2 oz. unflavored gelatin
2 cups cold water, divided
2 egg whites
2 cups sugar
1 t vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
3 T cornstarch
Mix powdered sugar and cornstarch. Liberally coat a 9x13" pan with sugar/cornstarch mixture. Reserve remaining for later.
Place 1/2 cup cold water in a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over the top and stir to dissolve. In a medium sauce pan, combine remaining water (1 1/2 cups) and sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat and cook to 250 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and stir in gelatin mixture until dissolved.
While sugar and water are boiling, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. While mixer is running (at about medium) slowly pour in sugar mixture. Whip for about 5 minutes. Add vanilla and mix for another minute or two. Mixture should be glossy and shinny and will begin to thicken. Pour into prepared pan and cover with more powdered sugar mixture. Let rest and set-up for a minimum of 4 hours and up to overnight.
Remove marshmallow from pan and place on a cutting board. Using a pizza cutter, cut into 1" squares. Coat marshmallows in powdered sugar mixture. Store in an air tight container.
*Marshmallow can be colored with liquid food coloring. You will need to add the food coloring at the beginning of the mixing time.
**You can also make marshmallow eggs for Easter. Fill a 9x13" pan with flour. Using plastic (or real) eggs, make indentations for the mold. When marshmallow mixture is whipped, use two large spoons to spoon marshmallow into the mold. Eggs can then be chocolate covered.
I used these to make "gourmet" s'mores at a "faux campout" over the weekend. We used organic graham crackers and high quality chocolate. They were quite the hit!
We made this for a work meeting and everyone was freaking out over how good the fruit tasted, not realizing it was the yummy dressing doing it. You can also make it without the mint and it's still awesome.
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
1 3-pound cantaloupe, halved, seeded, chopped
1 12-ounce basket strawberries, hulled, halved
4 kiwis, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 1/2 cups blueberries
Whisk lime juice, honey and mint in large bowl to blend. Add all fruit to syrup in large bowl and toss. Let stand at least 15 minutes to let the fruit absorb the dressing. You can make it up to 3 hours ahead if you want, just cover and chill. Spoon fruit into cute bowls or goblets if you're feeling ambitious.
For the honey-cinnamon butter
1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons honey
1/8 teaspoons ground cinnamon
For the sweet potato pancakes
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk, plus more if necessary
2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup store-bough pancake mix
1 small pinch ground nutmeg
1 small sweet potato, broiled, peeled and mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
I made some of this coffee cake for Mom last night to see if it was like the "real thing" that she my grandmother's old Bridgeport Methodist Cookbook, we now have the recipe....it also helps that Imust have guessed right on a few of the vague instructions, like add vanilla....didn't say how much, just to add it!
So, here is the recipe for one and all....
North Texas Student Union Coffee Cake
Cake Ingredients:
4 cups flour
4 Tablespoons of Dry Milk
4 teaspoons of backing powder
1 teaspoon of salt
1 1/3 cup of sugar
12-14 Tablespoons of shortening (I used the butter shortening because I had it open)
2 eggs
2 teaspoons of vanilla (I used the real vanilla, not imitation)
1 1/2 cups of water
Topping Ingredients:
1/2 stick of butter
3/4 cup of sugar
1/4 cup of flour
1 Tablespoon of cinnamon
Combine flour, milk, baking powder, salt, and sugar.
Add shortening and cut in as you would a pie crust.
Add eggs, water, vanilla, and beat (I used my paddle attachment on my kitchen aid and barely had to mix it, just mix until it is incorporated nicely.) The mixture will be fairly thick.
Pour into a greased (I greased my glass 13X9 baking dish with butter because I was out of Pam) baking dish.
Melt butter and pour or brush it on the top. Mix the sugar, flour, and cinnamon for the topping and layer on top and pat down a little. You can top with chopped pecans if you like.
Bake for about 55 minutes until a toothpick in the middle comes out fairly clean. This puffs up pretty tall, so it take a while. My instructions said to cook for 35 minutes but I found it needed a lot more, so just keep an eye on it.
This is a great cake for breakfast or a brunch. I am sure it is good with coffee as well but I don't drink coffee so I had it with milk!
Do anyone else have leftover Easter ham? This is so easy and good.
6-8 slices of ham cut into cubes
8-10 potatoes thinly sliced (I don't even peel them but you can)
2 onions thinly sliced
1 c. grated cheese
1 can cream of mushroom soup
Put half of potatoes, ham and onion in crockpot. Add half of cheese and soup. Add remaining ham, potatoes and onions. Top with remaining cheese and soup. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours. (High 4-5 hours).
Don't be scared by this recipe. This is a great, cheap alternative to traditional tacos and lentils are definitely healthier than hamburger meat. A 1lb. bag of lentils is about $1.50 and will make 2 recipes. It's quite delish; even my Dad enjoyed these!
1 T olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 t salt
1 cup dried lentils, rinsed
1 pkg taco seasoning
2 1/2 cups vegetable broth or water
1-2 chipotle chilies in adobo sauce finely chopped (can be omitted if you don't want it too spicy)
tortillas, warmed
shredded cheese
shredded lettuce or cabbage
diced tomatoes
sliced avocado or guacamole
salsa
Heat oil in large skillet or sauce pan. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion begins to soften, 3 to 4 minutes. Add lentils and taco seasoning. Cook until spices are frgrant and lentils are dry, about 1 minute. Add broth and chipotle chilies; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are tneder, 25 to 30 minutes.
Serve with cheese, lettuce (I prefer cabbage on these), tomatoes, avocado--whatever fixings you like on your tacos.
When I make these, I 1.5 the lentil portion. It's great as leftovers and makes a fabulous lunch at work the next day. You can also make a yummy taco salad.
Here's another blog-stalked recipe. It's going on my regular meals list!
8 small flour tortillas, torn into quarters
1 Tbsp. olive oil
6 large leaves of kale, finely chopped
1 cup frozen corn
1/2 onion, chopped
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can cream of chicken soup
1/2 soup can of milk
2 cups salsa, divided
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
Saute onion and kale together with olive oil. Add corn and cook until no longer frozen. In large bowl, combine rice, beans, soup, milk, cumin and 1 cup salsa. Add kale/onion/corn mixture to bowl and mix well. Spray 9x13 pan with Pam and line with half of tortilla quarters. Spoon filling into pan and then top with remaining tortillas. Spread remaining 1 cup salsa on top {cover the entire thing - this keeps the tortillas from getting crispy while cooking} and sprinkle with shredded cheddar. Cook for 25 minutes at 375*.
I've started blog-stalking the recipe blog of a girl in my ward. She has some great, healthy meals. This one was really tasty.
2 green bell peppers, cut into strips
1 onion, cut into strips
4 oz sliced mushrooms
1 cup frozen corn
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 fajita seasoning packet + 1/4 cup water
2 cups cooked brown rice
guacamole
salsa, sour cream, and cheese if desired
Cook brown rice as directed. In a large skillet heat 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil and saute vegetables until tender crisp. Add black beans. Combine fajita seasoning mix with 1/4 cup of water. Add to cooked vegetables. Stir and cook until most of the liquid is absorbed.
Assemble however you like on the tortillas and enjoy! I think the next time I make these I might even just opt to eat them as a burrito bowl with a bit of extra rice!
I got this recipe from the Kraft website, but ended up changing a few things. It actually tastes a lot like Michelle's cavatini recipe, but wasn't as time-intensive. This is how I made it, and we both loved it. I'm definitely making it again.
3 1/2 cups uncooked wheat rotini {any pasta will really work}
1 lb. bulk sweet italian sausage
2 green peppers, cut into chunks
2 cups spaghetti sauce {plain old traditional Ragu works great}
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
Cook the pasta as directed. While that's cooking, brown sausage with green peppers on medium-high heat. Drain excess fat and then add spaghetti sauce. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until heated through. Drain pasta and then add to the skillet. Add the cheese and stir to combine. Serve with steamed veggies and garlic pull-aparts.
**Next time, I'm going to throw in a bunch of sliced mushrooms to cook with the sausage & peppers. Yum!***
I've been struggling to come up with meal plans the past few weeks and decided to update my recipe list. There are a few recipes I haven't posted here that are going into our regular rotation, so I thought I'd share the wealth!
First up? A great, light, summery meal from here.
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 T sun-dried tomato oil
1 T chopped sun-dried tomatoes
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
4 cups shredded cooked chicken
1 cup chopped tomato
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
6 (6-inch) pitas, cut in half
3 cups mixed baby greens
Combine first 5 ingredients in a large bowl. Stir in chicken, tomato, cheese, and basil. Line each pita half with 1/4 cup greens. Divide chicken mixture evenly among pita halves.
I made this for Amy's celebratory dessert on Saturday night. It was fantastic and so pretty!
a Giada recipe, ya really can't go wrong with her!
I've been using this method (scroll down), which a friend introduced to me, for a few years. It's good, but I always felt like there was something missing, and I wanted to get the ribs even more tender. I came up with this tonight, and it turned out wonderfully. It's already my husband's favorite way to have ribs!
1 rack of baby back ribs
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
Kansas City-style smokey barbecue sauce (I used a jar of Trader Joe's brand)
Rinse ribs under cold running water, and then pat dry on both sides with paper towels. Cut rack in half. Season liberally with salt and pepper all over. In a large skillet, heat approximately 2 tablespoons vegetable oil until very hot -- oil should shimmer and just begin to smoke. Brown ribs on both sides for 1-2 minutes; when done, meat will release easily from the pan. (If it sticks, your pan isn't hot enough; increase the heat and wait until the ribs release without tearing meat.)
Place browned ribs in the bottom of crock pot, meaty side down. Add enough water to achieve about a 1/2 inch depth. Whisk vinegar and honey together; add to crock pot. Cover and cook on high for approx. 3 hours or on low for 6 hours. (I actually did mine for two hours on high and then two hours on low.)
Preheat oven to broil. Place ribs meaty side down on a wire rack inside a shallow baking dish (for easier cleanup, line dish with foil.) Slather top with barbecue sauce and broil about 4-5 inches from heat for 3-4 minutes. Flip ribs and repeat on meaty side.
4 ½ cup cooked black beans (3 - 15oz cans)
I got this recipe from my mother, and we love it. Everyone I know who's ever tried it loves it.
Dough:
4 1/4 cups all-purpose flour (more or less as needed)
1 package (2 1/4 teaspoons) quick-acting active dry yeast
1 1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract*
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 eggs
Filling:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 teaspoons cinnamon
Glaze:
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon clear vanilla extract*
4 teaspoons milk (more as needed)
In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups flour and yeast. Heat milk , vanilla, sugar, butter, salt, and cinnamon until just warm and butter is just beginning to melt (approx 110*-115*F), stirring constantly. Add milk mixture to flour and stir. Add eggs and beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scraping sides of bowl constantly. Beat on high speed for 3 minutes.
Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can (dough will be soft). Knead in enough flour to make a moderately soft dough (approx.3-5 minutes). Shape into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl, turning once to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Punch dough down. On a lightly floured surface, divide dough in half. Shape each half into a smooth ball and then cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
Roll each half into a 12x8" rectangle. Spread each with 3 tablespoons of the softened butter. Combine brown sugar and cinnamon; sprinkle half over each rectangle. Roll up from the short side. Seal edges; using a sharp, serrated knife, slice each roll into 8 pieces. Arrange slices evenly in a greased 13x9" baking pan. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350*F for 25-30 minutes until browned. Invert at once onto a wire rack and then invert again. Cool slightly.
Whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk, adding more milk as necessary to reach desired consistency. Drizzle over rolls.
*The point of the clear vanilla is, obviously, color. If you don't have clear, I'm sure regular vanilla extract would work just as well.
Dip chunks of pork (or chicken) in egg, then in a mixture of 1c. flour and 1 tsp. baking powder. Cook in oil.
Add:
2 c Ketchup
1/4 c vinegar
3/4 c sugar
chopped onion
2 chopped green peppers
1 can pineapple tidbits w/ juice
Steam until vegetables are tender. In needed thicken with cornstarch (I never do). Serve over rice.
*I never do the egg, flour step. I just brown the meat in oil. It saves a little time, and still is REALLY good!
