Tribute to Julia....

Some of my fellow bloggers decided to do a tribute to Julia by making some of her recipes. My weekend was a bit hectic so I am just showing a link to my previous Julia post on my blog a few months ago. You can see the very delicious Supremes de Volaille aux Champignons HERE..

You can catch my other Sweet & Savory friends at their blogs listed below... all have done an outstanding job. Best of all Carol didn't have the fire department showing up!!!

Debbie @ Mountains Breath, Sage Butter Cakes

Susan @ Savoring Time in the Kitchen, Profiteroles with Ice Cream and Chocolate Sauce

Marsha @ Marsha's Kitchen, Supremes de Volaille a Brun

Jayne @ A Grain of Salt, Herb Biscuits

Suzy @ Kitchen Bouquet, Soupe Aux Choux - Garbure

Carol @ There's Always Thyme to Cook - Beef Bourguignon and Cinnamon Toast Flan

Cynthia & Kathleen may have had the same kind of weekend I had..we'll wait and see!!

FLASHBACK FRIDAY - PUMPKIN ROLL

Just a very quick post to join Suzy at Kitchen Bouquet with her "Flashback Friday" Check out her post and the links to other flashbacks!!


I made this pumpkin roll last year for the first time - you can get the recipe at All Recipes... An easy and delicious recipe..the family loved it.. I think I ended up making it about three times last year.




Have to share my sisters', Laurie, front door decorated for Halloween..I wonder if the kids will think twice before they knock on the door tomorrow night.....




HAVE A HAPPY HALLOWEEN !!!

Mosaic Monday - Halloween....

With Halloween less than a week away it was time to get in the "mood".

The copper jack o' lantern was a gift from a dear friend, Diane.

Love painted pumpkins, wish I could lay claim for this one.

Halloween just isn't Halloween without a black cat... Louis is practicing his most sinister look!

Do you think the rust colored pot is big enough to hold the candy for the little ones????

Have a safe and Happy Halloween...


I'm linking this post for Mosaic Monday, joining Mary at the Little Red House. Be sure to check out her blog to links for some fantastic mosaics!

Mosaic Monday - I Was Adopted!

It finally happened… instead of me adopting a stray cat, the stray adopted me! Earlier this summer a scrawny young tomcat decided to hang out at my back door. My two cats absolutely hated this intruder with a passion and hissed mercifully at him. Bailey, my cocker, was totally indifferent. He probably thought just another standoffish feline to put up with.

It’s my own fault – I’m an incurable softie when it comes to animals so, of course, I fed him. I know, I know… Big mistake! Earlier this fall he disappeared for two weeks and I thought he had found himself another family or he came to some demise I didn’t want to know about. As it turned out, a neighbor had trapped him and took him out to a family in the country eight miles away.

It took him two weeks – but he made his way back to my back door! I knew dogs would find their way back home but I never realized cats would do the same thing. I finally realized it was inevitable that I would just have to take care of him and try to find him a home. BUT, he would have to remain an outdoor cat! Knowing I had to do the right thing... Off to the to the vet he went to be neutered, wormed and given his shots. An expense I hadn’t planned on but figured it would help in finding him a good home.

Currently he is residing in my garage. I made him a little bed and put out a litter box to train him to be a gentleman. He’s at the door bright and early every morning to be fed and lounges on the deck for the rest of the day. He is a little sweetie, very friendly. Loves to wrap himself in and around my feet..so if I turn up falling you will all know the reason!

Thinking he looked like he was wearing a tuxedo the first time I saw him with all the black and white fur, I would like to introduce all of you to TUX!! (Sorry Kathleen - you know if it been a sweet little female I would have given you the honor...lol)

It’s amazing when I tell people his name they give a little chuckle. Finally dawned on me there are evidently many people out in the world with hemorrhoid problems!! When I named him Tux I was not thinking of TUCKS! But then, on the other hand, he did turn out to be a little pain in the a$$ !


I'm linking this post for Mosaic Monday, joining Mary at the Little Red House. Be sure to check out her blog to links for some fantastic mosaics!

Flashback Friday - Chicken Pot Pie

Just a very quick post to join Suzy at Kitchen Bouquet with her "Flashback Friday" Check out her post and the links to other flashbacks!!




This was actually the very first chicken pot pie I ever made one year ago - the photo was taken on Oct 18, 2008!! I only remembered it after I saw Mary's post on One Perfect Bite showing us her chicken pot pie! After reading her recipe I won't even bother posting mine! There are so many out on the net but I'm anxious to try Mary's... especially since it is "tried and true".

Time to think about warm, homey, filling meals for the cold months ahead. The chicken pot pie is one that is hard to beat when you think of the ultimate 'comfort food'.

Get your chickie dishes out and cook up a storm!!!

COCONUT CRUSTED CHICKEN

Swiped this recipe from Jonna at “Get Off Your Butt and Bake”, a great blog for some super recipes!

I've always loved coconut on chicken and especially shrimp! Since some of my family doesn't care for the sweet concoction I halved the recipe, instead of the coconut I just added some panko bread crumbs. They used a Ranch dressing dip and I used a sweet orange marmalade!

My “strips” were somewhat larger than Jonna’s which is just a personal choice and to be perfectly honest a lazy choice so I didn’t have to cook as many!

I added some baked potato chunks made from the Lipton Dry Onion soup box...my family loves these as an addition to any meal.



Definitely satisfies my craving for anything coconut crusted!

Butternut Squash Bisque

My sister called the other day to ask if I wanted any squash or pumpkins since they had a bumper crop. I had already purchased a butternut squash to try this recipe I had found at All-Recipes for Butternut Squash Bisque.

Followed the recipe to the tee and after reading the reviews I roasted the squash beforehand for 35 minutes at 375 degrees. It made it much easier to trim off the outside skin and cube rather than trying to do it raw. I also used an immersion blender instead of the food proceesor to blend the soup - it worked beautifully.



Lately on these cold days I have been yearning for good filling soups rather than cooking an entire meal. This qualifies as a very thick, creamy soup that satisfies any type of hunger pain! The texture is different from a tomato, cheese and broccoli or even potato soup. It’s a little coarser, but after the second spoonful you don’t even notice. The flavor of the squash, nutmeg and the splash of whipping cream at the very end melds everything together to make a very hearty meal. I topped mine with homemade garlic croutons which I get from a friend of mine in town… they are the best!



Now I need to call my sister to let her know I will take some squash and a few pumpkins to maybe decorate for Halloween!

An Apple a day....

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away, but if the doctor's cute then forget the fruit!"



Seems there has been an over abundance of apples this fall. I’ve been offered so many apples I’m trying to find new recipes to showcase them. One that truly caught my eye was one from Taste of Home for Crunchy Apple Cake. Ok,Ok, what REALLY caught my eye was of course the apple but primarily the butterscotch/caramel sauce that accompanied it!



The batter is very thick and you think there is just not enough moisture in the batter. In reading the reviews the proverbial light bulb went off and saw that the moisture from the apples will keep the cake moist! As you can see below the chunks of apples poke through the batter and believe me you learn patience when you have to wait the 30 minutes for the cake to cool!



Highly recommend this recipe, but do take the time to read the reviews. Decide on your own personal taste as to the amounts of cinnamon and nutmeg you and your family like. I used the amounts shown in the recipe and was not disappointed.



Also, Thanks to Marsha from Marsha’s Kitchen for turning me on to these great plates last summer… the apple theme ones are perfect for this dessert!



I haven’t participated in Mosaic Monday for a long time so I’m jumping back in to join Mary at the Little Red House. Check out her blog to links for some fantastic mosaics!

Martha's Madelines ....

I've wanted to try these delicate little beauties for a long time, and now that I've accomplished the feat, I will be making them many more times in all differemt flavors!

After researching literally dozens of recipes and reading all the reviews I decided on using Martha's! Get the recipe for Martha's Madelines HERE!






In reading comments from various bakers I was surprised that quite a few said the madelines have a tendency to be a dry cookie perfect for "dunking". This recipe turned out very moist and not dry in any sense of the word. (Which I was extrememly grateful)

The madelines were the "mini" variety. That way I didn't feel so guilty when I popped four of them right in a row!!! I picked up this cute little madeline pan at a restaurant supply store...



As anyone who has made these cookies before know one of the "musts" is to keep your pan buttered and floured in between each batch. I was amazed how easily they popped out of the pan. I used a 3/8 oz scoop or size 100 disher depending on what you call the untensil! It was the perfect amount for the mini pan... you do not want to overfill the well of the pan. Showing my lack of experience in making these I first thought I needed to spread the dough to fit the shape. Thankfully I only did that to the first three scoops I put in the pan. All you need to do is place the scoop of batter in the middle of the well and gravity takes over while it bakes.



The recipe calls for lemon zest which I used, however the next time I am going to use some citrus oils I purchased about a month ago to bring different flavors to the cookie...




All in all I was very pleased with the outcome and to quote Marsha from Marsha's Kitchen it was a "THUMBS UP"



Other flavors that I want to try are a cinnamon, chocolate and even a pina colada that I found on the Food Network site!! This little pan has unleased a monster....

FLASHBACK FRIDAY - Lemon Berry Cake

I'm way overdue in participating in Flashback Friday with Suzy at Kitchen Bouquet, my apologies dear friend! Make sure you check out Suzy's blog and link to other "Flashbacks"!




My flashback was a creation by Debbie at Mountain Breaths, Lemon Berry Cake with Mascarpone Filling. Debbie recreated this cake after she enjoyed it at a restaurant,it does taste delicious and is a nice change from the old stand-by cakes we make in a pinch. I used raspberries and blueberries in my version. Thanks Debbie for sharing this wonderful recipe!!

Lemon Berry Cake with Mascarpone Filling
by Debbie

Two Layer Cake:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 pound (1 stick) salted butter
1/4 cup finely minced lemon zest
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream


Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8" round baking pans and set aside. Prepare crumb topping and set aside.

Cake instructions:
Sift together flour, baking powder and baking soda, and set aside.

With a mixer, cream butter and lemon zest until the butter is soft. Add the sugar and beat to mix well. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition until thoroughly incorporated. Scrape down the bowl as needed. On low speed, add the dry ingredients in three batches alternately with the sour cream in two batches, beating only until incorporated after each addition. Scrape batter into buttered pans and smooth the top. Sprinkle each cake batter with crumb topping and mixed berries (I used a mixture of blackberries, blueberries, strawberries and raspberries). Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean and dry. Baking time may vary with different ovens and types of pans.

Once cake has cooled, remove from pans. (Once cool, I wrapped each layer individually in foil and kept refrigerated until I was ready to use)

Prepare the mascarpone cream filling:
12-ounces mascarpone cheese, cold
1/4 cup light cream (half & half)
4 tbsp powdered sugar, or to taste

Beat all ingredients together with a whisk until soft peaks form. If you want to make the filling sweeter, then add a bit more sugar. You might have to add a little more cream to keep the filling from getting too stiff.
.
For the crumb topping:
1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
grated zest of 1 lemon
8 Tbs. (1 stick) of butter, melted

Mix together until it looks like little peas.

Debbie's notes:

I used a bag of frozen mixed berries. It gives it a great flavor to
include all four berries.

This dessert is served cold, and keeps well in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Optional: You can drizzle some raspberry sauce on the plate, or sprinkle with confectioners sugar