Tag Archives: quick

Crock Pot Cooking: Dessert

Posted by Alaina in Crock Pot and tagged with , , , , , , ,

I love my slow cookers (yes, I have two). One of my goals has been to make sure and put dinner in the crock pot at least once a week when I work. The wonderful food fills the house with delicious smells while slowly cooking to perfection. It takes little effort and generally yields great results. Planning ahead also means saving time in the evening and means less temptation to order out thus saving money. We’ve enjoyed various soups, chicken, and roasts.

Yesterday, I used my crock pots for Sunday dinner. It made for a very nice but easy dinner. I decided on a Chicken Rice Soup for the main dish since I had left over chicken already on hand. It was quite good with a basmati/wild rice mix in it. 

When we got home from church, I quickly made pretzel shaped rolls (from my pizza dough recipe) and a salad to accompany it. 

But I also decided to try making a dessert…Hot Fudge Cake to be exact. I saw the recipe in Fix It & Forget It Lightly and was intrigued. This deliciously moist pudding cake creastes it’s own hot fudge sauce underneath. I served it warm with fresh whipped cream but vanilla ice cream would also be good. I decided that some fresh raspberries or a raspberry puree would have made it just about perfect. It was very easy and took a little under two hours on high until it was done. So, it you want a yummy, fudgey, easy dessert, you should definitely give this rich cake a try. If I were to make it again, I would reduce the amount of sugar – it’s quite a lot. But for an occasional dessert treat, I was willing to overlook that. :)

SLOW COOKER HOT FUDGE CAKE
Fix It & Forget It Lightly
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1 ¾ c. brown sugar, divided
1 c. flour
3 Tb. plus ¼ c. cocoa powder, divided
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
½ c. milk
2 Tb. butter, melted
½ tsp. vanilla
1 ¾ c. boiling water

In a mixing bowl, mix together 1 c. brown sugar, flour, 3 Tb. cocoa powder, baking powder, & salt

Stir in milk, butter, and vanilla.

Pour into slow cooker sprayed with non-stick spray.

In a separate bowl, combine ¾ c. brown sugar and ¼ c. cocoa powder. Sprinkle over batter in the slow cooker. Do not stir.

Pour boiling water over mixture. Do not stir.

Cover. Cook on high 1 ½ – 1 ¾ hours, or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.

Weekend Fare: Waffles & Syrup

Posted by Alaina in Weekend Fare and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

These delicious waffles and warm, buttery, rich, homemade syrup make for a wonderful Christmas breakfast or brunch or even just a lazy winter morning treat. We picked up our Belgian waffle maker on a black Friday sale for $10 and it’s awesome! This recipe made not quite enough for my hungry crew. :) I would probably make half again more.

BELGIAN WAFFLES - adapted from allrecipes.com
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4 egg yolks
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. buttermilk
1/2 c. butter, melted
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tb. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 Tb. white sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
4 egg whites

Preheat your waffle iron.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, vanilla, buttermilk and butter until well blended. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, salt and cinnamon; stir into the buttermilk mixture. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff. Fold into the batter.

Spoon batter onto the hot waffle iron, close, and cook until golden brown. Waffles are usually done when the steam subsides.

BUTTERMILK SYRUP - allrecipes.com

1/2 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. buttermilk
1 Tb. vanilla extract
1 Tb. corn syrup
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. baking soda

Bring butter, sugar, buttermilk, vanilla extract, corn syrup, and cinnamon to a simmer in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Once simmering, whisk in baking soda, and cook for 10 seconds before removing from heat. Serve warm.

Holiday Treats: Fudge

Posted by Alaina in Holidays and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

Peanut butter fudge is a traditional confection for me – my grandma made it every year and we loved it. But I was disappointed the last time I made peanut butter fudge – it just didn’t have that creamy texture and peanut flavor so I decided to try again with a new recipe. This one was a hit! It is from Alton Brown and seriously was so easy! It will definitely make my yearly “to make” list.

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE - Food Network, Alton Brown
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1 cup butter, plus more for greasing pan
1 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pound powdered sugar

Microwave butter and peanut butter for 2 minutes on high. Stir and microwave on high for 2 more minutes. Add vanilla and powdered sugar to peanut butter mixture and stir to combine with a wooden spoon.

Pour into a buttered 8 by 8-inch pan lined with waxed paper. Place a second piece of waxed paper on the surface of the fudge and refrigerate until cool. Cut into 1-inch pieces and store in an airtight container for up to a week.

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It also seemed time to try a new fudge recipe. While I like my old one, it makes a huge 9×13 and sometimes just doesn’t come out as creamy as I would like. So, I read more fudge recipes than you can count and finally settled on one. It did not disappoint – it was very good and I plan to make another batch before the end of the year. I skipped the nuts and just kept the rich, chocolatey flavor all on it’s own. I’m certain you could mix kinds of chocolate or change it to whatever suits your taste!

CHOCOLATE FUDGE - adapted slightly from allrecipes.com
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3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1/8 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

In heavy saucepan, over low heat, melt chocolate chips with sweetened condensed milk and salt. Remove from heat;  and vanilla.

Spread evenly into buttered aluminum-foil-lined 8- or 9-inch square pan. Chill 2 hours or until firm.

Lift fudge out of pan and place onto cutting board; peel off paper and cut into 1 inch squares. Store covered in the refrigerator.

Weekend Fare: Pumpkin Dip & Pumpkin Pie Spice

Posted by Alaina in Weekend Fare and tagged with , , , , , , ,

Our magazine review will be tomorrow with our picks for the best Thanksgiving magazines!

Today, I’m sharing a recipe that wouldn’t generally be in my repetoire but is delicious and very easy for holiday entertaining, so I’m making an exception. :) This is a quick, easy, and wonderful dessert dip. It’s great for this time of year – perfect for showers, open houses, and snacks. I requested the recipe after enjoying it at an event and modified a little for our taste. You can serve this with gingersnaps, cinnamon grahams, cinnamon pita chips or whatever else sounds good to you!

PUMPKIN FLUFF DIP
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1 container (8 ounce size) frozen whipped topping, thawed (or equivalent stabilized, sweetened whipped cream)
1 box (5 ounce size) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 can (15 ounce size) solid pack pumpkin
1 1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (I make my own – recipe below)

In a large bowl, mix together instant vanilla pudding mix, pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Fold in the thawed frozen whipped topping. Chill in the refrigerator until serving.

PUMPKIN PIE SPICE
4 tsp. Cinnamon
2 tsp. Ginger
2 tsp. Nutmeg
1 tsp. Allspice
1 tsp. Cloves

Combine and store in an airtight container.

Foodie Fridays & Weekend Fare

Posted by Alaina in Foodie Friday, Weekend Fare and tagged with , , , ,

What great recipes and posts were submitted last week for Foodie Fridays! I didn’t get a chance to comment on all of them but they were wonderful! Hope you all had a chance to check them out. A big thanks to those of you who participated!

Weekend Fare: Fish is something that I find difficult to get right. Seems like it’s too dry, too fishy, or…you name it! The long and the short is that I keep trying and this week my whole family loved the fish. :) I used Tilapia fillets which were mild and delicious. You could use lime instead of lemon if you want. Fish is one of the quickest meals to prepare – these bake in about 10-12 minutes.

LEMON TILAPIA (you could substitute another white fish if you prefer)
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4 Tilapia fillets
salt & pepper
zest of 1/2-1 lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 Tb. butter

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Rinse and pat dry the fish. Season with salt & pepper on both sides. Arrange in a greased pan. Zest lemon over the fillets. Squeeze fresh juice over it all. Bake for 10-12 minutes until it flakes easily with a fork. Remove fish from oven. Divide butter into 4 equal parts and top each fillet with the butter allowing it to melt into the fish. Enjoy!

*I’m certain you could omit the butter but it just made the dish so delicious. And I served it with a brown rice pilaf (I omitted the butter in it) and a green salad.

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FOODIE FRIDAYS!

Welcome to another edition of Foodier Fridays! There is so much we can learn and share from one another! We hope you will find this feature encouraging and inspiring.

Here are just a few guidelines for participating in Foodie Fridays:
1) Leave a link to your post with Mr. Linky (you can also click on Mr. Linky to check out who has linked up!).
2) Your entry can include a recipe, a kitchen success, an ingredient, a tradition, a book/magazine/restaurant review, a favorite (or not) tool or gadget, food photos, recipe website, a food memory, a cooking or eating experience or anything food related.
3) Please link back here in your participating post.

Hope you have fun, meet new people, learn a few things, feel encouraged, and find inspiration as you cook, bake, and entertain!

Weekend Fare & Foodie Fridays

Posted by Alaina in Foodie Friday, Weekend Fare and tagged with , , , , , ,

We enjoyed a yummy Asian Noodle Dish this week! I adapted it from a recipe I found and it was kind of lo-mein style dish. Everyone liked it – I would have added a few more chili flakes but kept it mild for the kids. This is super easy and very quick to prepare! It’s also a very flexible recipe, you could substitute whatever type of meat and vegetables you prefer.

ASIAN NOODLES
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8 ounces of dried Asian noodles
1 bunch broccoli
1/2-3/4 c. sliced carrots
5 green onions, chopped
1/2 tsp. dried ginger or 2 tsp. fresh grated ginger
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons oil
2 chicken breasts, cut into strips
1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
juice of 1/2 lemon
pinch of chili flakes (more if you like it spicy)
salt and pepper to taste

Cook the noodles according to the directions on their package.  Drain and keep warm until ready to toss into stir-fry mix.

Wash and chop vegetables (leave broccoli in small-medium florets and peel and cut stem) and cut chicken into chunks.

Heat a large skillet or wok over medium high heat, add 2 tablespoons oil and chicken.  Stir-fry it for a few minutes until golden, then move the chicken onto a plate.

Put the garlic, ginger, and vegetables EXCEPT green onions, in the frying pan with a little more oil.  Stir-fry them for 5-6 minutes, turning them all the time.  Add the chicken, green onions, and drained noodles.  Mix everything together.

Blend the soy sauce and lemon juice together, then pour over chow mein mixture.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Cook for 2 more minutes to heat through. Enjoy!  

__________________________________________________

FOODIE FRIDAYS!

Welcome to another edition of Foodier Fridays! There is so much we can learn and share from one another! We hope you will find this feature encouraging and inspiring.

Here are just a few guidelines for participating in Foodie Fridays:
1) Leave a link to your post with Mr. Linky (you can also click on Mr. Linky to check out who has linked up!).
2) Your entry can include a recipe, a kitchen success, an ingredient, a tradition, a book/magazine/restaurant review, a favorite (or not) tool or gadget, food photos, recipe website, a food memory, a cooking or eating experience or anything food related.
3) Please link back here in your participating post.

Hope you have fun, meet new people, learn a few things, feel encouraged, and find inspiration as you cook, bake, and entertain!

Market Fresh: Cucumbers

Posted by Alaina in Market Fresh and tagged with , , , , , ,

Cucumbers are one of my favorite raw vegetables. I especially like the English cucumbers – they are the seedless ones that are usually wrapped in plastic. I’ve noticed that cucumbers are generally the first to go on a vegetable platters and they make a great addition to lettuce salad.

We always grow cucumbers in our garden and I enjoy coming up with different use for them. One of the simplest ways to serve it is sliced on a platter with salt, pepper, and vinegar. Today, I’m sharing a couple of other recipes that we enjoy.

 The inspiration for the first is a combination of my love tomatoes & cucumber together (I’ve been combining them in salads for years!) and the salads we ate in Kazakhstan which included lots and lots of dill. We ate something very similar to this and I loved it!

CUCUMBER-TOMATO SALAD
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1 english cucumber, cubed
2 tomatoes, diced (olr a 1/2 pint of tomatoes halved)
1/4 c. fresh dill, chopped
2 Tb. Olive oil
2 Tb. Vinegar
1 tsp. sugar
salt & pepper to taste

Combine cucumber, tomato, and dill. Sprinkle on sugar. Add salt & pepper to taste. Dress with olive oil and vinegar. Can be served chilled or at room temperature. The flavors develop if you allow the salad to marinate for at least 2 hours before serving. Serves 4.

My mom has made cucumber onion salad for as long as I can remember. It frequents our family gatherings. It’s also wonderful dressed with vinegar and oil.

CUCUMBER ONION SALAD
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1 Cucumber, thinly sliced
1 Onion, thinly sliced into rings
1/3 c. Mayonnaise
2 Tb. white vinegar or lemon juice 
Seasoned Salt or regular salt
Pepper 

Combine cucumber and onion. Season with seasoned salt and pepper. Dress with mayonnaise & vinegar. Serve chilled and allow to marinate for 1-2 hours before serving. Serves 4.