My freezer

Last night I was overcome with a desire to make ice cubes. Odd as it sounds, I like good old fashioned ice cubes and we're having people over for dinner on Saturday, and thought I should stock up.

That led to me trying to secure freezer space to actually store the trays. Ugh! I have a freezer in the kitchen and one in the basement. The kitchen freezer was PACKED with stuff. Nuts, single steaks, 1/2 jars of spaghetti sauce, fish sticks (no one will eat), sauerkraut (?), hot dog rolls, bread ends -- to make crumbs some day, cool whip, all sorts of frozen vegetables. Some things are older than my children (yikes!)

Rather than actually edit the contents, I moved it all downstairs and will put that chore on my to-do list. We are also going to start eating out of the freezer -- it could be weeks before I have to go to the store again. On the up side -- I have made two batches of ice cubes and feel peace when I open the freezer upstairs.

Home made Sloppy Joes

I think my mom used to make sloppy joes using ground beef and a can of manwich. But it makes me feel like a better mother when I create sloppy joes from scratch. This is from Rachel Ray's book, and it's always a hit with the family...

1 T olive oil
1 1/4 lb. ground beef
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 t. steak seasoning blend
1 medium onion
1 small red bell pepper (I've substituted carrots)
1 T. red wine vinegar
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
2 c. tomato sauce
2 T tomato paste

Heat oil in a large skillet, add beef and break it up. Combine brown sugar and steak seasoning, add the mix to the meat in the skillet. When the meat has browned, add onion and veggies. Reduce heat to medium and cook for 5 minutes. Add vinegar, stirring to reduce, add Worcestershire tomato sauce and paste, stirring to combine. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for about 5 more minutes.

The Split Pea Soup Experiment

I am vegetable challenged. I can't seem to figure out a way to get the green things into the kids on a regular basis. So, the other night, when my pal Alton Brown told me that split pea soup is a great way to sneak some peas into the unsuspecting little people, I thought I'd give it a shot.

Amazingly, it didn't go over quite as well here in the real world. Son #1 didn't even try it, daughter said it had a funky aftertaste, and son #2 said it was okay. Husband said it was good, but too thick. (I think he was just being nice). I, on the other hand, loved it (of course). I had some left over, and it does get thicker as it ages, to the point where I feel like I'm eating baby food for lunch. The other great thing about this recipe is that I got to use my groovy new emersion blender...

I think I've got to make it a few more times to get the kids on the right track. I'll torture them with vegetables.

Also, I realized I had to serve it with something they would eat, or they would all starve the night I made it -- so I made ham steaks and macaroni and cheese...

Here's the recipe:
Curried Split Pea Soup
Ingredients
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup chopped onion
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh garlic
12 ounces dried green or yellow split peas, picked over and rinsed
5 cups chicken broth
1 tablespoon curry powder
Directions
Place the butter into a large (4 to 6-quart) saucepan over medium-low heat. Once melted, add the onion and a generous pinch of salt and sweat for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and continue to sweat for an additional 1 to 2 minutes, making certain not to allow onions or garlic to brown.

Add the peas, chicken broth and curry powder. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook at a simmer until the peas are tender and not holding their shape any longer, approximately 45 to 50 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed. Using care and a stick blender, puree the soup until the desired consistency. Watch out for hot splatters.

Bow Thai Pasta with Shrimp

This has been a family favorite for a very long time. You make a pesto out of cilantro instead of basil, and although it calls for shrimp, I've also used chicken. And, not surprisingly, I rarely have the right kind of pasta (bows) -- so I use whatever is in the cabinet. Lately, I've been using almonds instead of peanuts -- and that works as well.

Bow Thai Pasta with Shrimp
3 large garlic cloves, crushed
2 T. minced fresh ginger
1 bunch fresh cilantro (stemmed)
1/4 c. dry-roasted peanuts
1/4 t. (or less) dried crushed red pepper
1/2 c. peanut oil
8 oz. bow tie pasta
12 oz. cooked,peeled, deveined medium shrimp
4 green onions, chopped
3 T. fresh lime juice

With processor running, drop garlic and ginger through feed tube. Add cilantro, peanuts and red pepper. With machine running, gradually add oil. Season to taste with salt. (Can be prepared 6 hours and up to 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate).

Bring pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook until tender. Place shrimp in colander. Pour pasta into colander. Drain. Return shrimp and pasta to pot. Add pesto sauce, onions, and lime juice. Toss to coat.

Zuni Cafe Chicken = Comfort Food

As I sit here typing away, I can smell the makings of some good old fashioned chicken broth on the stove. It's just starting to snow.. life is good. What's in the pot is the leftovers from a DELICIOUS roast chicken recipe that is fast and easy. I found the recipe at the smitten kitchen

It calls for a bread salad -- absolutely make the bread salad. I couldn't take pictures, it disappears so fast

After you're down to the bones, make chicken broth and freeze 2c. portions for future use....

REAL Spaghetti Carbonara

This recipe is so good -- and probably so bad for me, I LOVE it -- and everyone pretty much gobbled it up. In fact, #1 son ate it as leftovers this evening. That never happens. The prep is time intensive, and the ingredients can be pricey, but every now and then it's totally worth it.

Ingredients:
1 cup finely diced fontina cheese
1/4 lb. bacon
6 oz. proscuitto
2 T. chopped parsley
2 garlic cloves minced
1 medium onion chopped
2 egg yolks
1 lb. spaghetti

Heat a bowl in the oven for the spaghetti
Put the water on to boil
Get out the food processor and chop up fontina cheese and proscuitto
Use a knife to chop onion parsley and garlic, and to slice bacon
Seperate 2 eggs (save yolks)

Throw the bacon in a pan and fry until crisp
Remove crisp bacon and drain, add onion to the pan, saute until tender, add garlic at the last minute or so
Cook the pasta
When the pasta is done, and drained, put it in the hot bowl
Toss with fontina cheese, proscuitto, onions/garlic, parsley, bacon, and egg yolks, toss to incorporate yolks (they'll cook as you toss)
Serve with parmesan cheese.

Christmas Cookies

Well it's the New Year already, and I'm on the verge of throwing away a bunch of cookies. In years past, we'd bake a bunch and give them to neighbors, but this year, for some reason, we never got around to passing them around. We ate a lot of them, but not all. I'd love to get all the recipes down here -- for future reference. But for now, a list will do. In 2008 we made:



Gingerbread
1 cup butter, softened
2/3 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. light molasses
1 egg
3 1/2 c. flour
1 t. salt
1 t. baking powder
1 t. ground ginger
1 t. ground allspice
1 t. ground cinnamon
1 t. ground cloves

Combine butter, brown sugar, and molasses until light and fluffy
Add egg and all other ingredients, beat at low speed until combined and a smooth dough is created. Shape into a ball, wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours.

Cut with cookie cutters, back at 350 degrees for 12 minutes.


Thumbprints
2 1/2 c. flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 c. unsalted butter
1/4 c. sugar
1/4 c. honey
1 egg
1/2 t. almond extract
Strawberry or apricot preserves

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease baking sheets (or use silicone). Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. On medium speed, beat butter, sugar, and honey. Beat egg and almond extract. In 3 additions, add flour mixture, beating well after each additional.

Shape into 1" dough balls, place on baking sheets, indent with thumb and fill with 1/2 t. preserves. Bake for 10 minutes, transfer to wire racks after 2 to 4 minutes. Store in airtight container.

Drop Sand Tarts
1 c. butter
2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 1/2 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 t. vanilla

Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs. Mix dry ingredients, gradually add vanilla. Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes


Sugar Cookies
3 c. flour
3/4 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 c. unsalted butter softened
1 c. sugar
1 egg beaten
1 T. milk

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Cream together butter and sugar. Add egg and milk. Gradually add dry ingredients. Divide dough in half, wrap in wax paper and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Roll out cold dough, use cookie cutters to make cookies and bake at 375 degrees for 7 to 9 minutes until just beginning to brown. Let cool for 2 minutes on baking sheet, then place on wire racks.

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies (Chris' favorite)
1/4 lb. butter
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar, packed
1 large egg
1/2 t. vanilla extract
1 1/4 c. flour
3/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 package of miniature peanut butter cups

Open the peanut butter cups and remove all wrappers

Cream together butter, peanut butter and sugars (granulated and brown)
Beat in egg and vanilla
Mix dry ingredients together (flour, baking soda, and salt), blend into sugar/egg mixture, and mix until smooth dough forms.

Form into balls and place in mini-muffin tins. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes.

Immediately after removing trays from the oven, press a peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie. Let cookies cool in muffin tins for 10-15 minutes before removing the cookies to a wire rack.


Note to self: everything is better with frosting and sprinkles...