Cute Chick Deviled Eggs for Spring

It's been a long, long time since I last posted.  I had to really get down to work, but I have FINALLY finished my thesis.  Yay!  Now I'm excited to have some free time to do some crafts, gardening, and of course, cooking.

Today's post was made and photographed by my Mom.  Every year, for as long as I can remember, we have deviled eggs that look like chicks in colored shells for Easter.  They are one of our favorite food traditions. These eggs can be a bit tedious to make if you are making a big batch, but they are so cute it is totally worth it.  Bring these to a picnic this spring and be prepared for everyone to go go nuts.

•eggs, hard-boiled and peeled

•mayo
•yellow mustard
•salt and pepper
•food coloring
•1 carrot, cut into tiny matchsticks, for the beaks
•several black olives, cut into tiny pieces for the eyes

Set out several bowls or ziploc bags.  Add some water to each bag and tint with food coloring to the desired shades.  Place several hard-boiled eggs in each container and set aside until the desired color is achieved.  Remove eggs from the dye and set aside on paper towels to dry.

Cut a small slice from both ends of each egg.  Set aside.  These will be the "hats" of the chicks.  Cut each egg in half with a zig-zag cut.

Remove the yolks from the eggs and mash with the mayo, mustard, salt, and pepper, to taste.  Or make the filling according to your usual deviled egg recipe.

Pipe the filling into each egg half.  Add carrots and olives for the beaks and eyes.  Top with the "hats".

Batch Cooking Series: Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

I am totally psyched about that picture.  Last weekend Wade and I were cleaning the house and getting rid of a bunch of stuff that was just taking up space in the spare room when I found the old desk lamp that we haven't used since we moved.  Instead of putting it in the donate pile I moved it into the kitchen to try out some food pictures.  Hopefully my pictures will be looking a lot better from here on out.

Cabbage rolls are such a simple food, hearty comfort food.  While discussing family recipes the other day Wade mentioned that his Grandmother always used to make homemade cabbage rolls.  My Mom used to make cabbage rolls too and I just loved to eat them during the winter.  When a cold front moved in over the weekend we decided to stay in and do some serious marathon cooking and cabbage rolls were at the top of the list.  We had one pan for dinner and froze the other to pull out in a few months when time is tight in the evening.  I got some of that new(ish) Glad Ovenware, so I'm looking forward to  seeing how that works out.  It is so convenient, especially since we don't have many casserole dishes.

•2 pounds ground beef
•1 large onion, chopped
•3 cups cooked rice
•Salt and Pepper
•1/4 cup lemon juice
•2 28 oz. cans tomato sauce (or 1 28 oz. can tomato sauce and 2 pints diced tomatoes, pureed)
•1 large head cabbage, left whole

Preheat oven to 350.

Bring about an inch of water to a boil in a large pot.  Add the whole head of cabbage.  Cover and steam for about 5 minutes.  Remove and peel off the soft outer layers of cabbage, cutting away from the base with a small knife.

Repeat until all of the large leaves of cabbage have been removed.  Chop remaining cabbage into small pieces.

Mix the ground beef, onion, chopped cabbage, cooked rice, salt, and pepper together in a large bowl.  you may have to mix this together with your hands a bit to get it all combined.

Lay out one leaf of cabbage on a cutting board.  Add about a tennis ball sized ball of beef mixture to the base of the leaf.

Fold the bottom up over the meat mixture.  Fold the sides in and roll up to form a small bundle.  Place in a greased baking pan and repeat with the remaining meat and cabbage.

Mix the tomato sauce and lemon juice together and pour over the cabbage rolls.  Bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until the meat mixture is cooked all the way through.

Batch Cooking: Meatballs

After a several month hiatus I'm back working again.  Now that Wade and I are both out of the house everyday before nine and we don't get home until nearly seven each night we need to work on streamlining our evening meal planning and making freezer dinners.

For the next week or two I'll be working on some batch cooking favorites to restock the downstairs freezer.  Many of these dishes are things that my family has been making and freezing for years, but I'll also be including some of my own recipes as well.

My older sister, Lisa, has always made some of the best meatballs around.  I don't know where she originally got the recipe, but I love having a few bags of these in the freezer for when we need to get dinner on the table fast. Of course spaghetti and meatballs is an easy go to dish, but these work great with either marinara or barbecue sauce in sandwiches, pastas, soups, or even casseroles.

•3 pounds ground beef
•2 medium onions, chopped
•2 eggs
•2 Tablespoons parsley
•1 teaspoon oregano
•1 1/2 cup dry breadcrumbs
•1 cup milk
•1 scant Tablespoon salt
•1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl.  Make sure that there are no dry parts.  Using wet hands, shape mixture into 1 1/2 inch balls.  I like to use an ice cream scoop to measure the meat mixture out so that everything is a uniform size.

 

Place in a lightly greased baking pan with shallow sides.  Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.  Cool and freeze in freezer bags or containers.

Christmas Cavatini

I know that most families have their big Christmas celebration on Christmas Day.  My family is a bit different because we have always had our big celebration on Christmas Eve.  Everyone gathers at my Mom and Dad's house and we have dinner, open presents, play with the kids, and have hot coco and Christmas cookies.  We also hide a pickle ornament on the tree and have a contest to see who can find it.  Believe me, it's odd to explain that one to people who have never heard of the tradition before.  My Dad and I also have to watch It's a Wonderful Life at some point during Christmas, whether it be before bed on Christmas Eve or in the afternoon on Christmas.  On Christmas Day we laze around, have brunch with Grandma, and eventually we make it over to my sister's house to celebrate with her family and her in-laws.

My family always makes one of two dishes for Christmas Eve dinner: fondue or cavatini.  Cavatini is my personal favorite, and since this year is a fondue year I thought I'd share our recipe with you. The family has been making this casserole forever and ever.  Well, for at least 20 years or so that I can recall. So, I'm not sure how we originally came by the recipe. We will occasionally make cavatini other times of the year too as it is a great dish to feed a crowd or freeze for later.

•1 lb. ground beef
•1 small onion, chopped
•1 green pepper, chopped
•8 oz. can mushrooms, drained
•32 oz. of your favorite spaghetti sauce
•8 oz. tomato juice
•1 teaspoon oregano
•6 oz. sliced pepperoni
•1 1/2 cups corkscrew pasta
•1 1/2 cups wagon wheel pasta
•16 oz. Mozzarella cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350.

Cook the pasta until al dente.  Drain, but do not rinse.  Meanwhile, brown the ground beef, onion and green pepper together in a Dutch oven until the beef is cooked through.  Drain, if necessary.  Mix in the cooked pasta, mushrooms, spaghetti sauce, tomato juice, oregano, and pepperoni.  Spread into a 9x13 baking dish.  Bake for 20 minutes, stir, and then bake for another 20 minutes.  Cover with cheese and bake for another 5-10 minutes, or until cheese is browned and bubbly.  Serve with salad and garlic bread or breadsticks.

What are some of your Christmas traditions and foods?

Photo Credit:  http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Christmas_g54-Golden_Christmas_Card_p49185.html

Simple Food: Spicy Potato Soup

Soup is good food.  I like fancy soups with lots of vegetables, wild rice, maybe a swirl of cream fraiche on top, but sometimes the simplest soups are the most satisfying.  My family has been making this potato soup for years now.  It is great winter comfort food.

This soup has very few spices, so it gets its flavors from beef, onion, potato, and tomato.  If it is cooked too quickly the flavors will not have sufficient time to blend.  A slow simmer on the stovetop for an hour or so will result in the best flavor because the ingredients will blend together nicely.  And it makes for some amazing leftovers.

•1 pound ground beef
•1 onion, chopped
•Salt and pepper, to taste
•1 29 oz can tomato sauce
•4 cups water
•4 cups peeled and diced potatoes
•1 teaspoon- 1 Tablespoon hot sauce of your choice plus more to pass at the table

Brown the ground beef, onion, and salt and pepper in a dutch oven over medium heat.  Drain, if necessary.  Add the remaining ingredients.  Bring up to a slow boil.  Reduce heat.  Simmer over medium low heat for about an hour to an hour and a half, or until potatoes are very tender.  Serve with a green salad and crusty bread, or crackers.

 

Another Family Favorite: Schnitzel

Schnitzel was a well loved dish in our household growing up.  I remember having it for Christmas Eve several times.  Tonight I got a craving for schnitzel and decided to make it for the first time.  


•4 boneless pork chops, pounded very thin
•Flour, to dredge pork chops
•2 eggs, beaten
•1- 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
•Salt and pepper to taste
•1 teaspoon paprika
•Vegetable oil, for frying
•2 cups sour cream
•Scant Tablespoon dill seeds
•Additional paprika, if desired


Mix the bread crumbs, salt, pepper, and paprika together on a shallow plate.  Place the flour and eggs on separate plates.  Heat about 1/2 inch of oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Dredge the pork chops in the flour, then the eggs, and then the bread crumbs.  

Fry the pork chops in the oil, about 4 minutes on each side, until well browned and cooked all the way through.

Remove schnitzel to a dish lined with paper towels.  Keep warm in the oven.  Drain off almost all of the oil, leaving about a tablespoon in the pan.  Turn the heat down to medium low.  Add the sour cream, dill seeds, and additional paprika, if desired.  Cook and stir until heated through.  Serve the sauce on top of the schnitzel.

We ate our schnitzel with mashed potatoes and brussels sprouts.

Two Family Recipes for a Housewarming Party

After several month of work Wade and I were finally ready to have our housewarming party.  Everybody came over in the afternoon and enjoyed three different kinds of sangria (made by my Mom) and several different appetizers.  We had Reuben spreadwith pumpernickel toasts, shrimp spread with crackers, brownies, tortilla roll-ups, and little smokies with barbecue sauce.  I'm not sure where the recipes for the shrimp spread and tortilla roll-ups came from originally, but my family has been making them for get-togethers forever.  Wade absolutely loves the shrimp spread, so I usually make it every couple months for when we just do a snacks-for-supper night and watch movies.

Shrimp Spread

•8 oz cream cheese, softened

•1/2 cup sour cream

•1/4 cup mayo or miracle whip

•1 cup cocktail sauce

•2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

•2 4.5 oz. cans cocktail shrimp, drained

•3 green onions, sliced

•1 or 2 finely chopped tomatoes (I used yellow tomatoes)

Beat cream cheese, sour cream, and mayo or miracle whip together until smooth.  Spread into the bottom of a pie dish or a 12" platter.  Layer the remaining ingredients in the order given.  Cover and chill until serving time.  Serve with crackers.

Tortilla Roll-ups

•8 oz. cream cheese, softened

•1 small onion, chopped

•small can (4 oz.) green chilies, undrained

•small can (4 oz.)of chopped black olives, undrained

•Several flour tortillas

Combine the cream cheese, onion, green chilies, and olives in a medium sized mixing bowl.  Spread 1/4" thick on tortillas.  Roll up tightly.  Cover loosely and refrigerate for several hours.  Cut into 1/2" slices and serve.