I tripped over one of my dogs and broke my foot in two places. I’m not supposed to do anything until I see an orthopedist which might take awhile…so I’m just hanging out going crazy! I’m in a splint for now. Will keep you updated! And that’s the culprit in the picture 🙂
I’m sorry I have been gone from my blog for awhile. My Mom passed away so not only was food the last thing on my mind but we all traveled up to upstate NY for her funeral. We got back yesterday.
It’s going to take me a couple of weeks to get back into cooking and thinking about food and I’ll be back to posting then.
Happy Cooking!
This is a very easy “recipe” if you want to make your own food for hummers. Don’t use any food coloring to turn it red ~ they don’t need it and it’s really not good for the birds (at least that’s what I have been told by birders).
I put my feeders out late on Saturday and the hummers were feeding by Sunday morning.
The pictures are of my feeders!
DIY Hummingbird Solution
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups water
Mix sugar into water in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. Take off the heat and set aside until completely cool. Fill feeders. If there is any left store in the refrigerator and use within a week.
I always double this recipe for 2 feeders and I never have any leftover.
Source: Food.com
Happy Cooking!
We LOVE frittatas. They are a perfect dish to make when I don’t feel like cooking much. This recipe comes from the Pioneer Woman.
This frittata was super easy to make and you can use whatever veggies you happen to have hanging around or need to get rid of. I added mushrooms and left out the olives and spinach instead of kale.
Easy Frittata ~ PW Style
12 large eggs
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cups grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese ~ use more if you like
2-3 dashes of hot sauce
3 tbsps butter
1/2 onion, sliced thin
1 baked potato, cooled and diced
2 cups fresh baby spinach or kale leaves
2 whole roasted red peppers from a jar, thinly sliced
8 ozs mushrooms, cleaned and thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped black olives
Preheat your oven to 375º.
Whisk the eggs together with the salt and pepper. Stir in the cheese and hot sauce. Set aside.
In an oven proof skillet, melt the butter. Add the onions and saute until soft and golden. Add mushrooms and saute until soft. Add potato and saute with the onion and mushrooms for a few minutes. Add the spinach and continue sauteing. Finally, add the red peppers and olives and continue cooking until all ingredients are hot.
Pour in the eggs tilting pan carefully until all ingredients are coated. Let it sit on the burner for a few seconds until the edges begin to cook. Put the skillet in the oven for about 15 minutes or until the eggs are well cooked and frittata is beginning to brown. Mine took about 20 to get the eggs cooked they way we like them.
Slide onto a cutting board or platter and cut into wedges.
Makes 8 servings.
Source: Easy Frittata ~ PW Style
Happy Cooking!
This recipe intrigued me. It really is nothing like enchiladas except in the taste ~ and the taste is fantastic!
I found a couple of recipes for this dish and both were just a little different from the other but this particular recipe is the one I chose. I did add a can of black beans just because I like them. I did make my own enchilada sauce ~ recipe HERE!
The recipe used up the entire jar of sauce I made so I remade it the next day so I could add some when I reheated it so the casserole wouldn’t totally dry out. If you would prefer to use beef, I think it would work.
Chicken Enchilada Pasta Bake
1 lb penne pasta, cooked and drained
1 tbsp olive oil
1 whole red onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
2 cups cooked, chopped chicken
1 (8 oz) can petite diced tomatoes with chilis
1 pkg taco seasoning or use your own taco mix ~ I used HOT
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
salt and pepper to taste
2 can red enchilada sauce ~ or use THIS RECIPE
2 cups shredded cheddar/monterey jack cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions, for garnish
optional toppings like avocado, fresh, chopped tomatoes, sour cream, tortilla chips
etc.
Preheat oven to 350º.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Saute the onions and peppers until soft. Add the chopped chicken, can of tomatoes, salt and pepper, black beans, and taco seasoning and heat through. Add in 1 cup of the enchilada sauce and 1 cup of the cheese and mix. Remove from heat and add in all the penne and mix thoroughly.
Spread 1/2 cup of the enchilada sauce over the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Spoon the pasta mixture over the top of the sauce. Pour the remaining sauce over the top and bake, covered, for 30 minutes.
Remove from oven and remove cover. Top with remaining 1 cup of cheese and return to oven, uncovered, to bake for another 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.
Top with your favorite toppings.
Makes 6 servings.
Source: Tasty Kitchen
Happy Cooking!
I came across an enchilada pasta bake a few weeks ago on pinterest and along with that recipe was a recipe for enchilada sauce. The ingredients were some that I already had in my pantry so I gave it a shot. Anything is better than the stuff in the can. It was so easy to make and tasted fantastic! I used it all for my pasta bake and then I made it again when I reheated the pasta bake to add into the casserole so it wouldn’t dry out.
With Cinco de Mayo coming up, give this a try if you are making enchiladas. It’s fantastic!
Red Enchilada Sauce
2 tbsps canola oil
2 tbsps flour
4 tbsps chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp oregano
2 cups chicken broth
In a small saucepan, heat the canola oil over medium-high heat. Add the flour and stir over the heat for one minute.
Stir in all the rest of the spices. Gradually add the broth and whisk constantly.
Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until thick.
Use immediately or store in a container in the refrigerator for no longer than 2 weeks.
Makes 2 cups.
Source: Gimme Some Oven
Happy Cooking!
I love these cookies! The dried cherries give the cookies a really nice tang. I didn’t freeze mine but I don’t see why they wouldn’t freeze well.
Cherry, Chocolate Chip, Oatmeal Cookies
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsps vanilla
2 cups dried cherries
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350º.
In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and oatmeal. Set aside.
Cream the butter, brown sugar, and sugar in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well. Add the flour/oatmeal mixture and mix well.
Stir in the dried cherries and chocolate chips until well distributed throughout the dough.
Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown.
Cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Makes 3 dozen.
Source: Seaboard to Sideboard Entertains
Happy Cooking!
This bruschetta is one of the two that I made for our daughter’s birthday party. The other one that I made is already posted here ~ Spectacular Bruschetta.
This particular recipe was very easy to make. The bread is toasted before adding the topping so when it goes back in the oven to melt the cheese, it is only for a couple of minutes. I doubled (or maybe tripled?) the ingredients for the party.
I found this recipe in an ad in a magazine. I don’t remember what the ad was for…maybe olive oil?
Mushroom, Onion, and Fontina Bruschetta
1/4 sweet onion, sliced thin
4 ozs mushrooms, sliced ~ I used cremini mushrooms for more flavor
1/2 cup shredded Fontina cheese
salt and pepper to taste
a couple of inches of thyme
2-3 tbsps of olive oil
Toasted thin slices of baguette
Heat oven to 350º. Toast the slices of baguette on a cookie sheet for a couple of minutes.
In a skillet, add the olive oil and bring up to a medium heat. Add the onions and saute until they are soft and a light golden color. Add the mushrooms and stir in the salt, pepper, and thyme and saute on low heat for about 10 minutes or until mushrooms are browned.
Lay out the toasted slices of baguette and top each slice with some of the mushroom/onion mixture ~ about 1 tbsp per slice. Add a sprinkle of cheese to the top of each and toast in the oven at 350º for a couple of minutes until the cheese melts making sure they do not burn.
Makes 6-8 servings.
Happy Cooking!
This is the asparagus recipe I made for the pasta party. I actually remade it last night since I didn’t get a picture at the party and it is so good that I had to post it. I made 1/2 of the recipe in this picture. For the party, I used 2 big bunches of asparagus. I don’t think there was any left at the end of the night.
This recipe would be great for Easter or any holiday.
Tuscan Asparagus
1 1/2 lbs fresh asparagus, trimmed
1 1/2 cups grape or small cherry tomatoes, cut in half
3 tbsps pine nuts ~ I left off
3 tbsps olive oil, divided
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp grated lemon peel
Preheat oven to 400º.
Line a 15×10 baking sheet with foil. Place the asparagus and tomato halves and pine nuts on the foil-lined baking sheet.
Mix 2 tbsps olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper and pour over asparagus and carefully mix to coat all the vegetables.
Bake 15-20 minutes or until asparagus is tender. Drizzle with remaining tbsp of olive oil and lemon juice. Sprinkle Parmesan and lemon peel over the top. Carefully toss to combine.
Makes 8 servings.
This recipe is part of Pasta Bar Birthday Party.
Source: Tuscan Asparagus
Happy Cooking!
Using Leftovers as Startovers to Create New Meals
From Scratch Cooking Made Easy
curating a seventeenth century english manor house in twenty-first century virginia
"The thing about eating the Black and White cookie, Elaine, is you want to get some black and some white in each bite. Nothing mixes better than vanilla and chocolate And yet somehow racial harmony eludes us. If people would only look to the cookie all our problems would be solved." - Jerry to Elaine (Seinfeld, Season 5, The Dinner Party)
A Recipe A Day 