Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree!

This is the first year I am attempting to put up a full tree. I had no idea that it was so much work! After much debate, I choose a real tree for my first attempt. The tree smells fabulous, however, it was a pain to light.  I went through 6 strands of lights and I feel like I needed 12.  I have already decorated it so it is staying the way it is for this year.  I am not finished but it is a start and it looks great for a first attempt!

The Incredible Edible 'Farm Fresh' Egg

I love going home for one strange reason and that is to get farm fresh eggs.  Let me tell you they look nothing like the eggs at the major grocery stores. Yes, this includes the claims for farm raised, grain feed eggs. I am a firm believer that we are genetically altering too much of our food these days.  If you would like more information on this topic, try watching Food Inc.  Here are some photos to show the beauty in a real egg! 

Want to try some of these eggs?! If you live close by and are a friend of mine, just ask and you shall receive! 

Sugar Cookies- experiment one!

As promised in a previous post, I attempted to make decorative sugar cookies.  While at home, I browsed Sugar Bakers and Eggemyers for cookie cutters. I found a boot shape and cactus shape that I loved. I decided they could be turned into a holiday boot and Christmas cactus { I am always looking for things that can be reused}.
Royal Icing:

Mix 2 table spoons of pasteurized egg whites with 2 cups of powdered sugar.  You can add more powdered sugar for thicker icing or less for thinner icing. If you want colored frosting, you will need separate bowls and food coloring. I used a combination of regular and neon food coloring to dye the frosting.

NPR- Horseradish Cranberry Dressing

This is an amazing recipe that has become part of my families holiday tradition.  My father {of all people!} stumbled across it on the Internet several years ago.  My mom was willing {but reluctant} to try anything after looking at the can-o-cranberries year after year. It turned out to be something the whole family really enjoys.  I admit, I do not like cranberries but I like this dressing because the horseradish gives a nice kick to the meal. I have misplaced the recipe and will have to post this at a latter time! Here are some pictures, so you can judge interest.

This article was copied directly via- www.npr.org

Clearly, we are a family that loves NPR! I love NPR, and this is clearly a shameless plug. :) 

Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish Recipe

by SUSAN STAMBERG

Avie Schneider, NPR

Preparing Mama Stamberg's cranberry relish. View gallery for the step-by-step experience.

View Gallery

The Recipe's Origins

As Susan Stamberg has noted, her mother-in-law got the recipe from a 1959 New York Timesclipping of Craig Claiborne's recipe for cranberry relish. In 1993, Claiborne told Stamberg: "Susan, I am simply delighted. We have gotten more mileage, you and I, out of that recipe than almost anything I've printed."

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November 23, 2006

Every year as Thanksgiving approaches, fans ask NPR's Susan Stamberg for her mother-in-law's recipe for cranberry relish.

"It sounds terrible but tastes terrific," Stamberg says of the Pepto Bismol-pink dish.

Below is the cranberry relish recipe, and a bonus recipe for another Stamberg favorite — garlicky cranberry chutney.

Mama Stamberg's Cranberry Relish

2 cups whole raw cranberries, washed

1 small onion

3/4 cup sour cream

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons horseradish from a jar ("red is a bit milder than white")

Grind the raw berries and onion together. ("I use an old-fashioned meat grinder," says Stamberg. "I'm sure there's a setting on the food processor that will give you a chunky grind — not a puree.")

Add everything else and mix.

Put in a plastic container and freeze.

Early Thanksgiving morning, move it from freezer to refrigerator compartment to thaw. ("It should still have some little icy slivers left.")

The relish will be thick, creamy, and shocking pink. ("OK, Pepto Bismol pink. It has a tangy taste that cuts through and perks up the turkey and gravy. Its also good on next-day turkey sandwiches, and with roast beef.")

Makes 1 1/2 pints.

The photos below are from when I made the dish over Thanksgiving.

If you do not have a Kitchen Wand--this one comes highly recommended. It comes with a variety of attachments for all of your kitchen needs! 

Using the wand as a food processor. 

You want the dressing to be chunky--do not make the mistake of over-processing!

The final product! 

Decorative Pumpkin Pie

Admittedly, this idea is not original, so credit goes to Family magazine.  I saw this cute idea when browsing through recipes for the holidays.  My moms favorite holiday dessert is traditional pumpkin pie {so traditional that it is on the back of the pumpkin filling can} hahaha! Anyways if you want an easy pumpkin pie, simply purchase a can of Libby's Pumpkin filing and the recipe + vital ingredient are yours. The decorative pie requires additional pie dough rolled out {do this early to save time}.  Fill the pie pumpkin pie as instructed on recipe.  Next take additional dough and roll it out.  Using a dull knife, outline the shape of your hand in the dough. Leave room at the bottom to add feet. I added a couple of my own touches: a beak and gobbler.  These additional touches should be added before placing the turkey on the pie. Once finalized, gently set the turkey on the pie.  Have the oven preheated to 425 and bake for first 10 minutes, then turn heat to 350 and bake for an additional 30-40 minutes.  Optional: if you want a golden turkey, brush down turkey the last 5 minutes with some butter.

Finished product turns out super cute, enjoy! :)

Dreams of Sugar Plum Fairies and Fabulous Sugar Cookies!

For years I have been in wonderment and awe of those who can create stunning holiday cookies.  Sure, I've made Royal icing and decorated cute cookies but how to create perfectly ornate cookies?? I found a great video using a google search on cookie decorating.  The video cuts through the basics and advanced techniques of cookie decorating. Enjoy and look forward to my Christmas cookies coming soon!
Click here for the video

A Very Merry Vegan Holiday (even without the prized Bird)!!!

For most of us, Thanksgiving is a holiday centered around the prized bird but not for all.  Well, look no further...Impress that vegan this Thanksgiving {the sides are easy you've got that covered...}.
 I tried to convert myself to a vegan-vegetarian-pescatarian this summer but I turned into a carb monster! Needless to say it did not work out for me so well. I missed cooking and struggled to find exciting {new} things to make. However, I still like to eat non-meat meals occasionally {not a very convincing statement-eh?}.
I like the challenge of making appetizing food without any sort of meat product {which is damn hard}! My least favorite part about cooking vegan was not being able to use chicken broth, you miss a lot of flavor that way.
Okay, enough for those vegan readers, I am not trying to convert you! :)

Here are some vegan ideas:
Note: I have not made either recipe but they come highly recommended.

Vegan Faux Turkey:
Tofu Turkey with Stuffing
Turkey:

    5 pounds of firm tofu
    1 pound of tofu for the drumsticks - optional

Stuffing:

    2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
    1 large onion, chopped fine
    1 and 1/3 cup celery, diced (about 4 stalks)
    1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped
    3 to 4 cloves garlic, minced
    1/4 cup sage (may use 1/8)
    2 teaspoons marjoram
    2 teaspoons thyme
    1 teaspoon winter or summer savory
    salt and pepper to taste
    1 teaspoon rosemary
    2 teaspoons celery seed
    1/4 cup soy sauce or tamari
    3 cups Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing

Basting mixture:

    1/2 cup toasted sesame oil
    1/4 to 1/3 cup soy sauce or tamari
    2 tablespoons miso
    2 tablespoons orange juice
    1 teaspoon mustard of choice

Directions:

Mash tofu or mix well with hands.  Be sure that all of the lumps are out.  Line a 12 colander with wet cheesecloth over lapping the sides.  Add the mashed tofu to the cloth covered colander, press down and cover with the overlapping sides.  Place the whole thing in a large bowl.  Cover the cheesecloth with a plate that fits inside the colander and place a 5 pound weight on the plate.  Refrigerate and let sit for 2 to 3 hours.

When time is up, start the stuffing.  Saute the onions, celery and mushrooms in the 2 tablespoons sesame oil.  When soft, add the garlic and all the rest of the stuffing ingredients, except stuffing, mixing well. Stir and cook for 5 minutes.  Add herb stuffing and mix well.

Remove tofu from fridge and take off weight, plate and top of cheesecloth.  Hollow out tofu to within 1 inch of the sides and bottom, placing the tofu in a bowl.  Place the stuffing inside the she'll and pack in firmly.  Cover with the remaining tofu and pat down firmly.  Turn stuffed tofu onto a greased baking sheet, flat side down.  Gently press on sides of turkey to achieve a more oval shape.  If desired at this point, you may mold drumsticks out of one pound of tofu, and place on each side of the turkey.

Mix up the basting mixture and baste tofu turkey with half of it.  Cover the turkey with foil, and bake at 400 degrees for about 1 hour.

Remove foil, baste with all the remaining mixture except a few tablespoons and return to oven for 1 hour more, or until the turkey is golden.  Remove from oven and use rest of basting mix.  Using at least 2 large spatulas, move to a large plate.  Serve with the gravy of your choice, if you wish, and cranberry sauce.


Vegan Chocolate Cheesecake
For graham cracker crust:

• 1 1/4 cups chocolate or regular graham cracker crumbs (from nine 5-by 2 1/2-inch graham crackers)
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 4 tablespoons Earth Balance vegan buttery spread, melted and cooled, plus additional for greasing pan

For chocolate tofu filling:

• 2 1/4 cups sugar, divided
• 1/3 cup water
• 8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (no more than 60% cacao), chopped
• 2 (1-pound packages silken tofu, drained
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)
• 2 (8-ounces) containers soy cream cheese at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Rounded 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 
  

preparation

Make graham cracker crust: 
Preheat oven to 350°F with racks in middle and lower third and put a baking sheet on lower rack. Flip bottom of springform pan so lip is facing down, then lock in place. Grease bottom and side of pan.

Stir together all crust ingredients, then press onto bottom and 1 inch up side of pan. Bake until set, 10 to 12 minutes, then cool completely, about 45 minutes.

Make chocolate tofu filling:
Heat 1 cup sugar in a 1 1/2-to 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat, stirring with a fork to heat sugar evenly, until it starts to melt, then stop stirring and cook, swirling pan occasionally so sugar melts evenly, until it is dark amber. Remove from heat and carefully stir in water (mixture will bubble up and steam and caramel will harden), then cook over medium-low heat, stirring, until caramel has dissolved. Remove from heat and whisk in chopped chocolate until smooth. Cool fudge sauce slightly.

Purée tofu and cocoa in a food processor until smooth.

Beat soy cream cheese and remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar with an electric mixer at medium-high speed until fluffy. At low speed, beat in tofu purée, vanilla, salt, and fudge sauce until incorporated.

Pour filling into crust and bake on middle rack until top of cake is shiny but center is still slightly wobbly when pan is gently shaken, about 1 hour. Turn oven off and leave cake in oven 1 hour more.

Run a knife around top edge of cake to loosen, then cool completely in pan on rack (cake will continue to set as it cools). Chill cake, loosely covered, at least 6 hours. Remove side of pan and transfer cake to a plate. Bring to room temperature before serving if desired.

Pot Roast

With it getting colder out {or so I thought} I decided to thaw a roast.  Had I checked the weather, I would have discovered it was to be in the mid seventies all week.  Who would have thought this late in November...I would have grilled {happily} instead! MMMM burgers with a cheesy center and grilled asparagus, I can smell it now...BUT that's another blog and a different season, my friends! :) Without further ado, the recipe for my delicious roast! 

Ingredients

• 1  teaspoon  olive oil
• 1  boneless chuck roast
• 1  teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper
• 2  cups  coarsely chopped onion
• 1  cup  dry red wine
• 4  thyme sprigs
• 3  garlic cloves, chopped
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1  bay leaf
• 1 bag of baby carrots
• 3 potatoes, quartered
• Fresh thyme leaves 

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350º.

Heat olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Make cutting into roast and stuff salt, pepper, and garlic into slots.  Add roast to pan; turning to brown on all sides.  Add onion, carrots, red wine, thyme sprigs, and bay leaf to pan; bring to a simmer. Cover pan and bake at 350° for 3 hours or until the roast is tender.

The last hour add the potatoes to pan. Cover and bake an additional 1 hour or until vegetables are tender. Remove thyme sprigs and bay leaf from pan; discard. Shred meat with 2 forks. Serve roast with vegetable mixture and cooking liquid. Garnish with thyme leaves, if desired.

Pictures to come later :) xoxoxo 

Easy Chicken Noodle soup--So easy even a man can do it!

It's a cold night and you get home from work to find you left nothing out to cook.  There is not a frozen dinner or frozen pizza in your fridge--what to do? You want a hot meal but something that requires no prep time and is quick.  Soup always comes to mind with this scenario. Tonight, I was in the same situation and decided I wanted chicken noodle soup.  I have done this before but used fresh vegetables and fresh chicken.
Easy Chicken Noodle soup-- So easy even a man can do it.
1. Fill a pan 2/3 full with water
2. add bullion cubes or Better Than Broth (I prefer this) make sure you add the appropriate amount + a little extra so you get a good chicken flavor
3. add several Tyson precooked chicken breasts
4. bag of green giant frozen vegetable mix (preferably one with carrots, tomatoes, and zucchini)
5. no yolk egg noodles (slightly more than the vegetables you added)
6. Bring all of this to a slow boil, turn down heat and simmer for 15 minutes or so

I can be your Mrs. Claus!

I bought myself a present today and I cannot wait to bake Christmas cookies in this little gem! How cute will I be?! It's an apron if it is hard to tell from the picture.  Next time I have guests over, I will get some pictures wearing it, so be on the watch!

'It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas'!

I can hardly wait to start decorating and celebrating Christmas! I cheated and pulled out the decorations tonight and began to decorate. I thought I would show off the new place settings I created and my mini tree, enjoy! :)

Birthday Cupcakes

I decided in the spirit of November to make pumpkin cream cheese cupcakes for my birthday! They turned out amazing! Since I did not have time to add fondant details, I bought Hello Kitty sugar decorations and topped the cupcakes with them.

Birthday Cocktail

So my Birthday was Friday and I decided to throw a small dinner party at my apartment.  Small as in the guest list included 16 people, which dwindled to 13 people total.  I decided I was serving  2 kinds of enchilada(veggie and chicken).  I do not really like tequila (unless its a swirl margarita from Glorias), so margaritas were out. I went to the liquor store and was scanning the flavored vodka aisle when I came across cucumber/lime vodka. I decided to try and create my own martini and it worked perfect! The martinis were refreshing and not too sweet.
Recipe:
Rain Cucumber-Lime Organic Vodka
Sprite Zero
Ice
Cucumber for garnish
Directions:
Mix equal parts of vodka and sprite in a shaker with ice. Shake for a few seconds and pour into martini glass. I added thin slices of cucumber to the glasses.

Monster Pops

I wanted to make Halloween cookies and monster pops but time only allotted for one. These cute little guys were a huge hit this weekend! They were fun to make too! :)

Venison Chili Recipie

With the weather cooling down and hunting season fast approaching, I knew it was time to get cooking! Every year we have several deer processed between the 3 hunters in my family. This recipie has two types of venison but one is normally fine.

Sarah's Venison Chili

16 oz pinto beans

1 clove of garlic

1/2 chopped onion

1 pound of ground venison

1 link of venison sausage (the meat was processed using Sklenarik's Proceessing in Miles, Tx)

1 can of fire roasted tomatoes

1 tbsp of chili powder

1 tbsp of salt

1 tsp of oregano

1 tsp of paprika

1 can of water (use tomato can for measuring)

wash beans, cover, and soak overnight. (You can also use the quick soak method) put all ingredients into crock pot putting the ground beef on bottom, then sausage, beans, and seasoning. Important note, make sure that the liquid just covers the meat/beans. If you do not have enough liquid the crock pot will burn your chili.  Cook time on this recipe relies heavily on your chosen method of soaking beans. The longer you soak the less you cook. Note- always start with the crock pot on high and turn down after the first hour.