salt
• 1 tablespoon(s) olive oil
• 1 (1-pound) jumbo onion, chopped
• 2 clove(s) garlic
• 2 teaspoon(s) ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon(s) ground red pepper (cayenne)
• 1 can(s) (28-ounce) whole tomatoes in puree
• 1 can(s) (14- to 14 1/2-ounce) chicken broth
• 6 large carrots, cut into 1-inch chunks
• 1 can(s) (32-ounce) garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained
• 1 cup(s) pitted green and black olives, whole

First, I browned the chicken thighs in olive oil on both sides. Then I sprinkled the seasoning mixture (cumin, paprika, cinnamon, cayenne) on top of each thigh. Once browned, I put the first 6 in the crock pot, then browned the remaining six and topped with spices when browned.

Next I added my can of tomatoes and my chickpeas to the crock pot on top of the first chicken thighs. When the rest of the thighs were done, I added those.

Following this, I chopped my carrots, and in the skillet I used for the chicken, I browned my onions and garlic slightly. When done, I added them all to the crockpot, and topped it with the olives.

Finally, I set the heat to four hours and away I went. NOTE : this dish is great with pasta or couscous on the side.

Photo of Chicken and Chickpea stew below:

Soup journal: Red lentil, Oxtail

Well, winter's nearly over, but I've had a lot of fun making different soups this year. For the most part, I've put them in my crockpot as I've gone about my business, cleaning house on my day off or working.

Here are a couple of my favorites below.

Red lentil soup (from www.nytimes.com) is a healthy vegetarian soup.

I made oxtail soup last week based on this recipe from www.cooks.com. I did deviate slightly, though. Cooks.com is great because it has a whole section of crockpot recipes.

Here's my version I made in my SMART crockpot.

Oxtail soup

4 ox tail pieces
3 tbsps butter
1 cup red wine
2 bay leaves
1 garlic clove
1.5 qts. water + 1 can beef broth
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
1 onion, chopped
6 large carrots, chopped

Saute ox tails in three tablespoons butter until browned. Pour in one cup red wine (I used burgundy) and simmer in covered frying pan for 10 minutes.

NOTE: I also browned the onions in the same skillet used for browning the oxtails. Add all other ingredients and cook in crockpot 4-5 hours.

Cook until done. (Optional: add 1 teaspoon sugar to enhance flavor.) Remove meat from oxtails when soup is done. This soup is even better the next day, and it's easier to skim off fat when cold.

Serve with your favorite crusty bread or cornbread.

The happiness log

My husband had one of these on the submarine, so here's the beginning of mine with some photos included.

Today's installment...stuff to do on your day off.

1. Visit with old friends. I had lunch in Chesterfield and visited my old coworkers at the City Hall.

2. Visit your family and do some work. Here's Eileen's newly painted nails in her favorite color--purple.

3. Finally get those photos off your phone. Here's Liam and a friend at an indoor picnic at our parish recently.

4. Bake. The peach pie is going in the oven...yum. Recipe to follow.

Kitchen garden harvest

The produce is starting to roll in from my little garden I planted in the front flower box. I put in two Roma tomato plants and a bunch of Swiss chard in May. So far, I've gotten a couple of ripe tomatoes and a whole lot of chard.



Since I found this interesting chard recipe in the newspaper this week, I decided to try it out. Hubby barbecued some hamburgers, brats and Italian sausage. I also made a dish of scalloped potatoes and a blueberry crisp for dessert, since it wasn't too hot today.



The chard turned out pretty well. Now all I have to do is wait for some more to grow so I can make it again.

The weekend is here again

Thankfully, this weekend I'm not working. While it started a little cool, things are warming up now. Hubby and Bubba are not far away at Meet the Machines, which is sponsored by a local demolition company and the local Caterpillar dealer. This is the third year Bubba has attended, and he always looks forward to seeing all the big, yellow equipment from "Peordia" (why he can't pronounce Peoria is a mystery...)

Since both guys headed out early to check out some local garage sales, I got the pleasure of cleaning the house. It is a little more placid this way, since I don't have to herd the kid, the dog and the husband from room to room as I vaccuum. Happily, I had the floors finished by the time they came back to load up for Meet the Machines.

After I got the floors cleaned, I went out to see my sister. Alas, she escaped while I was down the street at Kohls spending a gift certificate I got for my birthday. To console myself, I went out to lunch at Lenny's Sub Shop, which is about a mile from her house. I enjoyed looking at the menu, because I haven't seen many sub shops (except on the Hill) that had capicola on its sandwiches. I had the #2 Italian sub with all the trimmings, including the hot pepper relish. It was really good!

Once I got home, I made another load of bread pudding. I had tried this recipe earlier this week and Hubby and Bubba really liked it. I just added slivered almonds to the recipe I found in the Better Homes and Gardens 11th Edition Cookbook.

Bread pudding

4 beaten eggs
2 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 teaspoon finely shredded lemon or orange peel (optional--I used lemon)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon or cardamon
4 cups dry french bread cubes or regular bread (I use whatever is available--today was oat bran)
1/3 cup dried tart cherries, dried cranberries or raisins (dried blueberries or a mixture also work well)
1 recipe Whiskey sauce (see below)

In a bowl, beat eggs with milk, sugar, vanilla, peel and cinnamon. In ungreased 2 quart baking dish, toss bread cubes and dried fruit. Pour egg mixture evenly over bread mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean. Cool slightly. If desired, serve warm with Whiskey sauce. Makes 8 servings.

Whiskey sauce

1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 beaten egg yolk
2 tablespoons water
1 to 2 tablespoons bourbon *

In small saucepan, melt butter. Stir in sugar, egg yolk and water. Cook and constantly stir the mixture over medium-low heat for 5-6 minutes until sugar dissolves and mixture boils. Remove from heat and stir in bourbon. Makes 2/3 cup sauce.

*You can substitute orange juice for the bourbon for a light, fruity sauce.

Now, since the baking and most of the laundry is done, I can sit down and read. I have a few books from the library and I'm reading The Attitude of Leadership: Taking the Lead and Keeping It by Keith Harrell. It's not a new book, but I noticed it was listed on one of our intranet sites at work as part of a service area reading list, so I reserved it online at the St. Louis County Library at 0300 one morning when I was working the night shift. So far, it is pretty interesting and very good if you need to read in short chunks like I do.

More later...stay tuned.

Lots going on

Work is always keeping me busy. When I'm not running the floors at work, I'm busy baking and playing with the computer.

No new recipes yet, although, there are some on the burner. Check out a few of the old standbys like Imperial Pound Cake and Zucchini Bread, since I've been making those lately to take to IC on Fridays with the St. Boniface crew.

More reviews and recipes are on the way...stay tuned.

Update

Yes, I'm off and running (literally and figuratively) in the nursing world. It keeps me out of trouble.

The last few weeks have been busy with work, housework and adding goodies to www.stbonifaceonline.com as it became the Ivory Theatre officially on September 27 (see more details at stbonifaceonline.blogspot.com). Bubba was enjoying his summer at preschool, playing outside, kicking balls and hitting baseballs, in between water play (spraying the hose everywhere). Hubby is still in the hunt for a real, live FTE position in radiation safety after his stint at BigLab. They'd love to have him back, but then again, I like having him here, too, for school pickup, etc. We keep praying the right job will come along.

I've had fun baking this summer, since most of the time it was not beastly hot, outside of a couple of weeks. My newest favorite baked goody is the Berry Betty. Thirty or so minutes in the oven, just a few ingredients and you're done. I also enjoyed this recipe since it fits well with my new diet which includes more whole grains and less white flour.

Here's my version of the original I found in the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook.

Berry Betty
5 cups or 1.5 12 oz pkgs of berries (I use blueberries, or mixed berry combos)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp finely chopped crystalline ginger or 1/8 tsp ground ginger
5 cups (about 7 slices) whole wheat bread cubes
3 tbsp butter or margarine, melted
Whipped cream (to garnish, optional)

Thaw berries if frozen. Do not drain
In a large, mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour and ginger.
Add berries and juices. Toss to coat.
Add 2 cups bread, toss gently until combined.
Transfer filling to ungreased 2 qt baking dish.
For topping, put remaining bread cubes in mixing bowl.
Drizzle with melted butter or margarine and toss to coat.
Sprinkle topping over fruit filling.
Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 30 minutes or until fruit is tender and topping golden.
If desired, serve warm with whipped cream.
Makes 6 servings.

Merry Christmas!

It seems like forever since I've updated this blog. I suppose it just might have something to do with that little thing called....school! I never thought at 38 I'd be in a full-time educational program for anything as long as a year, but here I am and the year is rapidly dwindling away. I will be finished in mid-May, and hopefully, in a new and interesting job that's not easily outsourced!

I've been keeping busy the last couple of weeks since vacation started on December 14. Once I had a free moment, I went downstairs and got out my long-neglected loaf pans, and started baking different types of quick breads, such as apple and cranberry. I even tried a new one--cheddar beer-- and it was pretty interesting, although I'm not sure how well it tastes over time, since it was a little more crumbly than I had planned. It was nice though, as a base for open faced egg sandwiches and would be a good variation of the English muffin for eggs Benedict.

Here's the recipe (courtesy of the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook):

Cheddar Beer Bread

2.5 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2.5 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
0.5 teaspoon baking soda
0.5 teaspoon salt
0.5 teaspoon dried basil or marjoram, crushed
1 12-ounce can beer (1.5 cups)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese (4 ounces)
1 tablespoon chopped, seeded fresh jalepeno pepper (optional)

Grease bottom and sides of 8x4x2 (or 9x5x3) loaf pan.

In large bowl, mix dry ingredients. Add beer, cheese, and jalepeno (optional). Stir until just combined (batter should be lumpy).

Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake at 375 degree oven for 35-40 minutes until golden. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Serve warm or cool completely on rack. Makes 1 loaf.