Baked Blackberry French Toast

OK . . . so I didn't really make this yet . . . but I ate it at school made by our new principal, Linda Ventura, who made it so that we would all stay for Parent-Teacher Conferences that night. It's yummy, and I think Janette would particularly like it since she likes to cook new things for breakfast. Maybe we can have this for one of our Christmas breakfasts when everyone is here. Any volunteers to make it?

Baked Blackberry (or Raspberry) French Toast

2 T. corn syrup
1 cube butter (no marg)
1 c. brown sugar

Mix syrup, butter and sugar in sauce pan and bring to gentle boil. Spray 9 x 13 glass baking dish with Pam. Pour in mixture.

Place 6 slices of a white bread (sourdough is good) over syrup. You may have to “squish” them to fit. Spread 1 c. of whole (fresh or frozen) blackberries or raspberries evenly over bread. Top berries with 6 more slices of bread.

6 beaten eggs
1 ½ c. milk
1 t. vanilla
¼ t. salt

Mix eggs, milk, vanilla, salt then pour over bread. Cover and chill overnight.

Bake, uncovered, @ 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Garnish with extra berries.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I went to Chili's the other day and love their broccoli cheddar soup. I tried to make something kind of similar. I think I will do things a little different next time- but it is still good!

2 cans Cream of Potato Soup (next time cream of broccoli or something similar)
1 cup of Skim Milk
1/2 small brick of Velveeta cheese cubed ( I think next time 6 oz of grated cheddar)
2 Medium stalks of Broccoli steamed (I cut off the stems because I think they're yucky)
Grated cheese to put on top
Salt and pepper to taste

Put the cream of whatever soup in a pan with milk and let simmer 10 minutes. Add cheese and let simmer until melted. Add steamed broccoli and salt and pepper to taste. Put in bowls and top with extra cheese- serve in bread bowls or with rolls.

thai chicken green curry

I forgot to take a picture of this recipe, so you may have to use your imagination.
recipe:
1 lb chicken, cut into 1 inch cubes
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon flour
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons green curry paste
2 green onions with tops, chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1 teaspoon ginger
2 cups coconut milk
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, for garnish
Toss chicken in 1 tablespoon soy sauce, then in the flour, coating pieces evenly. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Place the chicken in the skillet, cook and stir chicken until browned, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken.
Reduce heat to medium and stir in the curry paste. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant, then stir in green onions, garlic, and ginger. cook an additional 2 minutes. Return chicken to the skillet, stirring to coat with the curry mixture. Stir the coconuut milk, fish sauce, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, and sugar into the chicken-curry mixture. Allow to simmer over medium heat for 20 minutes until the chicken is tender. Serve garnished with cilantro leaves.

I thought this recipe was pretty good, not overpowering with the curry but still had a little bit of a kick to it. next time i make it i'll try to remember to take a picture.

Chocolate Covered Spiders

These are really good and no-bake. I took them to a party, and they were a hit.

1 c. chocolate chips
1 c. butterscotch or peanut butter chips
1 3-oz. can chow mein noodles
1 c. salted Spanish or cocktail peanuts
1 c. mini-marshmallows

Melt chips in microwave.
Stir in noodles, peanuts and marshmallows.
Drop by spoonfuls onto greased baking sheet.
Refrigerate til hard.
Take to party.

ever heard of chocolate chip cookies, anyone?

yeah, yeah, all I did was add 1/2 cup softened butter and an egg. Gotta start somewhere!

lettuce wraps

These were also very good, I made them Sunday night. They are similar to the lettuce wraps served at PF Changs.
The recipe:
1 head lettuce
1 lb ground pork or beef (I used pork)
1 T. cooking oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 T soy sauce
1/4 c. hoisin sauce (found on the oriental food aisle at the store)
2 t. ginger
1 T rice vinegar
1 (8 oz) can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 t. soy sauce
Rinse lettuce and seperate leaves, pat dry being careful not to tear
In a medium skillet, brown meat in oil, stirring often. Drain, and set aside to cool. Cook the onion in the same pan, stirring frequently. Add the garlic, 2 T. soy sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger, and vinegar to the onions and stir. Stir in chopped water chestnuts, green onion, meat, and remaining soy sauce and cook until green onions just begin to wilt, about 2 minutes.
To serve, allow each person to spoon a portion of the meat into a lettuce leaf. Wrap the lettuce around the meat like a burrito.

breakfast-the most important meal of the day

This was a good meal, eggs cooked on hash browns, toast, bacon, and orange juice.

enchiladas...

I made enchiladas this week, and they made history in the Fisher house. How, you ask? This is the first meal in 3 years that we have had leftovers left, and actually eaten them...all of them. and they were delish. This recipe differs from mom's a little bit, not that mom's isn't already good enough, but I kind of felt like venturing into the wild side of the red sauce enchilada rather than the white sauce. I think they turned out really good. the recipe:
4 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 onion, chopped
1/2 pint of sour cream
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 tablespoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
(cook above ingredients in large saucepan until cheese melts)
add:
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 can sliced black olives
1 clove garlic, minced
Simmer about 10 minutes, until sauce starts to thicken.
Divide chicken mixture among 8 (10 inch) flour tortillas, roll, and arrange in a 9x13" pan.
Pour 1 (12 oz) jar taco sauce over the top and sprinkle
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese over it. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
They are a little spicy, but super good.

"5K" Granola

I made this easy granola for the 5K walk, but we were too busy walking to eat any of it. It's out of my new Betty Crocker Cookbook (yes, I retired the 40-year-old one that I got from our wedding reception). Preparation time is 10 minutes unless you count the time it takes in the store to round all the ingredients up.

Granola (healthy stuff)

2 c. regular rolled oats
1 c. coarsely chopped sliced almonds, chopped walnuts, or chopped pecans
1/2 c. coconut (optional)
1/2 c. shelled sunflower seeds
1/4 c. toasted wheat germ
1/4 c. flax seed (I left this out because I couldn't find any)
1/2 c. honey or maple-flavored syrup (honey is healthier)
2 T. canola oil
1 c. dried fruit (cherries, dates, raisins or craisins)

Combine first six ingredients. In a bowl, mix honey and oil. Add honey mixture to the dry mixture, and spread evenly onto a greased (Pam) cookie sheet. Bake @ 300 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes or until light brown, stirring after 20 minutes. Stir in dried fruit. Cool. Store in airtight container for up to 1 week or in freezer bags for up to 2 months.

crepes!

I made crepes for breakfast on Sunday...looking back, I think we took the more "dessert" approach, but they were way good. i folded one, rolled another. they have bananas in them, nutella, brown sugar, whipped cream on top, and a little bit of caramel sauce for garnish. the crepes themselves were pretty easy to make. it's just 1 c. flour, 1/2 t. sugar, 1/2 t. vanilla, 1/4 t. salt, 1 c. milk, and 1 egg. mix it all together and then you pour about 1/4 c of batter into a large frying pan at a time, turn the pan so the batter gets really thin, and cook like a pancake. (**use pam or it will definitely stick) also, you have to be careful not to have it on too high of heat or the batter will cook before you can get it thin enough. next time i'm going to try the heartier approach, i'm going to use wheat flour instead of white and maybe try eggs inside, cheese, maybe some ham, more like an omelette.

Golden Squash Soup

OK, all you squash lovers, this is your rainy day "comfort" food for when your spoke breaks and you don't get to participate in the mtn bike race that you've been looking forward to for over a month. Plus it's healthy, especially when you're trying to bulk up with, er . . . cream. Curtis likes it. He ate a big bowl of it, and I don't remember him being a big squash fan.

2 apples (peel, cut and core)
2 1/2 lbs. banana or spaghetti squash (cut in half)
1 c. chicken broth
2 T. butter
1 1/2 c. chopped onions
2 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
2 t. mild curry powder
1 c. apple juice
1 c. cream
Salt to taste (check before adding more)

Place apples and squash face-down on baking sheet. Tent with foil and bake @ 350 for one hour. Let cool. Scoop out squash. Place squash, apples, chicken broth and apple juice in blender (the broth and juice will help the blender moosh it all up). In lg pot, melt butter, then add onions. Saute until onions are barely translucent, not limp. Add salt, pepper, and curry powder. Add squash mixture and cream. Heat through, but avoid boiling. Salt to taste. Serve hot. Makes about 8 cups.

Moongate

I ate lunch today at the Moongate Asian Bistro on Pearl STreet in Boulder. I had Tonkatsu - fillet of pork pressed in seasoning and Japanese panko batter, then fried to golden. As pictured, it came with fried rice and an egg roll. I'd give the rice and roll a 5 out of 10 and the pork a 7 - mostly simple flavors with slightly sweetened asian sauces. Just what I wanted. It was a nice place for lunch but I doubt I'd go there for dinner.

My fortune - The luck that is ordained for you will be coveted by others.

does this look appetizing?

i have not tried to make this, and i never would but i came across this recipe on allrecipes...thought i'd share. it's a twinkie with a hot dog with easy cheese on it. apparently this recipe came from weird al in a movie "uhf"-anyone ever seen it?

Easy Freezey Raspberry Jam

2-12 oz. packages of Frozen Raspberries
3 Cups sugar
1 small package of sure-jell
3/4 cup of water

Put the raspberries in a large microwavable bowl and microwave 50% power for 4 minutes. Stir raspberries - if you want chunkier jelly don't mush them too much- if you want it smooth mush away. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Add sugar to berries and let sit for 25 minutes stirring occasionaly. In a seperate bowl (needs to hold at least 4 cups) add water and sure-jell- stir. Microwave for 2-3 minutes. After it starts boiling take it out after 1 minute and stir. Put it back in for remaining time and stir.
Add to berries and stir for three minutes. Put in jars and let sit for 3-4 hours at room temperature until it sets. Freeze for one year or 1 month in fridge.
Makes 3-4 jam jars

Apple Raisin Nut Dessert

Sorry I missed taking a photo. I made this dessert for Jackie Anderson and Pam Allred's families. They came to dinner Tuesday night. Note: This recipe is not Weight Watchers approved, but it's yummy if you like raisins and nuts. Sorry, Brandan.

Apple Raisin Nut Dessert

2 c. peeled, diced apples
1 c. sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla
1 c. flour
1 t. soda
1 c. chopped nuts
3/4 c. raisins (I used white)

Lightly oil 8x8 pan. Mix apples and sugar. Let stand until sugar is dissolved (abt 45 minutes, but you can leave this step out if you're in a hurry). Stir in egg and vanilla, mix. Combine the rest, then add to apples. Put in pan and bake @ 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Topping

1 c. water
1/2 c. brown sugar (Tip: Make brown sugar by dribbling a few drops of molasses over white sugar. This saves you from ever having "hard, stale" brown sugar. Check the package of brown sugar for list of ing. if you think this doesn't make sense.)
1/2 c white sugar
2 T. flour
1/2 c. chopped nuts
1/2 c. raisins
1/2 c. butter

Mix water, sugar and flour. Cook on medium-low heat til thickened. Add butter and other ing. until butter is melted. Pour over hot cake. Cool a little, then serve w/ whipped topping or ice cream (or both).

mongolian bbq-kind of

I made this a couple of weeks ago, it was pretty good. really easy too!
the sauce is:
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. cider vinegar
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 t. ground ginger
1/4 t. ground black pepper
You just boil the sauce for about 5 minutes so the sugar gets well dissolved...
I marinated the pork in it for a few hours, boiled a package of chinese noodles and then cooked it all together with some steamed veggies-broccoli, carrots, snow peas, water chestnuts and baby corn.

welcome to the blog

This is a blog to share adventures in the kitchen! you know, recipes you've tried and liked--or hated. restaurants that you liked--or hated...and whatever else you want to post about food. welcome!!