Recipe Cards...Works for Me Wednesday

Don't you love how easy it is to find a recipe these days?  Hop on a blog, check out a website, email a friend and, boom, seconds later, the recipe you were searching for...or maybe the recipe you didn't even know you needed...is printing out and in your hot little hands.

But you know what I miss?  Recipe cards.

Sweet recipe cards.  Recipe cards written out in actual handwriting.  Recipe cards that evoke memories as soon as your see them...not just of the recipe, but of the person who wrote them.

When I was in my 20's, I asked my mom to write down some of her recipes for me....she gave me a whole recipe box of them.

 

Now, the "recipe cards" are actually index cards, but I wouldn't trade seeing her handwriting on them for the world. 

Invitation Consultants emailed me about their recipe cards and I did a little happy dance.  I mean...how CUTE are these?!?

They have many different designs...and they are customizable!  Recipe cards make a perfect gift for a bridal shower, housewarming, birthday, or well, for yourself.

So, not one, not two, but FOUR of you are going to get your very own set of 20 custom, adorable recipe cards!!!

{...with your very own name, not mine!} ;)

To enter, pop on over to the Invitation Consultants website and leave a comment here (on this post) telling me which design you might pick.
(Don't worry, you can change your mind if you win.)

{Open to residents of US and Canada. Enter through Monday, February 6th, 8pm CST. Winners will be contacted via email.}

Giveaway now closed. Congrats to Alisha, LaVonne, Shelly & Molly. Enjoy your cards! :) 

Bringing recipe cards back....works for me.

 

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Tuesdays At The Table/2 on Tuesday - Broccoli Cheddar Soup

If you haven't noticed, I try to do two posts on Tuesdays - our usual recipe link up, and Andrea's 2 on Tuesday (the topic for that changes every week).  As it would happen, this week's topic is food!!  We're being asked what our two "go-to" recipes are.


I am a sucker for orange chicken, and the crock-pot version is so easy and absolutely delicious!  I posted the recipe almost a year ago, and you can find it here.

Another recent favorite is Mexican egg rolls.  It's a yummy meal that can be altered to accommodate even the pickiest of kids, and it's fun for them to help assemble too! The recipe from a few months ago is here.

Because I can't follow rules - I'm going to share my favorite dessert too.  If I get invited to a cook-out and don't have much time to prepare, these suckers are going with me.  (Fine.  I bring them even if I have tons of time to prepare.  But people love them, I swear!)  Recipe here!

This week's recipe is a soup that a small group of my friends ask for every time I see them. 

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

6 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 cup flour
2 cups half & half
3 cups chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
4 cups broccoli florets
1 large carrot, diced
2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
Salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.  Whisk in the flour and cook until golden, 3 to 4 minutes, then gradually whisk in the half and half until smooth.  Add the chicken broth, bay leaves, nutmeg, salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.  Reduce the heat to medium low and cook, uncovered, until thickened, about 30 minutes.

Add the broccoli and carrot to the brother mixture and simmer until tender, about 20 minutes.  Discard the bay leaves.  Puree the soup with an immersion blender.  Add the cheese and whisk over medium heat until melted.

What's cooking in your kitchen?

 

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2 minute chocolate and salted caramel mug cakes

I had Martin Luther King, Jr. Day off of work, and of course I was itching to bake.  I pondered making some cinnamon rolls but didn't think it would make sense if there were just two of us to enjoy these at home. 

This 2-minute chocolate and salted caramel mug cake recipe has been on my "to bake" list for some time.  I was going to head off to the (skating) rink and decided to make these on a whim.  My husband could enjoy it after I left and after our daughter went down for her nap.

This mug cake literally took about 5 minutes to put together, from start to finish.  I was initially worried about the size of my coffee mug, but it worked out perfectly.  Instead of adding a salted caramel, I added just one homemade caramel that I had in our refrigerator. I didn't get to try any of the cake until after I got home, so it was about 2 hours old at that point. The top of the cake had dried out, but the middle was good.  My suggestion is to make this when you are ready to eat it so the cake doesn't lose any moisture.

I'm glad I tried this recipe - it is a nice quick dessert that you can make almost instantly.  If you have any last-minute company coming over, this could be something you serve and impress them with!

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (I used dark cocoa powder)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg – beaten
• 3 tablespoons skim milk (I used soy milk)
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 salted caramels (I used one homemade caramel)

Directions

Into a small bowl mix together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, salt, egg, milk, and vegetable oil.

Pour mixture into a regular sized coffee mug. Drop caramels into center of mixture one at a time.

Microwave on high for one minute and 30 seconds. If needed {if cake batter is still gooey}, microwave on high for up to an additional 30 seconds.

Source: slightly adapted from The Family Kitchen

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Hungry Homestay

Vac Packed Beef Chilli

Our friends know us to be hospitable and always generously opening our dining table to anyone who requests an invitation! We also have a stream of international guests travelling through our dining room who stay with us on an overseas Homestay program. Auzzie Families send us students from far and wide to sample our cuisine, and experience life at the home of a (not so...?) typical Aussie family.

Our most recent homestays are staying a bit longer than the usual month, hopefully due to the great food and fun company. Over the holiday period though, we spent some time away from home and to honour our commitment of a home cooked meal every night, I made sure there was plenty in the freezer to keep them going while we weren't there to cook every day.

Plenty food and in the freezer are not phrases that usually can go well together in our household. We have a small apartment and an even smaller freezer, so we've been typically limited on the number of dishes we can tupperware up and cram into the couple of drawers. Recently though we invested in a Food Saver, Sunbeam's groovy vacuum sealing machine. It is not just food that it saves. It saves space, money and our waist lines, as it allows us to portion up bulk packs of meat into smaller serving sizes and properly seal it up ensuring no freezer burn.

It has also meant that we have been able to prepare a few weeks worth of home cooked, healthy unprocessed meals for our homestay "kids" to defrost while we're galavanting off on holidays. I just multiply whatever I create, or throw something in the Slow Cooker and we vac a bag or two, flatten it out and slide it into the freezer. Even when we're not in town, we're able to provide quick, healthy and diverse meals each night of the week to our hungry homestays!

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The Unblogged Files: January

Hey hey y'all! Welcome to the first in what I hope will be a regular series: "The Unblogged Files".  I'll be posting recent food pics and experiences that I haven't blogged: things that I'm excited to share, but that don't quite need a whole post.  I find that I take so many pics on my iPhone that they sometimes don't make it to my Twitter or Facebook pages, let alone the blog!  I also had lots of fun making my 2011 Blog Round Up post, and I thought that the format would be a good way of keeping track of what I've been up to.  The key distinction is that my 2011 round-up post was a round up of my 2011 blog posts themselves, whereas "The Unblogged Files" will contain random things I haven't blogged.  Still with me?

I've obviously been inspired by Agnes' fab This Week in Brief series, which I really enjoy reading, but I haven't decided how regularly I'll be doing this.  Every month?  Every week?  Every fortnight?  I'm not working at the moment so I've got a bit of extra time to cook, take daytrips, visit cafes and restaurants, and blog.  At the rate I'm going I could probably justify a weekly post!  (If not a daily one, hehe!)  But I'm sure the food adventures will slow down once I'm back to work, so I won't set myself any strict timeframes.  I reckon I'll just be doing one of these posts whenever my phone starts looking a bit full and the mood strikes me!

And speaking of which... for today's post I'll be sharing foodie adventures from January!  I've been pretty busy, food-wise, this month, so it's gonna be a long one! Grab a cup of tea and pull up a chair.

My January started, as I'm sure many of yours did, with a renewed enthusiasm for healthy eating.  But of course, eating healthy around here doesn't mean a monotonous diet of rice cakes and sad little tins of tuna.  Above all, I want my meals to be joyful.  And when I want joyful, healthy food, my first stop is Ottolenghi!

Clockwise from top left: Mushroom ragout with poached egg; multi-vegetable paella, marinated eggplant with tahini, soba with mango and eggplant 

These recipes all come from Plenty, except for the marinated eggplant, which comes from Yotam's first cookbook.  (I've linked the recipes above for your eating and cooking pleasure).  The standout here was the soba noodles with eggplant - such an unusual combination but so wonderful, especially with the little bursts of chilli, onion, and fresh herbs.

"Salmon and soba" is a pretty standard combo for me when I want healthy, nourishing food.  On the left we have Nigella's cold soba salad (Forever Summer), combined with her mirin-glazed salmon (Nigella Express).  On the right, we have two recipes from Bill's Everyday Asian - miso eggplant, and glazed salmon - with plain soba.  I have two comments on the Bill Granger thing: first, I am So Glad that he has started using apostrophes!  Secondly, I generally have issues with following Asian recipes from non-Asian chefs (and don't get me started on the generic focus of the book, when "Asian" isn't actually a style of food, but a huge variety of cultures, people and food traditions, thank-you very much!)  However, sweeping generalizations aside, both eggplant and salmon were delicious!  I love that the miso eggplant is a super-easy homespun version of nasu dengaku.

A couple of weeks ago, we took a 2-day trip to the Yarra Valley, visiting restaurants, breweries and food producers.  (Disclosure: it was a complimentary media trip to help promote the region).  We had the best time, and I can't wait to blog about it - especially the deeply fabulous accommodation! - but right now I wanted to show these awesome veggies we bought at the Yarra Valley Gateway Estate.

Look how shiny they are!  Because they were "imperfect", they were being sold for only $10 a tray!  What a bargain.

And thus begun my first foray into preserving - once back home, we roasted up the capsicums...

 ...and also made a rather tasty eggplant and capsicum chutney.  Both roast capsicums and the chutney made cute little gifts!  (And the chutney is especially good with curries or with strong, bitey cheeses).

For the first time in a long time, this month I went to Yum Cha!  A group of my friends had organised a day at paintball, which was far too adventurous for my delicate (AKA lazy) nature.  So those of us who weren't up for paintballing had a little yum cha instead, at Imperial Kingdom in Glen Waverley.  It was super-yum, especially the hot flaky tan taats (egg tarts)!

I also took a drive to Mornington with my cousin and some friends.  Being too cold for our planned day of beach swimming, we instead picked strawberries at the Sunny Ridge Strawberry Farm, and visited the Main Ridge Dairy, which specialises in goats cheeses.

Whilst there were some nice cheeses on the platter, (the Caprino, a goats cheese made in a similar style to Parmesan, was my favourite), at $38 it was very expensive.  We couldn't help but compare this to the very generous cheese platter we'd enjoyed at the Yarra Valley Dairy the week before.  Oh well!

In this (intermittently) warm weather, I've been enjoying a bit of cold drip coffee.  The first time I tried it, at Sensory Lab, I'd actually ordered it by mistake, thinking I had ordered iced pourover coffee.  (Whoops, was being a bit blur that day).  I actually really like the intense flavours - the Panama Finca Casa Ruiz from Sensory Lab had a treacly, almost licorice-like intensity, whilst the Cubana cold drip from Atomica had notes of tobacco.

Left: Sensory Lab
Right: Atomica

Right at the start of the month, we got a massive care package from Sandra's parents in Germany - check it out! Wow!  There were heaps of Maggi flavour packets, chocolates, candy and biscuits! 

My favourites are the Leibniz mini butter biscuits coated in chocolate.  Some of them got a bit melted on the way over here, so some of the biscuits stuck together... to make awesome GIANT biscuits! Hehe.

Ding ding ding... jackpot!

The influx of flavour packets reminded me that I really should use up the packets I bought on my last trip to Germany, and I promptly made some Brathendl.

I cut a chicken in half so it would look like a proper German Halbes Haenchen, then covered the two pieces it in the spice mix, and roasted it in the oven with a tray of chopped veggies on the shelf below.  You know, I wasn't expecting too much from the Maggi Brathendl packet but - OMG - it was absolutely, deliriously A-mazing!  I couldn't believe it - incredibly crispy, spicy skin encasing juicy, tender meat.  Half a chicken is meant to serve two, but it was so delicious I ate the entire half-chicken to myself.  I also gave up with the cutlery after the first few bites and ate it by hand.  So good!  I have one more packet in the pantry, and absolutely have to restock as soon as I possibly can!

And finally (yes, we're getting there), I just wanted to show the Reunion Dinner we had on Chinese New Year's eve.  

All the traditional Penang goodies, cooked by my parents.  Loh Bak, Chicken Curry, Kiam Chye Th'ng.  Love it!!  We eat pretty much the same thing every year, as evidenced by my blog posts from previous years (2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010...).  We had a brief flirtation with Yee Sang in 2009, but I don't think it's really our thing.  Give me my Penang feast any time!

And speaking of which, I'm actually in Malaysia on a holiday right now, just got here yesterday morning!  I can't believe it's been seven years since my last trip!  I've got a lot of eating, shopping and spa treatments planned.  YAY!  I have totally been gorging on proper roti canai and Milo peng, and I'm looking forward to some really hot Hot 'n' Spicy chicken at KFC.  (You read that right, and I'm not ashamed!!)

Catch y'all on the flipside!

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And.... TAG {Part II}

Today I'm answering Kristine's questions. :-) Catch up with part one here.
1. If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only have 3 things, what would you want with you? (-- such a common question, I know).

I'd want my dogs, my Kindle Fire and an endless supply of sunscreen. {I burn like nobody's business!} I'm also making an automatic assumption that food and water will be available to me one way or another. :-)

2. If you had to drown in any liquid BESIDES water, what would you choose?

Um... Kahlua?! I mean, if you're doing to drown, it might as well taste good for a few minutes.

3. If you had to be covered completely in hair (I’m talking every crevasse of your body), or be completely hairless (no hair anywhere), what would you choose?

I'd say hairless.  This is probably TMI, but hair just doesn't grow on my legs. I don't have to shave my legs.  So to go from that to covered in hair just isn't happening.

4. If you had a kid (or had another kid for some of you), would you want a boy or a girl and what would their names be?

Honestly, I want a few of both.  My favorite boy names: Hunter, Evan, Noah, Nathan, Jackson, Callum and Mason.  My favorite girl names: Keelan, Sinclair, Peyton, Laurel, Piper, Skylar, Finley and Ainsley.

5. If you won the lottery, what would you do with your winnings (after taxes, obvs)?

I actually have a list for this! Of course it depends how big the winnings are... I want to donate to the ASPCA, a few rescue organizations and to Susan G. Komen.  Then I pay off all my debt, send my parents on their dream vacation, build my dream house and help a few friends/relatives with their bills.  It should go without saying that I get a few more pups and if I don't have a husband already - adopt a few kids.

6. Who are some of your favorite bloggers as of the time being? Link them to your post!

Please don't be offended if I forget you!  There are so many fabulous bloggers that I like to read, interact with on an ongoing basis.

Just a few of my favorites:

Mrs. Jones, Jane, Kasey, We 3 Dachshunds, Dachshund Nola, Preppy Girl Meets World, and Jessica.

7. If money weren’t an object, what kind of car would you buy?

I'd get a brand new version of my current vehicle! I love, love, love my Chevy Tahoe (you may have seen my tweet-fest from last week with Holly extoling the virtues of Tahoes).  I haven't had the opportunity to get a brand new one... :-)

8. Congrats! You were just granted an all-expenses paid, two week vacation to ANYWHERE in the world! Where are you going to go?

I'm spending two weeks in the UK.  I'm hitting Harrod's, Covent Garden and the National Museum in London. Seeing Stonehenge and Stratford-upon-Avon again.  Laughing as the sheep in the Welsh countryside try and push me down hills. Standing at Lands End in the Cotswolds and seeing nothing but water as far as the eye can see. Slowly meandering though Edinburgh - my favorite city in the world. Hanging with extended family in their tavern.

9. If you were an animal, what would you be?

I'm pretty sure that I'd be a dog.  I see myself as trusting, loyal and ready to defend the people I love.

10. Who is your celebrity GIRL crush?

Reece Witherspoon.  That woman is beautiful, sweet and down to earth.  She has beautiful kids, a seemingly adoring husband and a killer sense of style.

11. If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I'd probably go with pizza.  BBQ chicken pizza.  Am I weird?

And a quick reminder of my questions and who I tagged!

My eleven questions:

1. If you had to pick a super power, what would it be and why?
2. What was your best date ever?
3. You have to move to a new city now. Right NOW! What city would it be?
4. What current fad to you just abhor?
5. What's your favorite childhood memory?
6. You have to choose to not speak for a week or not use social media for a week. Which do you choose?
7. What qualities are you looking for in a mate? {Or helped you find your hubby/boyfriend}
8. What is your favorite book and why?
9. How do you relax?
10. What's your biggest fear?
11. What can make you smile, no matter how bad a mood you're in?

"Tag" to eleven people:
Mrs. Jones
Kasey
Jessica
Holly
Beach Bum & Baby
Andrea
Janna
Michelle
Jane
Meg
Jill

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True Love

Ah, romance. 

These cookies were inspired by some of the most famous romances in history.

Lucy & Ricky....obviously.

Danny & Sandy...as a young girl, I was fairly certain I would don a leather outfit and high heels & sing "You're the One that I Want" at a carnival with my true love.
{It hasn't happened. YET.}

Homer & Marge...unconditional love if I've ever seen it.

Ken & Barbie...have you SEEN Toy Story 3?

Jim & Pam...I've only seen a few seasons of The Office on cable, but Jim & Pam are SO DARN SWEET!  Oh, I just love them.

Carrie & Big...don't tell me if they break up in the movies.  I prefer my Carrie/Big memories right where they ended for me, with the last TV show.

Gomez & Morticia...they just might be my all-time favorite TV romance.  Go back and watch The Addams Family again.  They make me smile EVERY time! ♥

I asked Mr. E if he could name some famous couples.  His first response? "Charles and Diana."  My (yelled) reply, "CHARLES AND DIANA?!?"  He looked at me like I was the crazy one.  After he explained himself for a minute, it occurred to me.  "Do you mean William and Kate?!?"  Him: "Yes."  Men.

No true love list would be complete without Rhett & Scarlett.  Every time I read Gone with the Wind, I hope they'll run across the yard at Tara and into each other's arms.  It never happens.  Darn it.

I had a few more on my list (Elvis & Priscilla, Fred & Wilma, Han & Leia, PW & MM, Roy & Dale) but as is always the case with "writing" on cookies, I had several mistakes.  Even on the "good ones,"  my handwriting is not as cute as it was in my head. :)

These are as simple as an outline and fill with royal icing...

• I used AmeriColor Super Black for the outline and writing,
• #3 tip for the outline, #1 tip for the writing,
• hearts: soft pink, deep pink mixed with electric pink, and super red (all AmeriColor)
• to avoid bleeding, I let the flooded hearts sit for a few hours before adding the names

 

Easy, peasy.

Actually, I liked the way they looked plain, too.  Simple black outline.  Love it every time.

What names would you put on YOUR true love cookies?

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Australia Day Party

Hey hey! A picture-heavy post today, on the fab Australia Day party we had today!  Even though there was heaps of food, somehow it wasn't stressful, and all fell together pretty easily.  In addition to the menu below, lots of our friends generously contributed salads and extra desserts.  Yay!  I plan to blog the individual dishes in more detail in due course, but for today let's look at some pretty pictures!

An Australia Day Feast for 11

Roast Pork Belly

Frikadellen

Thai Chicken Burgers

Sweetcorn Fritters

Parker House Rolls

Lettuce, Tomatoes, Avocado, Cucumber, Red Onion

Pavlova

 The Table

The Burgers: Beef Frikadellen, Thai Chicken Burgers, Sweetcorn Fritters

The condiments: Guacamole (made by my cousin Catherine), Red Onion, Cucumber, Avocado Slices, Tomato

The Salads: Watermelon & Feta (brought by Alaina)

Cupcakes (they count as salads, yes?) and Asian Salad (brought by Adrian)

Mixed Veggie Salad (brought by Kristine) 

Parker House Rolls

PORK BELLY!

The pork belly was incredibly crackly - amazing!  It's the recipe from The Ottolenghi Cookbook if you want to try it out.

Cute burger!

And because I know you guys love it... more CRACKLING!

The Desserts: 

Pavlova

Lamingtons (brought by Alae)

Cupcakes by Paolo (brought by Adrian)

I used a Donna Hay recipe for the pavlova and was so pleased with the result.  I know I've bagged Donna's super-stylised style before, but her recipes for the basics are really great!

Aftermath

Phew! That was a lot of food!  Happy Australia Day!!!

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And.... TAG!

I have been tagged by two spiffy {Hey, don't knock my verbiage!  I'm bringing back old-school.  Like the 50's...so REALLY old school.} ladies MMS & Kristine. I want to give both of these tags the attention they deserve, so I'll do one today and one tomorrow!
The rules:
1) You must post the rules.
2) Post eleven fun facts about yourself on the blog post. {I'm not interesting...but I'll pretend for a minute.}
3) Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.
4) Tag eleven people and link them on your post.
5) Let them know you've tagged them.

Fun facts:

1. I carry my passport with me at all times.  I laughingly say it's so I can flee the country... but I actually have left the USA spur of the moment before.  
2. I'm allergic to coconut.  Not life threateningly allergic, but tingly lips/fuzzy tongue allergic.
3. Generally, I'm very "go with the flow".  However, I am a control freak about driving.  I much prefer to be the driver than the passenger.
4. I try to see the best in people.  Sometimes, that means I get hurt because I give people too much credit.
5. I have very little tolerance for people who think the world revolves around them, people who hurt children/animals, and the otherwise rude!
6. I can. not. wait to find a new job.  It means that I can indulge my desire to add a new pup to my little herd. :-)
7. In real life, I'm extremely shy.  That is, until you get to really know me.  Then it's hard to shut me up!
8. My dream jobs: Owner of a doggie day care, author, international tour guide, bakery owner, make-up artist, and press secretary.
9. I'm a major insomniac.  I have a really hard time both falling asleep and staying asleep.  Having the dogs sleep with me actually helps me sleep a little... My PCP has a theory that I'll be cured of insomnia when I get married - that having someone sleeping next to me will force my biorhythms to sync into a normal sleep pattern. {BTW, I don't believe her.}
10. I love jewelry!!!  But I'm really picky about it.  I prefer ruby (my birthstone) and diamonds best, like simple settings, and only gold.
11. The "clumsy" gene runs in my family.  I should buy stock in black t-shirts because I drop things on myself so often!
12. BONUS FACT: I learned how to knit when I was five.  It's a very zen activity for me.  Actually...most creative activities are really relaxing to me.

The questions from MMS

1) What one item of clothing do you have that you absolutely refuse to throw out?
I have a stash of my baby clothes that I want to pass on to my future daughter...then make a quilt out of.

2) What was the greatest gift that anyone ever gave you?
That's a hard one!  My favorite gift was my professional grade Kitchen-Aid mixer. {I cried when my parent's gave it to me for Christmas a few years ago.} 

The "greatest" gift that I've ever gotten is my dog Peach Blossom.  She went to Rainbow Bridge about 6 years ago. Here's the short story of Peachy... My grandpa {mom's dad} passed away Christmas Eve of my freshman year of high school.  I was devastated! He was the first of my grandparents to pass away, and honestly one of my favorite people.  My parents very astutely knew that I needed something to focus on as I mourned. {and puppy kisses can heal even the deepest of wounds}  So, they bought me Peach Blossom!  She was such an amazing dog!!!!  Everything that a Cocker Spaniel should be - loving, devoted to me, affectionate. 

3) Who was your first celebrity crush?
Wow.  I could easily tell you who my first real life crush was...but celebrity is a bit harder.  I'm going to have to go with Ryan Gosling back from the MMC days.

4) What was your worst date ever?
Oh...here we go.  My worst date ever was a blind date {predictable, huh?!}.  A very sweet friend set me up - on. my. birthday.  and it was an ambush date.  Seriously.  I thought I was meeting her for drinks.  She greeted me, introduced me to my blind date and excused herself. I'm sure that under normal circumstances this man is very nice.  However, he had JUST broken up with what he believed was the love of his life.  Literally days before.  I spent 2 hours nursing a drink while he cried on my shoulder about how he could never life life without Jenna {or whatever her name was}.  And then, he was so upset that he didn't pay the bar tab.  I had to!

I don't ask a lot.  Just please, don't set me up on blind dates on my birthday!

5) What is your one food guilty pleasure?
Once a year or so, I make Reese's peanut butter bars and don't share them with others.  I freeze the whole batch and then nibble one or two a night until they are gone.

6) Do you drink? What is your alcoholic drink of choice?
Yes, I do drink.  I'm a big fan of Reisling {a super yummy white wine}, mudslides, hard cider, and Alabama Slammers.

7) What was your favorite vacation?
My favorite vacation was the two weeks I spent on a tour of England, Scotland and Wales when I was 16.  I went with my mom, my grandma {mom's mom}, my brother and one of my cousins.  Every single day was hours spent on the tour bus going to a new attraction/city, getting corralled through countless museums/castles/etc., a forced understanding of what haggis and mead are, fire alarms in the middle of the night, having to use the men's room at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, tales from our guide {who looked exactly like Ringo Starr}, trying to decipher Welsh road signs and lugging my mom's vastly over packed suitcase to the bus each morning.

In other words - it was MAGICAL!! Every single moment of that vacation will be etched into my brain forever!

8) What is one thing that people like that you just don't get the appeal of?
Uggs.  I'm so sorry...but I just don't get it. They are bad for your arches, look ugly {in my opinion. I understand that I may be alone in that opinion.}, and are super expensive.

9) What is your favorite tv show?
I don't have just one favorite show.  I will share my current favorites! The West Wing {which I'd likely list if you made me pick just one}, Torchwood, Doctor Who, Covert Affairs, Dancing with the Stars, Two Broke Girls, Royal Pains, Criminal Minds, New Girl, Glee, and Bones.

10) Do you sleep with a stuffed animal?
Nope.  Just my two live animals.  :-)

11) Are there any foods that you won't eat?
I have a "thing" with food textures.  I don't like mushy.  That means no yogurt, pudding, cheesecake or pie.

Other than that, the only foods I really dislike are: mushrooms, eggplant & brussel sprouts.  Oh and I don't do animal organs {tripe,liver, sweetbreads}.

My eleven questions:

1. If you had to pick a super power, what would it be and why?
2. What was your best date ever?
3. You have to move to a new city now.  Right NOW!  What city would it be?
4. What current fad to you just abhor?
5. What's your favorite childhood memory?
6. You have to choose to not speak for a week or not use social media for a week.  Which do you choose?
7. What qualities are you looking for in a mate? {Or helped you find your hubby/boyfriend}
8. What is your favorite book and why?
9. How do you relax?
10. What's your biggest fear?
11. What can make you smile, no matter how bad a mood you're in?

"Tag" to eleven people:
Mrs. Jones
Kasey
Jessica
Holly
Beach Bum & Baby
Andrea
Janna
Michelle
Jane
Meg
Jill

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Key Lime Pie from Joe's Stone Crab

You'll have to excuse the crumbs - we just couldn't wait to dig in!

Remember this post from earlier when I talked about the key lime pie from Joe's Stone Crab? Well, after a bit of digging, I found the recipe that Joe's uses! **cue heavenly choir**

Needless to say, as soon as I found this recipe, I wanted to make it right away. I searched high and low for real key limes but didn't see them in any of our grocery stores. Trader Joe's and Whole Foods didn't have them either. One glorious day during our regular grocery store visit, I saw them! I was even more ecstatic when the entire bag of key limes cost me less than $3. Yes!

This key lime pie does not disappoint. It seemed to be a bit more tart than the version we tried in Miami, but it is still really good. I'm not a big fan of whipped cream so I left that out. I imagine that the whipped cream will cut down on the tartness from the pie.

Now that I have Joe's recipe, I can bring us a little bit of Miami whenever we need a bit of sunshine during these cold, wintry months.

Ingredients

Crust

• 1 wax paper-wrapped package graham crackers (1/3 of a pound box) OR 1 cup and
  2 1/2 tbsp graham cracker crumbs
• 5 tbsp melted unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup sugar

Filling

• 3 egg yolks
• 1 1/2 tsp grated key lime zest (from about 2 key limes)
• 1 14-ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
• 2/3 cup freshly squeezed key lime juice

Topping (I did not make this part)

• 1 cup heavy or whipped cream, chilled
• 1 TBSP powdered sugar

Directions

For the graham cracker crust:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch pie pan. Break up the graham crackers; place in a food processor and process to crumbs. (If you don't have a food processor, place the crackers in a large plastic bag; seal and then crush the crackers with a rolling pin.) Add the melted butter and sugar and pulse or stir until combined. Press the mixture into the bottom and sides of the pie pan, forming a neat border around the edge. Bake the crust until set and golden, 8 minutes. Set aside on a wire rack; leave the oven on. 

For the filing:
Meanwhile, in an electric mixer with the wire whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks and lime zest at high speed until very fluffy, about 5 minutes. Gradually add the condensed milk and continue to beat until thick, 3 or 4 minutes longer. Lower the mixer speed and slowly add the lime juice, mixing just until combined, no longer. Pour the mixture into the crust. Bake for 10 minutes or until the filling has just set. Cool on a wire rack, then refrigerate. Freeze for 15 to 20 minutes before serving.

For the topping:
Whip the cream and the confectioners' sugar until nearly stiff. Cut the pie in wedges and serve very cold, topping each wedge with a large dollop of whipped cream.

Source: Joe's Stone Crab

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It's not you; it's your oven...Works for me Wednesday

A few years ago, we lived in a rent house...the rent house-that-must-not-be-named.
{It was not my favorite.}

Anyway, sometimes when I was baking, the kitchen would get REALLY WARM and my cookies would come out over baked.   So, one day, I invested in an oven thermometer. 

{They're really inexpensive.  This one is from Target and was about $7.}

What do you know, that oven would sometimes cycle all the way up to 500 (!!!) before cooling back down to 350.  It wasn't my fault!  It was my oven!!!

It's easy enough to check, just hang the thermometer inside your oven, let your oven heat up for about 15 minutes. You'll want it to come to the preheated temperature and stay there for 10 minutes or so, then check it.

My current oven showed exactly 350 (when set at 350)...but it took several minutes of standing with the oven door open to get my camera to focus on it.

Once you know if your oven is running cool or hot, you'll be able to adjust your oven temp when setting it.


One more tip....check to see if your oven has any hot spots.

Place pieces of white bread on a large cookie sheet and bake at 450 for about 10 minutes or so...until browned.

Now, take a look at the bread.  Are some pieces more browned than others?  It looks like I have a "cool spot" in the front left of my oven.  If you do notice a big difference in how the bread browned, be sure to rotate your pans during baking.

Blaming baking problems on my oven?  Works for me! ;) 

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