Aspargus and Shrimp Stew

This delicious combination of fresh asparagus and shrimp will become a seasonal favorite. Optional frozen ingredients can save time, but will still deliver a satisfying flavor. Serve with a piece of artisan bread topped with Parmesan cheese, broiled and toasted in the oven. You won't be able to stop yourself from eating this one!

Ingredients:
6 small red potatoes, cubed
1 red pepper, diced
2 cans (14 ounces) vegetable broth
1 lemon, juice and zest
2 tablespoons flour
6 tablespoons water
2 cups corn, cut crisp from the cob or frozen from the freezer
1 pound asparagus, fresh and cut (1-inch pieces)
1 pound shrimp, fresh or frozen uncooked medium size, peeled and deveined
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions:
•In a large soup kettle, combine, potatoes, red pepper and vegetable broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender.

•In a small bowl, combine flour and water until smooth. Set aside.

•Stir in lemon juice and zest into vegetable mixture. Add corn and asparagus; cover and simmer for 8 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Add flour and water paste. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 3 minutes or until thickened. Reduce heat; add shrimp, cook 4-5 minutes until pink in color. Heat through but do not boil. Add salt and pepper. Yield: 6-8 servings.

Fresh Apple Cake

This recipe was delicious and seemed more like a bread than a cake. I doubled the recipe and ended up with almost triple the amount of cake. Perhaps I went a little overboard on the diced apples, but I was not disappointed in the texture. The flavor is quite bland, so I drizzled a lemon flavored glaze over the top and served it with a drop of whipped cream and a few dried cranberries for a bit more interest and flavor in the presentation.

In the end it tasted much like a bread pudding to me, but without the heavy sauce. I would imagine served heated fresh from oven or warmed up in the microwave that the flavor would be more intense.

Araby Spice Cake

The recipe calls for "cake flour" and beating the batter on high speed for 1 minutes a the end of the mixing process. My experience has taught me that this heavy beating only adds too much air to the batter and the cake generally falls in the oven. However, I followed the mixing instructions, baked the cake and cross my fingers for good luck!

To my disappointment, the cake did fall in the last 5 minutes of baking. I let it cool, dumped it onto a rack and then with a soup bowl cut out the center of the cake. It appeared acceptable, so I lined the inside edge with a decorative chocolate frosting finish, on top sprinkled a litte powdered sugar and served it anyway. I wanted to let the office experience the taste, not the cake as a whole.

Curried Chicken Salad

I simply could not put this one back in the refrigerator and wanted to finish the bowl of chicken mixture. It has a pleasant and strong flavor, however I only put in one tbsp. of curry powder, the two recommended in the recipe seemed like too much in my opinion. Those to whom I shared the prepared salad seemed to agree. It does taste wonderful on a plate of lettuce salad.

I served it with a side of fresh cantaloupe and home-made bread broiled in the oven with cheddar and Parmesan cheese.

For the recipe click here!

Layered Lemon Pies

This lemon flavored pie is one of those that after the first bite, people stop, pucker their lips and say "Hmmmmmm," then quickly move in towards the pie for a second bite. The sounds continue until the last bite.

I found the pie easy to prepare with 30 minute intervals between the layers. As it sat in the refrigerator the layers had a tendency to separate. I kept it frozen for a couple of hours before serving. The whip and cream cheese topping was a great idea. I'll be serving this one again for sure!

For the recipe click here!

Basil, Feta & Roasted Pepper Muffins, Bacon Scones, Blueberry-Citrus Mini Loaves

I just couldn't wait to try these bread recipes, so I did all three for a variety.

The square muffins shown were made with a regular red pepper instead of roasted peppers and tasted fine in my opinion. These look so colorful on a plate and were extremely moist. I could have eaten the whole batch by myself.

The other square bread shown was actually a scone recipe incorporating onions, bacon and cheese. I topped mine with a bit of extra cheese. It makes a delicious and heahlty breakfast serving even without the suggested scrambled eggs as a side dish. One of these in the morning kicks off the day in a happy way!

The blueberry bread was a recipe similar to one I found that uses agave. This bread has a strong orange taste due to the orange juice as an ingredient. The orange flavor compliments the blueberry flavor avery well. I'm glad I came across this one in the magazine this month. If the berries have a positive effect on the aging process, eating allot of this one will keep me young!

For the recipe click here! (BFR-Pepper Muffins)

For the recipe click here!(Bacon Scones)

For the recipe click here! (Blueberry-Citrus Mini Loaves)

Banana and Chocolate Chip Cake W/ Cream Cheese Filling

I first had a piece of this cake at the Longwood Gardens near Philadelphia and while attending an ASLA conference. Upon arriving home from the airport I had to find a cake recipe and modified it to be as close as could be to the cake I ate at the garden facility. Here is what I found and it is a close second.

It takes little time to mix and bake, but putting the layers together does take some time. I refer to it as QUALITY TIME, and it's worth it! I served it for "Cake bread Monday" and the office voted it one of the best. Once you have a piece of this cake, it will become a reapter to prepare and serve for many occasions to come!

Ingredients;
2 C flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
2 banana
1/2 C buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 Tlb. unsalted butter, softened
1 C light brown sugar
2 egg
1 C semisweet chocolate chips
1 C favorite nuts (optional)

Filling:
24 oz. cream cheese filling (softened)
6 Tbl. powdered sugar
1 1/2 tsp. banana extract

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare two 8" diameter cake pans.

1. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a bowl and set aside.
2. Mash banana and mix with buttermilk and vanilla and set aside.
3. In an electric mixer cream butter and sugar, beat in eggs.
4. Add wet and dry ingredients alternatively until all mixed.
5. Fold in chocolate chips and nuts (see note above.)
6. Pour into the cake mold and bake for 20 to 30 minutes, or until done.
7. Let cakes cool on rack for 10 to 20 minutes.
8. Place cakes in freezer for 30 minutes and cut into 4 separate cakes for layering.
9. Prepare cream cheese filling by mixing one - 8 oz. package of cream cheese with two Tbl. powdered sugar and 1 1/2 tsp. extract per layer and place between layers.
10. Cover with chocolate frosting or cream cheese frosting.
11. Refrigerate and serve.

Zucchini 'linguine"

Amazing flavor, that's all I can say . . . simply amazing! When I make it again I would only use one-half the recommended amount of onions. I found it easier to cut the zucchini in half and scoop out the seeds with a regular dinner spoon, forget all the fancy procedures. Other than that, the recipe turns out great.

I accompanied the salad with the basil, feta & roasted pepper muffins found under the breads section of this blog.spot. This recipe will be added to summer salad favorites.

For the recipe click here!

Try this salad with the TOH SPICED PINEAPPLE COOLER punch recipe. I liked the combination!

Ingredients
• 1-1/2 cups water
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 4 cinnamon sticks (3 inches)
• 12 whole cloves
• 1 can (46 ounces) unsweetened pineapple juice
• 1-1/2 cups orange juice
• 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1 can (12 ounces) ginger ale, chilled
• Ice cubes
• Additional cinnamon sticks, optional

Directions
• In a small saucepan, bring the water, sugar, cinnamon and cloves to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Strain. Cool to room temperature.
• Pour into a large pitcher; stir in juices. Refrigerate until chilled. Just before serving, stir in ginger ale. Serve over ice. Garnish with additional cinnamon sticks if desired. Yield: 13 servings (3/4 cup each).

Salad Nicoise

This is a family favorite and requested often at the dinner table. Also, I've served it at many group parties because it can be prepared in advance and served immediately upon the arrival of guests to the house. It makes a big impression and leaves a smile on every ones face - even to your mother-in-law - and that's from personal experience!

By name, this salad has many versions, but this one was created and improved many times over - especially the salad dressing. It has a touch of perfection!

Recipe courtesy Rick McConnell - Salad Specialst

Dressing
Mix:
Heaping tbl. of Dijon Mustard
½ tbl. of sugar
6-8 dashes of pepper
¼ cup vinegar
Shake in bottle to mix well

Add:
¼ cup of vegetable oil
Shake in bottle and mix well
Set aside or refrigerate

Salad
Cube and Steam Red Potatoes (approx. one per person)
Slice and Steam String Beans (appox. eight per person)
Prepare before serving and refrigerate or chill in cold water after steaming

Next:
Pour lemon juice over solid tuna and mix with mayonnaise and dill seed to taste
Slice roma tomato
5 Whole black olives
Sliver dilled beets
Set aside while preparing serving plate with lettuce

Next:
Break up romaine lettuce and place on serving plate
Place tuna mix in center of serving plate
Side dress tuna with slivered beets, cubed potatoes, cut string beans, sliced tomatoes and black olives (place in a criss-cross pattern and circular pattern)

Refrigerate salad on plate until ready to serve. Pour dressing mix over salad and serve chilled. Serve with a smile to add flavor and flare to dish!

American Dream Torte

This cake makes the american dream seem possible, because the cake is possible to make and look pretty too. It came from "The Pampered Chef - ALL THE BEST" Cookbook (www.pamperedchef.com).

It is a combination of pound cake, raspberry flavored gelatin, raspberry seedless jam, thawed whipped topping, cream cheese, white chocolate instant pudding and pie filling, raspberries and blueberries. The cake is baked, cut into three sections, brushed with gelatin mixture, layered with the creamed filling and topped with fresh fruit. I baked it in a 9x13 cake pan as the recipe suggested. Next time I'm going to try it in a sheet cake pan. By using this other pan the cake should have thinner cake layers, and be more wide than high. It was difficult to cut and serve the cake as shown.

Nonetheless, I got lots of compliments on this one and it lifted every ones spirits high for the day!

For the recipe click here!

Thai-Style Black Bean Salad

This is an interesting combination of ingredients. I had tried something similar from an Xagave cookbook, so I wanted to try the Taste of Home version.

I did not like the flavor of this as well as the other. The 1/3 cup of agave made the difference for me. So, make this recipe but add the agave to make it more flavorful!

For the recipe click here!

Carrot Cake Cookies

I have a challenge passing up any interesting looking carrot cake. It's a weakness of mine. When I saw this recipe I had to try it immediately. It was not disappointing, but satified my craving for the cake, however in cookie form. It's a WINNER in my cookbook!!!!!!!!

Recipe courtesy Becky Low - Dairy Farmers of Utah

Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup white flour
1 1/2-2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 1/3 cups peeled and grated carrots
2/3 cup drained crushed pineapple
2/3 cup raisins
2/3 cup chopped walnuts

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

Beat together softened butter, white and brown sugars; beat in eggs and vanilla.

Stir together white flour, 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; stir into butter and sugar mixture. Stir in carrots, pineapple, raisins and nuts. If needed, stir in additional flour to create desired consistency (to test desired consistency, drop a spoonful on prepared baking sheet and bake; if cookie spreads too much, stir in additional flour). Drop by mounded spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet.

Bake 12-13 minutes or until lightly browned on bottom. Remove from baking sheet and cool.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:
1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon juice, optional
3 cups powdered sugar
1-4 teaspoons milk, if needed

Method:
Beat together cream cheese and butter until soft and fluffy. Add vanilla and optional lemon juice, beat. Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth; if needed, thin frosting to desired consistency by beating in 1 teaspoon milk at a time until frosting reaches desired spreading consistency.

Honey Spice Cake with Rum Glaze

What a simple cake to prepare and serve. The most difficult part is separating the egg yolks and whites, then whipping up the egg whites until they peak. Once the basic batter is prepared you fold in the whipped egg whites and the cake is ready to bake. It comes out of the oven golden brown and fluffy. The rum glaze really makes the cake enjoyable, so do not miss out on this part of the presenation.

I included to the side a small ball of crushed pineapple and a splash of whip cream and sprinkled a mix of cinnamon and sugar on top to create the final touches of color and texture. You'll have to admit it looks yummy and tastes it too!

Flower Garden Soup

This traditional vegetable soup is delightful to serve for family and/or guests. It contains chicken broth, herbs, onion, carrots, zucchini, celery and chicken. The carrots and zucchini are notched before cutting into 1/4" thick slices, creating the appearance of flowers in the soup; thus the name! It looks and tastes healthy, and is really simple to prepare as long as you have the patience to modify the two main vegetable ingredients.

It is a work of art and that's coming from a master gardener!

For this recipe click here!

Spanish Meringue

This is one beautiful cake and a great conversation piece! The nuts make the cake good too! I found the presentation to be more than the overll flavor.

It has all the south of the border spices and tastes sort of like "horchata" for those who know their spanish drinks. It took more baking time than the recipe called for in order to get the cake to set-up, but I enjoyed the watching and waiting.

Buenas suerte con esta torta y buen provecho!

Lemon Fluff

Each time this is served at a dinner party there are "oooooos and ahhhhhhs" from the dinner table. This no fail recipe keeps them coming back for more. The mild lemon and cream flavors seem to appeal to all age groups.

So. . . . many have requested the recipe. Here's the details:

Mix and spread on bottom of a 9" x 11" glass dish and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes until brown and let cool:
1 C flour
1 C chopped walnuts
1/2 C butter (melted)

Mix and spread on top of cooled crust:
1 8 oz. cream cheese
1 C powdered sugar
2 C Cool Whip

Mix and spread on top of cream cheese mixture:
2 Small Pkgs. Instant Lemon Pudding
3 C Milk

Spread Cool Whip for the top layer and sprinkle with chopped walnuts, refrigerate for one-two hours before serving.

Paula Deen's Almond Sour Cream Pound Cake

I really enjoyed the taste of this cake. It was simple to prepare and a favorite of many in the office. There was something wonderful about the combination of the toasted almonds, the almond flavoring and the cream cheese frosting that made it hard to not eat more and more and more!

I over mixed the batter and it had too much air before going into the oven, as a result the cake fell. I kept baking it hoping the center would cook thoroughly. I ended up cutting off the bottom of the cake because it was cooked to a crisp and filling the cavity with frosting. I'll just admit it now, I failed in the baking section, but in the presentation part the cake was a winner! Next time I prepare it I'll know better and I can hardly wait to make and serve it again.

The Naughty Senator Cake

The cake is a combination of peppermint, chocolate and rum flavors. The peppermint flavor represents the congresspeople who always seem to smell of mint, the chocolate flavor symbolic of the rich senators and the rum flavor means debauchery or the leading astray morally of the government.

It took time to mix the batter, divide the batter, add the peppermint flavor to one bowl, add food coloring, then pour in the chocolate mix and rum to the other bowl and layer the two batters in the cake pan. To finish you complete the cake by using the end of a knife in a rotating motion to create the marbleing affect before cooking.

The green color adds to the overall interest of the cake and it comes out light and fluffy while it tastes a little like a Andes Mint candy or Junior Mints. Many in the office said they had never had a mint flavored cake and seemed to be well taken by the novelty of the marbled coloring and familiar peppermint flavor, but in cake form. I placed a small mint to the side so the staff could make a true and on the spot comparison between the dessert and candy.

Texas Turkey Soup

This soup is a nice change from the tomato base soups I have been eating. The turkey meat makes it more healthy according to the critics. I enjoyed the mix of vegetables, meat and pasta.

The recipe is easy to follow and the soup thickens up just right with the adding of cornstarch and water. There wasn't a single thing to modify on this recipe. It gets a "BIG TEXAS STAR"!

For the recipe click here!

White Chocolate Macademia Nut Pie

This recipe is one of my favorites and turns out perfect every time. It's a dessert that no one can take just one piece of after a dinner meal. The texture is creamy and the chocolate makes it a winner with almost everyone. I keep it frozen and thaw for approximately 20 minutes before cutting and serving into individual pieces.

Recipe courtesy Paula Deen

Ganache:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup heavy cream

Filling:
6 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream, plus 3/4 cup, whipped soft
6 1/2 (1-ounce) squares premium white baking chocolate, melted
1/2 teaspoon orange zest
2/3 cup roasted, chopped macadamia nuts
1 pre-baked deep-dish (9-inch) pie shell

Garnish:
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1 to 2 ounces chopped macadamia nuts

Ganache: Place chocolate chips in a metal mixing bowl. Bring cream to a simmer over medium heat. Pour simmering cream over chips and stir until melted. Set aside and allow to cool to room temperature.

Filling: Beat cream cheese and sugar with a handheld electric mixer until smooth. Scrape bowl with a spatula and mix in 1/3 cup heavy cream. Add the melted white chocolate, zest, and nuts and stir just until incorporated. Fold in the whipped cream. Spread into pre-baked pie shell and level off using a rubber spatula. Put in freezer until frozen. To finish pie, place the ganache in the microwave on low for no more than 10 seconds at a time. Stir after each warming, until ganache pours loosely but is not even close to boiling. Be very careful when warming chocolate, as it will burn very quickly when heated in the microwave. Once chocolate is scorched it is unusable. Spread warm ganache over top of frozen pie, smoothing to the edges with a spatula.

Garnish: Beat cream and confectioners' sugar with a handheld electric mixer to stiff peaks. Transfer to a piping bag and pipe edges of pie with whipped cream. Sprinkle macadamia nuts over top. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Sugar Cookies (Soft As Could Be)

I enjoy a good sugar cookie and wanted the ideal recipe. So, I made a new sugar cookie recipe every day for a week until I found this one. It is incredibly soft and well flavored and gets me the "hmmmmm" and "so good" compliment every time. It's a KEEPER!

Cream together:
1½ c white sugar
1 c butter

Add:
1 tsp vanilla (add ½ tsp of peppermint flavoring at Christmas for delight)
2 eggs

Stir in:
1 c sour cream

Sift together and add:
5 c flour
½ tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp nutmeg

Chill 40 minutes. Roll on floured canvas, fairly thick (1/4” +). Cut w/large cookie cutter. Place on greased cookie sheet (on parchment paper makes them softer) and bake at 375 degrees 10-12 min. Cookies should be large, soft and thick.

FROSTING:

½ c Solid vegetable shortening
½ c Butter or margarine
4 c (1 lb.) sifted confectioners’ sugar
2 tbsp Milk
1 tsp Vanilla Extract

Cream butter and shortening with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy.

Butter Rum Cake

This brings back memories to rum lovers. I could not get this cake to bake in the center, ever after two attempts. So, I had to separate the completed batter into two bowls and bake two cakes from the recipe. This allowed the center to bake thoroughly and gave me lots of cake to serve.

The butter and rum glaze makes the cake enjoyable. I decided to dress it up a bit with some powdered sugar sprinkled over the top before serving to the office.

Later, I served it with a maple nut ice cream to family. It was a nice change from the standard vanilla and chocolate cakes.

Oodles of Noodles Soup

I enjoyed the chunks of chicken in this soup. There is lots and lots of noodles, just like the title of the soup. Almost too many noodles for the amount of broth as it is served for a meal.

It was fun to eat and would be a favorite of kids, in my opinion.

For the recipe click here!

Tunnel of Fudge Cake

This would be my list as a substitute for "lava cake," but easier to serve in a larger group or dinner setting. The difficulty with this cake is that you cannot ever tell when it is done because the center is to remain soft and gooey. It was a constant guessing game. I made it three times in one day before serving to the office staff.

The first time I baked it too long and it was not gooey enough for my expectation and appeared like a standard cake. The second time I made it, it was too gooey and the cake sat upright in form after coming out of the pan for 45 seconds, then flattened to look like a chocolate pancake. The third time, I realized that it was not like a flowing lava cake, but more like a moist brownie on the inside and more cake-like on the outside. I decided to zap it in the microwave for 20 seconds before serving each plate. The warm chocolate center, crusty outside topped with chocolate ganache and strawberry made it a favorite for pure chocolate lovers!

Tomato Corn Chowder

I found the potatoes in this to be my favorite part. The recipe did not call for celery, but I had some in the refrigerator, so it got thrown in to the pot. It seemed to go well with the other vegetables and flavor of the soup.


The recipe uses the liquid from the canned corn and tomatoes for flavor, so it is simple to prepare. I liked the bacon bits on top to improve the flavor, and I might suggest mixing it into the soup just before serving to enhance the overall flavor even more.

For the recipe click here!