Days 276-280: Quesadillas, Burgers, Stuffed Chicken, more Risotto and then some!

The kids are asleep--down for their afternoon naps.  Should I nap?  Or should I work on stripping wallpaper?  That's been the question of late.  Yesterday I napped.  Today I would like to work on the wallpaper, but the room in question is the "office", so with the computer and a hot cup of coffee calling my name, here I sit, playing catch-up.  Last night I was up past 11:00 stripping wallpaper.  This has become my life.  Before I move on to our latest meals and capture 6 days in one post, let me talk about this haunting room of wallpaper for a moment.

The wall where the paper has been mostly removed.

Everyone has their own tricks to taking down wallpaper.  I've heard them all.  I've tried them all.  Nothing is working the way people have described.  I'm not looking for more advice or suggestions, I've resigned myself to the idea that I'll be taking down wallpaper for the rest of my life.  (Just kidding--the goal is to have it done this weekend, which I actually do believe is achievable.)  It's not a huge room.  It's not a tiny room.  It's a normal-sized room, with normal wallpaper.  It's just old.  And stuck on there good.  When I took down the wallpaper borders in other parts of the house, I used the chemical removers you can buy at the paint store.  I scored the paper, sprayed the stuff, waited, then scraped.  It wasn't terribly hard, but it was still work.  This whole-room business is hard work.  I started with one wall.  I scored the whole thing.  I sprayed the stuff.  I waited.  Then, I "scraped."  Little tiny bits of paper came off.  That's it.  How discouraging!  At first I thought my problem was that I wasn't waiting long enough.  But then if I waited too long, the paper would dry and it was as if I never sprayed it in the first place.  The glue wasn't loosened at all!  So the project went on hold.  With 2 little kids to entertain and a million other things to do, when was I going to find the perfect amount of time to do this?  Not too long, but not too short!?

Wall in-progress

Then it was suggested that I try hot water and fabric softener.  I even double checked this method on HGTV--they recommend it.  So that's what I'm doing.  I must say, it works better than the chemical stuff, but it's not as easy as HGTV makes it sound.  It's still coming off in small amounts.  Then my MIL came to visit and thought I probably wasn't scoring enough.  She's taken down lots of wallpaper before, and she loves the fabric softener method, so I know I'm doing something right with that.  When she said I probably needed to score the paper more, I got excited.  This meant there was hope that the process wasn't actually doomed to take forever!  So she tried herself, scoring the way she thought best.  And guess what?  Her results were the same as mine.  She concluded that the paper was stuck on there better than she'd ever seen it stuck to a wall before.  Great.  All hope lost.  So for those of you who are keeping track of how long it's taken me to pull down this wallpaper, then--tell me, please.  I've lost count.  I just know it's been a long time!  And I'm still at it.  Thank you for letting me vent.  Hopefully I'll have more progress to report soon!

Still left to go...

So let's chat about meals, shall we?  I think I only have one new recipe to share on this post, and no picture to show for it!  All of the other recipes are "repeaters" but I do have pictures!  Wait, scratch that.  I have 2 new recipes!  Forgot about the homemade salsa.  Let's start with that...

Wednesday, Day 276: Chicken Quesadillas, Homemade Salsa, and Classic Margaritas
To find my quesadilla recipe, click here.  I'm sure by now, most of you know where to find my recipe for classic margaritas.  Here's my homemade salsa recipe:

Restaurant-Style Salsa
28 oz canned, whole, peel tomatoes
20 oz canned tomatoes with green chiles
1/4 of a red onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
chopped cilantro (to taste)
chopped jalapeno (seeds removed)
1/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
half of a lime, juiced

Throw the ingredients into a large food processor and pulse until fully combined.  Refrigerate.  (The flavors will strengthen and combine the longer it sits in the fridge.)  Serve with tortilla chips!

Thursday, Day 277: Bleu Burgers with potato wedges

Friday, Day 278: Spinach & Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken, Green Beans, Butternut Squash Risotto

So, Randy's mom was in town to celebrate her birthday as well as Randy's brother's birthday.  They're within a couple days of each other!  Randy asked that I make the lemon-blueberry cake with lavender frosting since he thought his mom would love it.  I made a 3-layer version which I knew everyone would love because you get more frosting per bite and, well, this frosting rocks!

Saturday, Day 279: Movie Night!  Diane (mother-in-law) and I got into our pajamas, ordered a pizza, watched a chick-flick, and drank some champagne. ha!  The boys went out for the night.

Sunday, Day 280: Our church had a cook-out after the second service so I brought an autumn side dish.  I forgot to take a picture of it in the morning and it was about all gone by the time I got to it in the food line, so I never got a photo. :/  It's a great dish, though, and easy to make-ahead if you need to!

Sweet Potato Side Dish
6 sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into large chunks
3-4 granny smith apples, cored and sliced
1/2 cup of fresh cranberries
1/2 stick of butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt

In a large pot of boiling water, cook the sweet potatoes just until fork tender.  Drain them and add them to a 13x9 baking pan.  Add the sliced apples.  Combine the melted butter, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt and mix together well.  Pour the mixture over the potatoes and apples and bake at 350* for about 15 minutes.  Pull out of the oven, add the cranberries, and bake for another 10-15 minutes.  Serve warm.

Days 274 & 275: Swedish Meatballs, Swedish Potatoes, Broccoli Au Gratin

Alas, I find myself one week behind on my postings. (Sigh!)  Will I ever get fully caught up again???  I have about 5 posts lined up with recipes ready to go.  Now I just need an assistant to come and type them up for me (and do my dishes).  I can dream, can't I?

So last Monday, the crown molding went up on our cabinets in the kitchen!  I know, I owe everyone pictures of how it's coming along.  We're almost at the end, so I'm just trying to hold out a little longer before posting "before" and "after" pictures.  These finishing touches are taking longer because they aren't vital to the function of the kitchen, so it's easier to push them back when we need a renovation break.  So for Monday, Day 274, we ordered pizza.  It would've been too hard to try to cook and maneuver around the equipment that was in the kitchen--the molding went up right around supper time.

On Tuesday, Day 275, we had ourselves a little feast.  I love throwing together a super big meal on the occasional fall weekday.  It reminds me that the holidays are right around the corner, which gets me excited like a little kid!  And somehow, serving 2 sides of vegetables plus crescent rolls makes a Tuesday night meal feel more like Thanksgiving!  I made Swedish meatballs, Swedish potatoes, broccoli au gratin, corn, and rolls. 

Swedish meatballs
I get asked how I make Swedish meatballs all the time.  Yes, I'm part Swedish.  My mother's family is all 100% Swedish, actually.  And yes, I love to cook!  But I must confess, my Swedish meatballs are not necessarily authentic--they're traditional, but only to my family.  What does it take to make an authentic Swedish meatball?  Well, if you look on the back of a McCormick all-spice container, it would say to just add all-spice to ground beef and then you'll have Swedish meatballs.  If you look at a Swedish recipe, however, it will say to soak bread in milk until it's crumbly and to add the moist "breadcrumbs" to the beef and the all-spice, maybe a few other seasonings, and then there will be a recipe for a white sauce to go with them.  Me?  I use my regular recipe for meatballs and add about 1/4 tsp (or 1/2, depending on how much meat I use) of all-spice to the mixture.  And here's where I cheat... big time.  I either make my own brown gravy with any beef stock I have in the fridge, or I get a little help from McCormick (again) and use their brown gravy sauce.  I'm sorry, but that's how my 100% Swedish grandmother has always done it!  So for me, yeah, that's tradition...

 I first brown my meatballs in a skillet, but don't be like me and overcrowd your pan... do as I say, not as I do.  ;) I was probably in a rush that night!

 Then I add my meatballs and gravy into a casserole dish and bake in a 350* oven for about 20 minutes.

Swedish Potatoes
A much more authentic recipe, even though I'm the first one in my Swedish family to make them!

4-6 medium potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
heavy cream (about 1-2 cups)
salt, lots of pepper
vegetable oil

In a large skillet, drizzle in some vegetable oil and turn the heat to medium-high.  Cook the onions until they are translucent, then add the potatoes.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cook for about 10 minutes, then add the white wine and cook for another 5 minutes. 

Pour in the heavy cream using enough so that all the potatoes are coated with cream.  Reduce the heat and let the potatoes cook until tender.  Season liberally with black pepper.

Broccoli Au Gratin
1 bunch broccoli, chopped
2 TB butter
2 TB flour
2 cups milk
1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
French fried onions

In a pot, melt the butter over medium heat and add the flour.  Cook 1 minute.  Add the milk and the broccoli and simmer until soft, about 8 minutes.  Add the shredded cheese.  Pour into a casserole dish and top with French fried onions.  Bake at 350* for about 10 minutes.

An Apple A Day... 7 Apple Recipes!

This post is All About Apples!  It is not a recap of any specific day on this recipe journey, just a collection of apple recipes for your convenience.  I've blogged quite a bit about apples in the past couple of weeks/months, so it seemed fitting to combine all of my apple recipes into one, easy-to-find apple post so that when you or I are in need of an autumn apple recipe, one click brings us right to it! :)  Here are 7 recipes for your drooling pleasure...

1. Apple Pecan Cake
From: "Entering Autumn" Posted September 25

2 cups sugar

3 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup orange juice
3 cups flour
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 TB cinnamon
1 TB vanilla
3 cups peeled and chopped apples
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chopped pecans

Sauce:
1 stick butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 tsp baking soda

Preheat the oven to 325*.  Combine the sugar, eggs, oil, juice, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla and mix well.  Fold in the apples, coconut, and pecans.  Pour the batter into a grease tube or bunt pan and bake about 1 hour and 20 minutes or until a tester comes out clean.
Right before the cake is done, start the sauce.  In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat.  Add the sugar, baking soda, and buttermilk and then bring to boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly.
When the cake comes out of the oven, pour the hot sauce immediately over the hot cake. (You may want to prick some holes in the cake and have a baking sheet under the bunt pan to catch any drips.)  Let stand 1 hour then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

2. Apple Walnut Pancakes
(new recipe to this blog!)
I follow my very easy pancake recipe (which you can easily substitute buttermilk for regular milk to get those nice, fluffy, crave-worthy buttermilk pancakes they serve at restaurants):

1 egg, beaten
1 TB vegetable oil or melted butter
1 cup of milk
2 TB sugar
1 cup of flour
1 TB baking powder
1 tsp salt
To that, I add 1 apple, finely chopped, and about 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts.  Cook pancakes as usual: pour batter onto a hot griddle by the ladleful.

3. Apple Fritters
From: "Recent Catering Job..." Posted October 15
Like pancakes, with subtle differences...

1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 TB sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup apples, finely chopped

Cook bacon in a fry pan. Remove bacon and place on a plate with a paper towel. Leave the grease in the frying pan.
Sift dry ingredients together.  Combine the egg and milk and stir in with the dry ingredients.  Stir in apples.  Drop by the spoonful onto a hot griddle or fry pan greased with bacon fat.  Fry on both sides for about 2 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel-covered plate.  Roll in a mixture of 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.  Serve.

4. Apple Turnovers
Another delicious apple breakfast, also new to this blog!

Yes, that's a scoop of vanilla ice cream next to the turnover--for breakfast!  They were so hot, fresh out of the oven, that we needed something to cool them down.  Don't judge.

I use about 3 apples, peeled and finely chopped.  Place the apples in a small bowl and mix with about 1/2 cup of raisins, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, 3 TB flour, 3 TB sugar, 3 TB of freshly squeezed orange juice, and a pinch of salt.  Unfold 2 sheets of puff pastry, and cut them each into 4 squares.  Fill with the apple filling and fold each square into a triangle.  Brush with an egg wash and sprinkle a sugar/cinnamon mixture on top.  Cut little "steam holes" in the pastries.  Bake in a 400* oven for 20 minutes.

5. Apple Oatmeal Cookies
From: "A Day in the Life of..." Posted September 29

2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsps cinnamon
1 cup oats
1 cup chopped apples

Cream together the sugars and butter.  Add the egg and vanilla and mix well.  Pour in the flour, salt, cinnamon, and baking soda and stir all ingredients together well.  Fold in the apples and and oats.  Bake at 350* for about 10 minutes.

6. Apple Pie
From: "Comfort Food" Posted October 2

Crust
2 sticks of butter, cold, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 3/4 cups flour
2 TB sugar
1 tsp salt
6-7 TB apple cider

Filling
6-8 apples (depending on their size--6 large apples is usually good)
1/3 cup sugar
1 TB cinnamon
1/2 stick of butter, sliced

I start by making the crust.  Using a food processor is literally the easiest way to make a crust or dough.  The machine does the work for you and it will come out perfect every time!  Place the flour, butter, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until the butter is the size of peas.  Slowly add the apple cider and continue pulsing until the dough starts to come together.  Use your hands to press the dough together into a nice, sticky ball while still in the processor.  If it's not sticking, you may need to add more cider.  Once you have a ball of dough, divide it in half.  Form 2 round discs of dough and wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Peel and chop the apples.  Place the apple pieces in a colander over a small saucepan.  Sprinkle them with 1/3 cup of sugar and toss.  Cover the apples with a towel and let sit for at least an hour or more.  The juices from the apples will drain into the sauce pan.  This process helps release the juices now and not when their in the pie--so you won't get a super soggy pie.  Plus, you will use the juices on the crust of the pie, also. :)
You can let the apples sit all morning and the dough can hang out in the fridge for as long as you need.  When you're ready to assemble and bake the pie, preheat the oven to 425* and remove the dough from the fridge.  Let it sit out a few minutes to help it come to room temp and make it easier to roll out.  Start with one disc, roll out the dough and place it in the bottom of a pie plate.  Add the apples and toss them with 1 TB of cinnamon.  Place the slices of butter over the apples.  Roll out your second disc and cover the apples with it. Trim off any extra dough hanging from the side.  Pinch the dough together around the edges of the pie.
You should have a little apple "juice" in the bottom of your saucepan.  Turn the stove on high and boil the juice to reduce them.  Keep an eye on this because it will happen fast.  When the juices are reduced by half, turn off the heat.  You should have a sticky "syrup" at this point, which you can pour over your pie and spread it out with a pastry brush. Use a sharp nice to prick the top of the pie. Cover the edges of the pie with aluminum foil.  Bake on the very bottom rack of the oven for about 30 minutes (I place the pie plate on a baking sheet, also).  Then, remove the foil and place the pie on one of the top racks of the oven and bake for another 20 minutes.  When the pie is finished, let stand on a cooling rack for about an hour before serving.

7. Applesauce!
Another "new to this blog" recipe, this applesauce couldn't be easier to make!  Talk about "set it and forget it!"

I use 10 apples, any variety, and sometimes more than 1 variety in the same batch is best!

Peel and quarter the apples.  The best thing about this recipe is that you don't have to "chop" the apples!  Just the apple cheeks in the slow-cooker is fine!  Place the apples in the slow-cooker with 1 stick of butter, cinnamon (sprinkle it in as you wish) and a pinch of all-spice.  I also like to add the peel of 1 red apple--it will give the applesauce a deeper color!

Set it, and forget it!  With the slow-cooker on low, just let the apples cook all day!  You can adjust the temperature and time if needed, but you need at least 3-4 hours for the apples to soften enough to create sauce.  When they are soft, don't forget to remove the skin!

Mash the apples with a potato masher, or if they're soft enough, you just have to stir them. 

Serve alongside your favorite pork dish or as a snack for the kids!

Bonus Recipe: Apple Crisp

Apple crisp is kind of a no-brainer.  I wasn't even sure I'd include it in this post.  Then I figured, why not?  Almost everyone has their own version of this classic fall dessert.  Here's mine:

I use as many apples as will fill my 13 x 9 pan--peeled and sliced.  Then, in the bowl of a food processor, I combine 1 cup of flour, 1 cup of oats, 1 stick of butter that's been cut up, 1/3 cup of sugar, and 1/3 cup of brown sugar.  I add a pinch of salt for flavor, and a tiny bit of cinnamon.  I pulse the processor until the butter is the size of peas.  Then, I sprinkle this "crumble" on top of the apples and bake at 350* for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

Days 271-273: Pot Roast & Other News...

So this past weekend I had another catering job, on a smaller scale.  You can see pictures from it here. So while I was preparing the food Friday and Saturday, not much dinner cooking happened.  Friday night (Day 271) was "ladies' night" among a few of my friends.  Hello, hibachi!  Randy and his friend watched our kids together and I made the hubbies and kids my stromboli.  Saturday night Randy and I had a birthday party to go to and then met up with some friends at Southside Bar & Grille in Gardner.  But Sunday (Day 273) was pot roast day!

Ahh, pot roast.  It honestly doesn't get much better than that on a fall or winter day.  This is another recipe I posted back in February.  But I realized the other day that professional cooks and bloggers write about the same thing more than once, so I can do the same.  ;) The recipe is pretty much the same every time, but I took new pictures.  So you can click the "February" link above to see the original, or just follow along here.  Either way, this is a great recipe to share with family and friends in this season!

Pot Roast
Some people call it "beef stew", others just refer to the meal as a whole as "pot roast."  Whatever you call it, it's delicious!  This recipe includes extremely flavorful seasonings and will probably be the best pot roast you've ever had...

3-5 lb roasting meat
5-6 carrots + 1 more (depending on size and desired meat/vegetable ratio)
3-4 large potatoes (6 small)
14 oz beef broth
1/2 cup red wine
1-2 TB Worcestershire sauce
1 onion, peeled and quartered
2 cloves of garlic, minced
10 sprigs of thyme (leaves only)
5-6 sprigs of rosemary (leaves only, roughly chopped)
3 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp garlic powder
1 TB onion flakes
salt, pepper
extra virgin olive oil
3 TB butter
2 TB flour

Place 1 carrot (peeled and roughly chopped), the onion, and the garlic in a slow-cooker on low.  Drizzle with olive oil and add 1 TB of butter.  Put about half of the thyme and rosemary in, too. 

Heat a cast iron skillet on high heat and sear the beef on all sides--sprinkled with salt and pepper. 

When the meat is seared, deglaze the skillet with the red wine and then add the beef and the wine and pan drippings to the slow-cooker.  Drizzle in the Worcestershire sauce and pour in the beef broth.  Season everything with salt and pepper and a little bit of dried oregano.  Let cook for 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low.

If this is your thing, go ahead and pour yourself a glass of wine, too--you've got time to kill!  Of course, if you're preparing this in the morning for a Sunday noon-time meal, I'd skip the glass of wine for yourself. ;)

About 45 minutes before the meat is done, heat the oven to 400*.  On a baking sheet, place the peeled and chopped potatoes and carrots.  Drizzle them with olive oil and season with the rest of the herbs, the garlic powder, and the onion flakes, and salt and pepper.  Roast for about 30-40 minutes.
When the vegetables are about done, remove the meat from the slow-cooker and let rest on a cutting board.  Pour half of the sauce and vegetables from the slow-cooker into a blender.  Add 1 TB of butter and 1 TB of flour.  Blend until smooth.  Repeat with the remaining sauce.  (Do it in 2 batches rather than 1 big batch so the blender won't explode!--Yep, speaking from experience!)  Check seasonings and adjust with salt and pepper.  Pour all of the gravy back into the slow-cooker once blended and thick.  Cut up the beef and add it and the roasted veggies back into the slow-cooker, toss altogether and let sit on low or warm until ready to serve.

Days 269-270: Some old and some new...

So yesterday my poor wedding ring finger took a beating in the kitchen.  While slicing onions, I sliced the finger's tip, and then while removing an apple pie from the baking sheet it was sitting on, I burned the same finger right above my rings.  I definitely won't be getting those off for a while--at least not until the swelling goes down!  So please excuse my slow typing... ;) (I crack myself up!)

Around this time of year, I start bringing back recipes we haven't had since last winter.  Some are served almost exactly the same, others have different side pairings, and others are changed even more.  These two dinners are repeaters with a twist...

Day 269: Stromboli & Antipasto
Here is the original recipe when it first appeared on my blog: http://bethanysmeals365.blogspot.com/2014/04/day-83-easy-stromboli.html

That recipe was a simple cheese, pepperoni, and crust recipe.  This time, I followed the same guidelines with the crust, but I added a layer of my homemade sauce inside the stromboli.  I also made it long enough that I could change the filling every 3rd section.  I left 1/3 of the stromboli with just sauce, cheese, and pepperoni.  The next 1/3, I added diced green peppers into the mix.  And the final 1/3 (Randy's 1/3) included all the previous ingredients, plus chopped onions and olives.  I baked it the same (400*, 10-15 minutes) and served it alongside a nice, big antipasto.  Buon appetito!

Day 270: Apple & Thyme Stuffed Pork, Butternut Squash Risotto, Asparagus, Apple Sauce

The original recipe for just the pork portion of the dish can be found here.  In that post, I combined the whole meal into one "recipe" and gave instructions for cooking the meal as a whole, with the sides and all so it would come out at the same time.  Here, I'll break down the pork recipe by itself, and then show the side recipes separate.  I served this meal with my homemade applesauce, which will be featured in a different post.

Apple & Thyme Stuffed Pork

4 pork chops
1/2-1 small onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/2-1 small apple, chopped
combo of fresh and dried thyme leaves (about 1/4-1/2 tsp each)
1/2 cup apple juice or cider
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
olive oil, salt, pepper

Preheat the oven to 350*.  In a small saucepan, drizzle a little olive oil and start sauteing the onion and garlic.  When the onion is translucent, add the apple and thyme and cook a little more.  Pour in the apple juice and breadcrumbs and turn off the heat.  Stir everything so a nice, sticky stuffing forms.  If it seems too dry, add more juice.  If it seems to wet, add more breadcrumbs.
Pound out the pork chops and place a couple tablespoons of the stuffing in the middle of each chop and roll the meat around the stuffing.  Use toothpicks to secure them shut and place on a baking sheet seam-side down.  Drizzle the pork rolls with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the meat is cooked through.

Butternut Squash Risotto

1 cup arborio rice
1 cup small cubed butternut squash
1 TB chopped fresh rosemary
3 cups good chicken stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
olive oil, salt, pepper

Warm the 3 cups of chicken stock in a saucepan on low.  In another, larger saucepan, drizzle olive oil and start the onion, rosemary, and garlic cooking over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes.  When the onion is translucent, add the rice and squash.  Pour in the white wine and cook until the liquid is mostly evaporated.  Start ladling in the warm chicken stock 1-2 ladlefuls at a time.  Once you've added 1 or 2 ladlefuls, stir the rice and squash vigorously to release the starches.  Then let it sit for a while until the liquid evaporates.  Once it evaporates, add more liquid and repeat the process until the rice is cooked through.  Add the parmesan cheese at the end and mix well.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Roasted Asparagus
Wash the trim the asparagus.  Lay out on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice.  Sprinkle on either garlic powder or 1 clove of finely minced garlic.  Sprinkle with parmesan cheese and roast in a 400* oven for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked to desired texture.

Days 267-268: Mexican Stuffed Peppers, Roasted Vegetable Tostadas, and Blackberry Margaritas

Good morning!  Are you wide awake, energetic, enthusiastic, and ready to go?!  If so, I'll have what you're having.  I'm sitting here with my coffee, doing major blog catch-up (and am actually excited about it because the recipes for the next few weeks are going to be awesome) but I'd still rather crawl back into my warm bed.  I love the house this quiet, and I love being the first one up, but this morning, my coffee just seems to be taking extra long to kick in! 

This past week has been a total blur.  I can hardly distinguish one day from another.  So I guess it's a good thing I have this blog, separating the days by meals--otherwise I'd be totally confused!  I wrote about last weekend's catering job in my previous post.  So let's continue on the daily journey and talk about Monday, Columbus Day.

Columbus Day I spent all day shopping with my mother and aunts--a tradition, like many, in our family.  I read in a book one time, "Some people are happiest when they're saving money, others are happiest when they're spending it."  (or something along those lines)  I'm the latter.  I think it's how I was raised... wink wink, Mom!  I don't think I spend carelessly, nor do I consider myself a "shopaholic", though I suppose those things are pretty subjective.  To the person who rarely buys anything, it may look like I shop a lot, but to the person who loves to shop, I don't shop nearly enough. The truth is, I really DON'T like to shop.  That's why I can only spend 2 full days a year shopping: Columbus Day and Black Friday.  And on Black Friday, I'm up early and generally done by lunch.  Other than that, I'll go out and get a few things here and there that I or someone in my family needs, and I do love to buy presents for people, but I'm certainly not a "browser."  I know what I want and if I don't see it, I don't buy anything.  This is why I can't shop with my husband--he could spend all day "deciding" on what to get and wanting to look here or there for things.  That's the kind of shopping I can't stand.  When I'm at a store or mall, I'm mission-minded!

Collecting fall leaves--this is the kind of browsing I can get into!

Columbus Day, for me, sort of "rings in" the shopping holiday season.  I get into the spirit of buying Christmas gifts, stocking stuffers, and a few fall/winter clothing items for myself, husband, and kids.  You know I love this time of year, and Columbus Day at Wrentham Outlets is just another fall tradition that makes this my favorite season!  Anyway, I suppose I explain all of that to say that Monday's dinner was Velveeta Mac & Cheese, again.  Didn't feel much like cooking, but more like showing off a few key items and carefully hiding the rest.  Randy graciously stayed home with the kids that day, making it a true "holiday" for me, and he even grouted our kitchen's backsplash!  The kitchen is almost done, and I promise I'll have before and after pictures soon!

Tuesday is Mexican night, generally, according to my weekly meal menu.  So for Day 268, I made Mexican Stuffed Peppers, Spicy Roasted Vegetable Tostadas, and Blackberry Margaritas.

Mexican Stuffed Peppers
Usually I use green bell peppers to stuff, but since the peppers I wanted to serve were going alongside another "main" dish, I decided to use smaller peppers.  Also, since I wanted more of a "Mexican" or "Southwestern" flavor, using poblanos seemed to make the most sense.

4 poblano peppers

3/4 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 lb breakfast sausage
cumin
paprika
cayenne chili powder
1/2 cup frozen corn
1/2 a red pepper, small diced
salt, pepper

Slice the tops off of the poblano peppers and then dice the tops (minus the stem) to add to the cooked rice.  Crumble the breakfast sausage into a small skillet and season with cumin, paprika, and chili powder to taste while browning.  Once the sausage is browned, add it to the rice along with the diced pepper and the frozen corn.  Stir in some salt and pepper to taste.  Use the filling to stuff the 4 poblanos and place them in pan filled 1/3 of the way with water.  Bake them at 400* for about 20-25 minutes.

Spicy Roasted Vegetable Tostadas
Because it's fall, I wanted to use vegetables that resembled this season.  You can certainly use any kinds of vegetables you'd like, though.

small, round, corn tortillas
1 cup of butternut squash, small diced
1 Italian eggplant, small diced
1 red pepper, small diced
1 medium zucchini, small diced
olive oil
cumin
paprika
cayenne chili powder
red pepper flakes
salt, pepper
hot sauce (if desired)
Mexican cheese
sour cream

On a rimmed baking sheet, place all of the diced vegetables.  Drizzle liberally with olive oil.  Season to taste with the cumin, paprika, chili powder, and just a few red pepper flakes.  Stir to combine.  Roast in the oven at 400* for 10-15 minutes, or until cooked through and fragrant.  Meanwhile, toast each tortilla over the flame of a gas stove, or on a dry skillet, both sides, until brown and crispy.  When the vegetables are done, place a generous spoonful of vegetables on each cooked tortilla, top with Mexican cheese, sour cream, and hot sauce (if desired).

Blackberry Margarita
I've had a pint of blackberries in my fridge for sometime.  I meant to use them to make a jam of sorts with strawberries, but little by little, the blackberries started disappearing for simple snacks.  With only a small amount left, I wondered what to do with them.  Then it hit me--drinks!

This recipe is similar to a blackjack margarita, which contains chambord raspberry liqueur (or in our case, sometimes blackberry brandy).  For this recipe, though, I made my classic margaritas.  But before I poured the drinks into the glasses, I muddled 3 blackberries in the bottom of each glass.  It added a great fruitiness to the margarita!  Yum!

Notice the backsplash?!?! :)

Recent Catering Job & Other Recipes... (Days 262-266)

If you follow me or my catering page on facebook (Bethany's Cookie Crumble Catering) then you know we celebrate "Pancake Wednesday" in this house--which can easily be substituted for "Waffle Wednesday" and will be from time to time.  Wednesday was Day 262 and I made apple fritters, which are like pancakes, only thicker, smaller, fried in oil and covered with powdered sugar.  Is your mouth watering, yet?  Here's the recipe...

Powdered sugar/cinnamon mixture for coating the fritters.

Apple Fritters
The fact that these are fried in bacon grease makes them all the better--they turn out super flavorful, and now you HAVE to serve bacon with them! ;)

1 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 TB sugar
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup apples, finely chopped

Cook bacon in a fry pan.

Sift dry ingredients together.  Combine the egg and milk and stir in with the dry ingredients.  Stir in apples.  Drop by the spoonful onto a hot griddle or fry pan greased with bacon fat.  Fry on both sides for about 2 minutes or until golden brown.

Drain on a paper towel-covered plate.  Roll in a mixture of 1/2 cup powdered sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon.  Serve.

Wednesday night Randy had an alumni get together at school, so the kids and I bravely hit the grocery store to shop for my weekend catering job, which I'll describe later.  For dinner, we had Wendy's. :)  On to day 263...

Thursday's dinner was a treat for Randy and I as we went to a staff appreciation dinner at his work.  I bought a frozen pizza for the kids and my mother-in-law, who watched them for us.  But breakfast that morning was certainly another treat--homemade parfaits.  Making homemade granola seriously couldn't be easier.  Here's how I do it:

Homemade Granola
Preheat the oven to 350*.  On a rimmed baking sheet, spread about about 1-2 cups of oats.  Now you can add whatever ingredients you'd like in granola.  Though I do change it up occasionally, my traditional go-to consists of a 1/2 cup coconut flakes, 1/2-1 cup of almond slices, drizzle of vegetable oil and a drizzle of maple syrup.  I add a pinch of kosher or sea salt, and stir everything so it's all lightly coated with liquid.  Then I bake for 10-15 minutes or until fragrant and browning.  Once it comes out of the oven, I add about 1/2 cup of dried cranberries or raisins and stir.
Other additive ideas:
sunflower seeds
pumpkin seeds
chopped pecans or walnuts
currants
any other dried, chopped fruit (add after the baking process)

To make a parfait, layer the granola, yogurt (I use Greek vanilla), and fruit in a glass.  Enjoy!

Friday, Saturday, and Sunday we either went out, had tacos, or ate at a friend's house.  I was busy preparing for a catering gig for Sunday afternoon.  Here's what I made:

"Tuxedo" Cupcakes
Chocolate cupcakes with a decadent white chocolate filling.  Topped with vanilla buttercream frosting and white chocolate "50s"  to commemorate the 50th anniversary--reason for the party.

Vanilla Cupcakes
Vanilla "secret" recipe cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting.  These are the "bride" cupcakes--decorated with pearls for the feminine side of a marriage.

Sugar Cookies and Icing
Designed with simple gold sprinkles, wedding dates, and monogram initials for the couple.

Appetizer and Sandwich Platters

Hopefully I can catch up with the blog this week!  I have another catering job this coming weekend, so things are getting busy in my kitchen...