I think it’s been a little while since I shared any updates about Biscuit!
Well, he’s growing – he’s now a whopping 21 lbs and not showing any signs of slowing down.
He’s even starting to lose his “puppy face.” Aww..
My go-to cake for potlucks – a Williams-Sonoma recipe.
Click here for 45 awesome Thanksgiving pies from Martha!
Some pies that looks a little “off the beaten path” and interesting to me:
Chocolate Pecan Pie
Honey Walnut Pie
Pear-Cranberry Pie with Faux Lattice
Pumpkin Pie with Chipotle
Upside-Down Pecan Pie
Southern Black Bottom Pie
Triple-Chocolate Pumpkin Pie (my favorite from the new pies I tried last year!)
Two great friends came to stay with us last weekend from Chicagoland for a wedding. They decided to extend their weekend trip a bit and take advantage of the great camping opportunities on the Skyline Drive. With the camping in mind, I decided to make Trail Mix Cookies.
But I wanted to improve on my previous recipe. Those cookies had an awful lot going on… much like Everything Cookies. I wanted to tone it down a bit, so I replaced the peanut butter chips and white chocolate chips with additional semi-sweet chocolate chips. This allowed a little more enjoyment of the dried cranberries, almonds and golden raisins with a hint of chocolate.
Please do read my previous post for some information on agave syrup, what I used in place of sugar. It’s a more natural sweetener, especially good for diabetics. It also makes the cookies soft – you won’t get a crunch using agave.
What will throw you off the most about working with agave is that you’ll think you messed up when combining ingredients. Agave doesn’t blend very well at first with the butter and it seems to separate a lot… but when you add in the dry mixture you’ll see that everything is fine. Just have a little faith!
New & Improved Agave Trail Mix Cookies
3/4 cup Nature’s Path Organic Pumpkin Flax Plus Granola with Omega-3
3/4 cup trail mix (a mix of dried cranberries, almonds and golden raisins. I also threw in some sunflower seeds for fun.)
1/2 cup oats (regular, not instant)
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup shredded coconut
7 ounces (slightly more than 3/4 cup) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/8 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup agave syrup
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Preheat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, combine granola, trail mix, oats, semi-sweet, white and peanut butter chips, and coconut. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine.
Beat room temperature butter until smooth. Add agave syrup, vanilla and egg. Beat well (don’t get discouraged when it looks clumpy and like it isn’t holding together… that’s normal!). Fold in flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Then fold in granola, oats, trail mix, chips and coconut.
Use a tablespoon to scoop large balls of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Place balls approximately 2 inches apart. Bake approximately 12 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely (these cookies cooled surprisingly fast). Store in an air-tight container.
Makes about 2 dozen cookies.
I’m on a dinner roll this week (get it? dinner… roll…? i should not be allowed to tell jokes)! Shrimp & Grits on Tuesday was a new fave, today’s recipe is an old, old fave.
This recipe is from a cookbook put out by the teachers and administrators at my elementary school. Yep, my elementary school… in the 80’s.
But my mom tried it one night, probably almost 20 years ago, and it has been a family staple ever since. I used to request it for my birthday every year, and I never understood why when friends came over for a birthday dinner they never got as excited about Chicken Casserole as they did about Pepperoni Pizza.
That’s right, I’m talking about casserole. I know that in today’s world the word “casserole” strikes a bit of fear into our hearts. We think of a leftover tuna casserole in our grandmother’s fridge… right next to the green ambrosia. You know what I’m talking about. Americans used to thrive on casserole, now we’re terrified.
I’d rename it something with less baggage, but maybe I can reclaim the world and turn it back into something positive… take it back to when it meant making a quick and easy dinner and only having to dirty one pan. One pan!
This dish makes enough for leftovers on a busy night. What I love most is the hint of white wine that comes through. Don’t overbake it, or you’ll be left with sad, dry chicken.
Bringing Sexy Chicken Casserole Back
adapted from Joan George
adapted from Joan George
6 boneless chicken breasts, halved longways
salt and pepper to taste
8 slices Swiss cheese (low-fat works)
3/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup melted butter (unsalted)
1 1/2 cans cream of chicken soup
2 cups Pepperidge Farm stuffing mix
Preheat oven to 300F. Place halved chicken breasts in a 9×13 baking dish and top with Swiss slices. In a medium bowl, thin the soup with the white wine and mix until smooth. Pour mixture over chicken and Swiss. Rinse bowl, and combine stuffing mix and melted butter. Stir, moistening stuffing, and sprinkle over top of the dish. Season with salt and pepper.
Bake at 300F for 1-1/2 hours. Can be made ahead.
Note – I added a handful of green beans to my latest batch, just to introduce some veggies in there. I didn’t feel it added anything tremendous flavor-wise, so I might suggest making your veggies as a side rather than adding them to the dish.
My cooking/baking/decorating idol Martha Stewart has released her Thanksgiving favorites.
I’m so excited for Thanksgiving cooking and baking that I can barely contain myself. Do you know what you’re making yet this year?
52 of Martha’s Favorite Side Dishes
15 Stuffing and Dressing Recipes
10 Cranberry Sauce Recipes
I can’t wait any longer to share this recipe. I’m too darn excited.
The first time I had grits, I ordered them with my scrambled eggs at a local restaurant in the south. I’d never given grits much thought before, and I probably didn’t even know what grits were until my mid-teens or possibly later. People just don’t eat grits in the north (and in case you’re new to grits – it’s ground corn.. it’s the consistency of cream of wheat, but cream of wheat is ground wheat instead of corn).
I had no idea that grits would be the perfect compliment to a breakfast of scrambled eggs and warm biscuits. My friend Jeff always raved about having shrimp and grits for dinner, but considering that he liked things such as Turducken, you could only put so much stock in his food recommendations.
But wow, this time he was right! Shrimp and grits makes a quick, healthy, spicy and delicious dinner (if you’re a big breakfast person, this would probably make an awesome breakfast too – I just like a lighter meal in the morning). I was stunned that something so tasty could be whipped up in probably 15 minutes – and that time includes my miscellaneous puttering and slowness.
I adapted a recipe from What’s Cooking America to take out some unnecessary items and make it more my style, and I’m happy to report that it worked out perfectly. You won’t find any bacon, onions or heavy cream in my version. Many recipes also add a lot of cheese to their shrimp and grits, but I just didn’t think this needed it. I also used instant grits instead of slow cooking (this makes a big difference in your cook time, so read your labels!), which made the process much faster. Give grits a chance 🙂
Creamy Shrimp & Grits
adapted from What’s Cooking America
Serves 2-3 people
adapted from What’s Cooking America
Serves 2-3 people
About 20 regular sized frozen shrimp, thawed and peeled
1/2 cup skim milk
2 cups water
1 cup chicken broth
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup instant grits
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 finely chopped green bell pepper
Salt and black pepper to taste
dash of red pepper flakes, cayenne, and onion powder
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, combine skim milk, water, and broth and bring to a boil. Add butter, salt and pepper. Slowly add grits, stirring constantly so that they do not burn. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook for approximately 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Grits should absorb all of the liquid and become soft and moist, not dry, like oatmeal. Remove from heat.
Sprinkle thawed and peeled shrimp with lemon juice, black pepper, a little salt and onion powder and set aside. Add garlic and green bell pepper to a medium pan; sauté until the onion is clear and transparent. Add shrimp mixture and sauté 5 to 7 minutes or until shrimp are curled and opaque. Remove from heat.
Spoon hot grits onto individual plates and top with shrimp mixture. Enjoy!
Oy, what a week! Let’s kick back our heels a bit with some foodie and health-related news, mmkay?
And… loldog?
Food Photography – Pumpkin Cheesecake from Chandler’s Bakery
November 4th, 2009
by Heather (Ghost Baker)
Chomp, chomp! It’s time for some food photography.
This is a Pumpkin Cheesecake from Chandler’s Bakery in Charlottesville, VA. I get my pizza dough from Chandler’s and also satisfy my cravings for hard rolls. I’m a big fan of their breads [insert tired argument about how I’m originally from the north and you can’t find a decent roll in the south here].
The desserts I’ve had are good, but so far I haven’t been blown out of my shoes. I look forward to trying more things from Chandler’s and more bakeries in Charlottesville!
I tried a cake from Albemarle Baking Company when looking for wedding cakes a few years ago, and even though everyone tells me how great they are I swear the frosting on that cake was really Crisco. It was a gigantic disappointment, especially since they made me purchase a whole cake in order to try it – at least at that time they didn’t do samples for weddings. Somehow their bread also happens to be very good, but I’m too traumatized by my grease cake experience to return.
Have a bakery recommendation in Charlottesville? I’ll romp on over with an open mind and a hungry stomach.
Detoxing from Halloween with Acorn Squash & Sweet Potato Soup
November 2nd, 2009
by Heather (Ghost Baker)
Good morning! I hope you had a great Halloween. I spent much of the day watching scary movies, reformatting my computer from Vista to Windows 7 and going to bed by 10:30 PM in order to be up at 5 AM for an early hospital shift – riveting, I know!
You’ve probably had enough of Halloween candy and sweets for a little while (I haven’t, but the scale says otherwise), so this recipe should help if you need some detox along the way.
The other day I made an Acorn Squash & Sweet Potato Soup. It’s a little bit sweet and very tasty. It would make a great appetizer soup for a Thanksgiving dinner party to introduce the meal, or you can have it for weeknight dinner and enjoy the leftovers for a few more nights (like my husband and I did).
I changed a few things from the original recipe including leaving out shallots and chives. Because the squash and sweet potato would already be sweet, I didn’t want to introduce the sweet onion shallot flavor as well. Shallots can also be a little expensive.
I’d never worked with acorn squash before this actually, and it’s very easy. My trick to scoop out the insides after roasting the squash was to use a melon baller – the squash flesh came apart easily and without a lot of mess.
Sprinkle with fresh ground pepper to garnish.
Acorn Squash & Sweet Potato Soup
adapted from Pumpkins & Squashes
adapted from Pumpkins & Squashes
1 large sweet potato
1 medium acorn squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 cloves garlic, unpeeled
3 3/4 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup light cream
salt and pepper
Preheat oven to 375F.
Cut sweet potato and squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out squash seeds and brush cut sides with oil
Place cut squash and sweet potato halves cut-side down in a shallow roasting pan (I used an old brownie pan). Add unpeeled garlic cloves around the vegetables. Roast for 40 minutes until tender.
When cool, pin down one end of the squash with a fork and scoop flesh (ie, the insides) from potato and squash with a melon baller, leaving the skins behind. Peel garlic and add soft insides and scooped flesh to a large saucepan.
Add the chicken broth and a dash of salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for approximately 30 minutes, until vegetables are very tender. Stir occasionally.
Cool slightly and transfer to a food processor or blender and process until smooth. Work in batches so that you do not overflow your machine. If using a food processor, strain off the cooking liquid and reserve. Process the veggies with only enough liquid to moisten it, then combine with remaining liquid when fully processed.
Return soup to rinsed pan and stir in light cream. Season with salt and pepper and simmer for 5 minutes or until heated through. Garnish as desired and serve!\
